How do the Badgers match up against a sneaky tough opponent?
The newly-ranked No. 19 Wisconsin Badgers captured their first signature win of the season by defeating the No. 9 Arizona Wildcats 103-88 at the Kohl Center last Friday.
It was a marvelous night for the Wisconsin faithful, who honored the 2014 and 2015 Final Four teams that, coincidentally, beat Arizona in the Elite Eight in those Final Four runs.
The Badgers return tonight as a 21.5-point favorite against UT-Rio Grande Valley. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. CT.
What should Wisconsin fans know about the Vaqueros of UTRGV?
Opponent Preview
Kahil Fennell is in his first season as head coach of the Vaqueros. Fennell was an assistant coach at BYU under Mark Pope for the last two seasons and was in charge of the defense. BYU was one of the nation’s best three-point shooting teams last year, and Fennell should make that a priority for his team in Edinburg.
UTRGV finished 6-25 last year and lost leading scorer Elijah Elliot to the transfer portal. This Vaqueros team is improved under Fennell, as they come to the Kohl Center with a 3-2 record. UTRVG opened the season at Nebraska and No. 15 Creighton, where they fell 87-67 in Lincoln and 99-86 in Omaha. The final scores do not represent the overall games, as the Vaqueros remained competitive into the second half, trailing by five points or fewer with under six minutes left in both games.
DePaul transfer K.T. Raimey has been the leading scorer for the Vaqueros, where he averages 15 points per game coming off the bench. Right behind Raimey is starting 6’ 8’’ guard Hasan Abdul Hakim at 14.6 points per game. Abdul Hakim finished with a double-double at Creighton with 26 points and 11 rebounds and had a strong showing in the River Division of the Greenbrier Tip-Off. In wins over Charleston Southern and Tennessee Tech, Abdul Hakim had 24 and 15 points, respectively.
Winthrop transfer guard Howie Fleming Jr., at 6’ 6’’, leads the Vaqueros with 3.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Like Raimey, Fleming Jr. is also coming off the bench. In the post, starter Tommy Gankhuyag has registered one block in three of UTRGV’s five games.
Score Prediction
UTRGV is an opponent that could give the Badgers fits in the first half and throughout the game due to their athleticism. The challenge for Wisconsin is whether they can match the energy they showed against Arizona against this team.
If the Badgers sleepwalk through this game, they will be in trouble. Like the previous games (outside of Arizona), I anticipate a slow start but a Wisconsin win nonetheless.
Prediction: Wisconsin 88-66.