No. 24 Wisconsin moves back into Top 25 by displaying a knack for beating Big Ten’s best teams

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin men’s basketball team entered 2026 lacking quality wins and needing to upgrade its NCAA Tournament resume in a hurry.

The Badgers (18-7, 10-4 Big Ten) responded by becoming the first team this season to beat three top-10 teams, an achievement that has them back in the Top 25 for the first time since November as they prepare for a Tuesday visit to Ohio State (16-9, 8-6).

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No. 24 Wisconsin’s return to the poll follows a week in which the Badgers won 92-90 in overtime at then-No. 8 Illinois on Tuesday before returning home to trounce then-No. 10 Michigan State 92-71 on Friday, their most lopsided win over a top-10 team in school history.

The Badgers also won 91-88 at then-No. 2 Michigan on Jan. 10. That’s the only loss all season for Michigan, which has since moved up to No. 1.

In each of those wins over top-10 teams, Wisconsin made at least 15 3-pointers.

“(When) we shoot like that, ain’t no team in the country that can beat us,” fifth-year senior guard Nick Boyd said after scoring 29 points against Michigan State. Boyd was selected as the Big Ten player of the week.

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The only other team to have three top-10 wins this season is No. 13 Texas Tech, which joined the club Saturday with a 78-75 overtime victory over Arizona, which dropped from No. 1 to No. 4 in this week’s rankings. Texas Tech also beat then-No. 3 Duke 82-81 on Dec. 20 and then-No. 6 Houston 90-86 on Jan. 24.

Considering how well Wisconsin shot in each of its three biggest victories, it’s easy to assume the Badgers’ fortunes have improved simply because of better 3-point accuracy.

When the Badgers struggled earlier this season, they went 7 of 29 from beyond the arc in a 98-70 loss to No. 23 BYU, 7 of 28 in a 74-63 loss to TCU, 7 of 32 in a 90-60 loss at No. 9 Nebraska and 4 of 25 in an 89-73 loss to No. 7 Purdue. BYU was ranked ninth, Nebraska 23rd and Purdue fifth when those games were played.

But the Badgers believe the changes go beyond…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/no-24-wisconsin-moves-back-214620578.html

Author : STEVE MEGARGEE

Publish date : 2026-02-16 21:46:00

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