The Badgers defeated the Indiana Hoosiers Friday night by a score of 70-60, advancing to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Northwestern will be their opponent, after the Wildcats upset Maryland in the quarterfinals, 72-64. The game will tip-off at 2:30 p.m. CT and will be televised on CBS.
Projected Starters
Wisconsin:
G: Bronson Koenig (14.2 PPG, 2.0 APG)
G: Zak Showalter (8.2 PPG, 2.9 RPG)
F: Nigel Hayes (13.5 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.9 APG)
F: Vitto Brown (6.8 PPG, 4.0 RPG)
C: Ethan Happ (13.9 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.9 APG)
Northwestern:
G: Bryant McIntosh (14.5 PPG, 5.3 APG)
G: Scottie Lindsey (14.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.4 APG)
G: Sanjay Lumpkin (6.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG)
F: Vic Law (12.6 PPG, 5.9 RPG)
C: Dererk Pardon (8.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG)
Last time these two squads met, Northwestern beat Wisconsin in the Kohl Center 65-59 (February 12th). The loss started the Badgers’ February slide.
Northwestern was without Scottie Lindsey that night, who was out with mono. Lindsey scored 14 points last night as the Wildcats pulled off the upset over No. 3 seed Maryland, in what was basically a home game for the Terrapins in D.C.
Bryant McIntosh led the Wildcats when they won in Madison. The junior guard totaled 25 points, seven assists, and seven boards. He killed the Badgers when they lost in Evanston last season, too. McIntosh totaled 28 points, five assists, and four rebounds as a sophomore against Wisconsin. A win over Northwestern has to start with containing McIntosh. He led the Big Ten Conference in assists this season.
It’s March, which means it is Bronson Koenig’s favorite time of year. The senior already started out postseason play strong, scoring 16 points and hitting four threes in the Badgers opening game against Indiana. The senior guard also had five assists and three steals. If Koenig can outplay McIntosh, that will go a long way for the Badgers on Saturday afternoon.
Ethan Happ had nine points, seven rebounds, and five assists the first time out against Northwestern. Even though that’s an all-around steady game, Happ was just 3/8 from the field and 3/6 from the free throw line. Greg Gard will need his All-American and First Team All-Big Ten member to play like it this time around.
With Purdue losing on the other side of the bracket, the path to a Big Ten Tournament Championship may have gotten easier for Wisconsin. The winner of Wisconsin/Northwestern will play the winner of Minnesota/Michigan on Sunday.