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Wisconsin has plenty of shooters to guard when the Badgers face Indiana

Wisconsin Badgers begin a busy month on the road when it faces the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington.
Benjamin Worgull|
Nov 28, 2025; San Diego, CA, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Nolan Winter (31) blocks Texas Christian University Horned Frogs forward David Punch (15) during the second half at Jenny Craig Pavilion.
Nov 28, 2025; San Diego, CA, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Nolan Winter (31) blocks Texas Christian University Horned Frogs forward David Punch (15) during the second half at Jenny Craig Pavilion. | Abe Arredondo-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

After going 7-2 in January, Wisconsin plays five of its seven February games on the road, starting with a trip to Bloomington, Indiana, to take on the Hoosiers this morning.

Wisconsin has won seven of its last eight games and currently sits in a tie for fifth in the

Big Ten. The Badgers are two wins away from winning at least 10 Big Ten games for the 22nd time in the last 25 seasons, something no other conference team has done.

Here is a look at both teams and a prediction for tonight's contest.

Indiana (15-8, 6-6 Big Ten) vs. Wisconsin (16-6, 8-3 Big Ten)

Date/Time – Saturday, February 7, 11 a.m.
Arena – Assembly Hall
TV – Fox (Kevin Kugler and LaPhonso Ellis)
Radio – Badgers Radio Network (Matt Lepay and Brian Butch)
Coaches - Greg Gard at Wisconsin (229-123 in his 11th season). Darian DeVries (first series; 184-76 in sixth season)
Series – Indiana leads 99-81, including 57-30 in Bloomington
Point Spread - Indiana -4.5

Wisconsin probable starters

2 Nick Boyd (6-3 Senior Guard, 20.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.5 apg)
7 Andrew Rohde (6-6 Senior Guard, 6.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.8 apg)
25 John Blackwell (6-4 Junior Guard, 18.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.3 apg)
31 Nolan Winter (6-11 Junior Forward, 13.8 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 1.8 apg)
32 Aleksas Bieliauskas (6-10 Freshman Forward, 4.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 0.6 apg)
Off the bench
0 Braeden Carrington (6-5 Senior Guard, 7.0 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1.0 apg)
5 Jack Janicki (6-5 Sophomore Guard, 2.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.2 apg)
23 Will Garlock (7-0 Freshman Center, 1.1 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 1.0 apg)
Player to watch
One of two Big Ten guards named to the Jerry West Award Midseason Watch List, Blackwell averaged 19.0 ppg, 5.1 rpg and 2.9 apg in January.

Indiana probable starters

3 Lamar Wilkerson (6-6 Graduate Guard, 20.2 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.5 apg)
4 Sam Alexis (6-9 Senior Forward, 7.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.2 apg)
5 Conor Enright (6-1 R-Senior Guard, 4.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 4.6 apg)
7 Nick Dorn (6-7 Junior Guard, 9.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.3 apg)
12 Tucker DeVries (6-7 R-Senior Guard, 13.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.3 apg)
Off the bench
1 Reed Bailey (6-10 Senior Forward, 9.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.4 apg)
6 Tayton Conerway (6-3 Graduate Guard, 11.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 4.0 apg)
11 Trent Sisley (6-8 Freshman Forward, 5.3 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.4 apg)
Player to watch
Wilkerson is top five among Big Ten players in total points (276), points per game (23.0), made 3-pointers (44), and 3-point shooting percentage (38.9%) in league play.

Series notes

UW has won 26 of the last 31 matchups with Indiana, including 12 of the last 15.

Since 2002, when Bo Ryan and Greg Gard arrived in Madison, Wisconsin has dramatically flipped the series. Before 2002, UW was 49-91 (.350) overall and 21-50 (.296) in Bloomington. Since 2002, UW is 32-8 (.800) overall and 9-7 (.563) on the road.

Since 2007-08, Wisconsin is 26-5 against the Hoosiers, by far the best record by a Big Ten team against IU. Purdue ranks second at 21-11 (.656) followed by Michigan State at 18-11 (.621).

Greg Gard is 12-4 in his career vs. Indiana.

Wisconsin notes

The Badgers are averaging 83.2 points per game, which would be the third-best average in school history. UW has scored 80+ points in 14 of their 22 games this year.

Wisconsin is third in the Big Ten and 16th in the country in turnover percentage with a 13.7 percent clip. UW is 13-3 this year in games when they commit 12 or fewer turnovers in a game.

UW's 14 games with 10+ triples rank second in school history as only last year's team recorded more double-digit three-point games (20) than this year's squad.

Boyd and Blackwell are one of three high major duos in the NCAA to each average 18.5 points per game, along with BYU's AJ Dybansta and Richie Saunders, and Texas Tech's Christian Anderson and JT Toppin.

Indiana notes

The Hoosiers underwent a complete overhaul of the roster during the offseason with 10 transfer additions. The class ranked third in the Big Ten Conference and 10th nationally according to 247Sports.

Indiana has averaged 10.6 made 3-pointers per game, which is fourth in the Big Ten and 27th nationally, and 10.9 triples per league game. The Hoosiers have buried 10 or more triples in 16 games. In those contests, IU holds a record of 11-5 and averaged 86.3 points per game.

The Hoosiers have averaged 82.5 points per game in six high-major games at Assembly Hall. In those games, IU has shot 169-of-336 (50.3 percent) from the floor, 68-of179 (38.0 percent) from the three-point line, and 89-of-115 (77.4 percent) from the free throw line. Indiana is 11-2 in front at home this season.

The Hoosiers average 17.6 helpers per night and have assisted on 65.2 percent of their made field goals, the seventh-best rate in the country.

Prediction

Indiana is the first of a run of challenging games for Wisconsin, as the Badgers are playing five consecutive Quad-1 games. Most NCAA Tournament projections currently have Wisconsin on the right side of the bracket in a likely 8-9 game. That has a chance to drastically change with what's ahead.

But while fans look at the NET rankings and a variety of projection models and analytics sites, Gard only looks at one category.

"The most important analytic? Win," Gard said. "We're focused on Indiana right now. I don't care if there's five of seven or six of nine on the road. It's Indiana, and let's focus on that, and that's how we've always operated. I think it gives us the best chance to stay focused on what's the most important thing and that's the next game and not play the what-if scenarios."

This will be a mirror-like game for the Badgers with the amount of perimeter shots Indiana likes the shoot, as Wilkerson (113), DeVries (87), and Dorn (76) all average over six perimeter attempts in conference play. The trio will put an emphasis on UW's ability to adhere to its defensive principles of switches and going over screens to limit space.

Despite being undersized, Indiana is a solid defensive team. The Hoosiers rank 37th nationally in opponent's two-point field goal percentage (47.1) and 45th in adjusted defensive efficiency, so shots at the rim won't be easy against Indiana's smaller roster if the perimeter shots aren't falling.

Nothing will matter though if Indiana can't stop Wilkinson, who earlier this season scored 44 points and made 10 three-pointers against Penn State while playing less than 25 minutes. Per OptaSTATS, no player in Division 1 or the NBA has done that in the last 30 seasons.

Indiana's one big weakness does give Wisconsin an edge. The Hoosiers foul on 23.9 percent of their offensive possessions (296th nationally). Considering the Badgers are shooting 77.8 percent from the line, attempting 22.1 per game, and converting 17.2 free throws per game, that's an edge to the visitors with a guard duo in Blackwell and Boyd who can draw fouls.

If Wisconsin can rekindle its level of play it had before the break, the Badgers should pull out an important road win.

Prediction: Wisconsin by 7
Worgull's Prediction: 18-4 (12-10 ATS)
Points off Prediction: 233 (10.6 ppg)

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Benjamin Worgull
BENJAMIN WORGULL

Benjamin Worgull has covered Wisconsin men's basketball since 2004, having previously written for Rivals, USA Today, 247sports, Fox Sports, the Associated Press, the Janesville Gazette, and the Wisconsin State Journal.

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