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Basketball Preview: No. 24 Wisconsin Vs. No. 3 Purdue

Dillon Graff
·2 min read

The No. 24 Wisconsin Badgers re-enter Big Ten play, this time against the No. 3 Purdue Boilermaker’s in West Lafayette.

Purdue has been a kryptonite of sorts for the Badgers, particularly on the road. UW has not won in Mackey Arena since the 2013-2014 season, and is just 18-73 on the road against Purdue all-time.

Notable KenPom Rankings:

Wisconsin: 39th ranked team, 39th in ADJ Defense, 2nd in turnover%.

Purdue: 3rd ranked team, 1st in ADJ Offense, 2nd in Effective FG%.

Purdue’s projected starters:

Guard: Isaiah Thompson (6.6 ppg, 1.2 rpg)

Guard: Jaden Ivey (16.7 ppg, 5.1 apg)

Guard: Sasha Stefanovic (11.5 ppg, 3.9 apg)

Forward: Trevion Williams (13.3 ppg, 9.1 rpg)

Center: Zach Edey (14.9 ppg, 7.3rpg)

*It’s worth noting that Purdue’s sophomore forward Mason Gillis (6.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg) is likely to draw the start over Zach Edey.

Wisconsin projected starters:

Guard: Chucky Hepburn (7.5 ppg, 2.1 apg)

Guard: Brad Davison (14.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg)

Guard: Jonathan Davis (20.8 ppg, 6.6rpg)

Forward: Tyler Wahl (9.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg)

Center: Steven Crowl (8.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg)

Greg Gard and the Wisconsin Badgers are going to have their hands full in this one. Purdue is putting up 87.2 ppg – good for 4th best in the nation on a ridiculous 51.6% from the field. They’re also shooting 41.1% from downtown, making them one of the most complete offenses in the nation this season.

This match-up comes at a rather unfortunate time for the Badgers considering they’ve been uncharacteristically ineffective on defense as of late.

The defensive end of the floor is where UW found it’s identity early in the season, and they’re going to need to recapture that flame to hold their own against Purdue in a hostile road environment.

The Badgers big men are going to have to play with immense physicality in the paint, and prevent Zach Edey and Trevion Williams form getting easy buckets at the rim.

The Badgers tip off at 6 p.m. Monday on BTN.

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