What you forgot about Wisconsin’s March Madness magic 10 years ago

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Wisconsin basketball prepares for March Madness first round game

The Badgers had a 35-minute workout Wednesday in Denver in advance of their NCAA Tournament first-round game vs. Montana Thursday.

It’s been 10 years since the Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team made an unforgettable run to the national championship game, complete with a legendary win over undefeated Kentucky and a controversial loss to Duke in the finale.

Getting back to the stage has proven highly difficult in the decade since. Wisconsin, eliminated in the second round of the 2025 NCAA tournament March 22, hasn’t been to the Sweet 16 since 2017 and hasn’t been back to the Elite Eight at all.

Here’s what you may have forgotten (or not) from the run, moving in chronological order:

Wisconsin lost to Rutgers on Jan. 11 … and Rutgers didn’t win another game

Wisconsin dismantled most of the Big Ten in the regular season, except for a loss to Maryland and, surprisingly, Rutgers, which shocked UW on Jan. 11, 67-62.

The Scarlet Knights never won another game that season; they went on to lose 15 consecutive games after staging the upset and finished 2-16 in league play (10-22 overall).

So how did Wisconsin lose? Frank Kaminsky was sidelined for that game, and Traevon Jackson missed the final 12-plus minutes after breaking his foot, so there were extenuating circumstances.

Wisconsin closed the season with an emphatic exclamation point despite not having anything to play for

But Wisconsin’s moment of weakness against Rutgers was a rare one.

Wisconsin already had the Big Ten regular-season outright title locked up when it closed the season in Columbus, Ohio, but it nevertheless eviscerated an Ohio State team that was ranked No. 23 at the time, 72-48.

UW didn’t allow any points in overtime to win Big Ten title game

Then, the Badgers took care of business in the Big Ten tournament, a 71-60 win over Michigan, a 71-51 win over Purdue and an 80-69 win over Michigan State in overtime.

Michigan State would reach the Final Four that…

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Source link : https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2025/03/31/what-you-forgot-about-wisconsins-march-madness-magic-10-years-ago/82612114007/

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Publish date : 2025-03-31 09:59:00

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