The Badgers could leapfrog into the top of the Big Ten with a huge road win on Saturday.
The last time the Wisconsin Badgers faced the Purdue Boilermakers was arguably their best moment of the 2023-24 season, as they knocked off the latter in a 76-75 overtime win in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament last year.
Well, Saturday’s contest doesn’t necessarily have as high stakes, but it could very well be an important seeding game for the Badgers, who have managed to consistently be a top-five team in the Big Ten this season.
As it stands, following a UCLA loss to Illinois on Tuesday, the Badgers are firmly in fourth place in the Big Ten at the moment, and are inching closer and closer to the top of the conference standings.
Tuesday was a major day for the conference, as both Purdue and the Michigan State Spartans lost, dropping them to 11-3 and 10-3 in the conference, while the Michigan Wolverines leapfrogged both teams to earn sole possession of first place in the Big Ten with their 10-2 conference record.
As it stands, the Badgers, with their 9-4 conference record, are just 1.5 games out of second place where Purdue currently stands. Enter into the picture Saturday’s game.
Wisconsin heads to the Mackey Arena over the weekend to take on the Boilermakers on the road as they look to solidify their top-four seed in the conference tournament and potentially even rise higher in the standings to bolster their NCAA Tournament resume.
A win over Purdue would put the Badgers at half a game back of Purdue with key games against the Illinois Fighting Illini and Michigan State Spartans still on the schedule. Meanwhile, the Boilermakers, coming off a loss to Michigan, still must face Michigan State, UCLA, and Illinois, while Indiana and Rutgers could prove to be tough challenges as well.
That top-four seed would earn the Badgers a double-bye in the conference tournament, which would be a big break rest-wise before a tough stretch that kicks off postseason play in March. Winning against Purdue and continuing to jump in the standings would go a long way to achieving that goal on Saturday.