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Wisconsin's two road wins set the Badgers up for a potential January run

Wisconsin's two road wins at No.2 Michigan and Minnesota have the Badgers surging in the Big Ten conference
Benjamin Worgull|
Jan 13, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) celebrates his game winning three-point basket against the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the second half at Williams Arena.
Jan 13, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) celebrates his game winning three-point basket against the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the second half at Williams Arena. | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

It's impressive how one game can change a team's mental psyche and how one week of games can change how a team is viewed from the outside world.

Welcome to the 2025-26 Wisconsin basketball team.

Following an uninspiring, uncompetitive second half to Purdue, the Badgers were 0-3 against ranked teams and trailed by a combined 90 points in them. It looked as if Wisconsin would lose all six games to the league's top five teams and be forced to play near perfect in the other 14 to have a chance at an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Wisconsin's outlook is much different now.

Wisconsin has picked up three Quad 1/2 wins over the past week, including beating second-ranked and undefeated Michigan in Ann Arbor and sneaking by a Minnesota team that has been tough in Williams Arena.

Nick Boyd's premotion that the Badgers just needed one win to get on a roll has come true. UW has won three straight and plays four of its next five at home, a stretch of winnable game that could really pad its resume.

The last week and a half have thrust Wisconsin back into the projected tournament field with a winnable stretch of games to come.

Here is week 11 of the Big Ten Power Rankings.

1, Michigan Wolverines (15-1, 5-1) Previous: 1

The Wolverines did not play up to their usual level against Wisconsin, but Michigan still shot 46.8 percent, averaged 1.205 points per possession, and lost by three to a team that went 10-for-17 from three in the second half.

Michigan rebounded with its fifth Quad-1 win with an 82-72 win at Washington, taking the lead four minutes in and never looking back.

Even with the loss, no Big Ten team currently comes close to matching Michigan's portfolio of six Quad-1 wins and 10 wins in the top two quadrants.

Up Next: Saturday at Oregon

2, Nebraska Cornhuskers (17-0, 6-0) Previous: 3

It takes a collective team effort to win 21 consecutive games. So, when Sam Hoiberg, Rienk Mast, and Pryce Sandfort were held to a combined 30 points at Indiana, a game in which the Hoosiers led by 16 early in the second half, the Huskers leaned on Jamarques Lawrence. Having more single-digit scoring games than double-digit ones entering the weekend, Lawrence set a season-high in field goals (8-for-13), threes (5-for-8), free throws (6-for-8), points (27), and rebounds (five) as the Huskers stormed back.

The Huskers had less drama in their 35-point home win over Oregon, with Sanford and Braden Frager combining for 14 of Nebraska's 17 threes.

The Huskers have won their first six conference games for the first time since the 1965-66 team was 7-0 in the old Big Eight.

Up Next: Saturday at Northwestern

3, Purdue Boilermakers (16-1, 6-0) Previous: 2

The Boilers are winning, but they aren't dominating teams they should at home. Purdue allowed Penn State to shoot 57 percent from the floor, resulting in the Boilers giving up 85 points in an eight-point win. They trailed Iowa by nine with 14:36 to play before storming back to win by nine, not sealing the game until the final minute.

Not surprisingly, Braden Smith was a big part of both outcomes. He had 26 points (11-for-18) and 14 assists against the Nittany Lions and scored all 16 points in the second half against the Hawkeyes. After Iowa went up nine, Smith scored 10 of his points in the next five minutes to put Purdue

Up Next: Saturday at USC

4, Michigan State Spartans (15-2, 5-1) Previous: 4

Michigan State's two home wins were works of art, but they got the job done. In the first half against Northwestern, the Spartans committed eight turnovers and missed almost half their free throws in trailing 35-28. Although MSU had seven second-half turnovers, the Spartans were 17-for-22 from the line and had a 42-25 rebounding edge, leading to 16 second-chance points in a 10-point win.

The Spartans also trailed by seven in the first half against Indiana, but their physicality slowly wore down the Hoosiers, evidenced by the 26-7 run that ended the 81-60 victory.

It was a big week for point guard Jeremy Fears. He scored all 15 points against Northwestern in the second half and scored 19 of his 23 against Indiana in the first half and dished seven of his 10 assists in the second half.

Up Next: Saturday at Washington

5, Illinois Fighting Illini (14-3, 5-1) Previous: 5

Illinois has gone 3-0 in its gauntlet of three games in six days, including a pair of road games with a win at Iowa on Sunday by six and at Northwestern Wednesday by 11. Freshman guard Keaton Wagler led the team in scoring all three games, averaging 19.3 points per game, and has led the Illini in scoring six times in the last nine games.

Up Next: Saturday vs. Minnesota

6, Wisconsin Badgers (11-5, 4-2) Previous: 11

Wisconsin has a chance to really pad its resume over the next two weeks. The Badgers play four of five at home against teams they are either equal to or better than, with their only road game next Thursday at Penn State.

Nick Boyd has been a great transfer-portal addition for the Badgers, as his steady play at point guard has allowed John Blackwell to become a more impactful player at the two guard. Both players picked up weekly honors last week after they combined for 48 points in the win at Michigan.

Blackwell's three-pointer at the buzzer to lift UW to a win at Minnesota is another adrenaline shot in the arm for the Badgers, who are starting to see the pieces come together.

Up Next: Saturday vs. Rutgers

7, USC Trojans (14-3, 3-3) Previous: 6

The Trojans closed out a challenging three-game road trip by getting 29 points from Chad Baker-Mazara in a gritty one-point overtime win at Minnesota, finishing 1-3 on its Midwest swing. Baker-Mazara missing the second half of a win over Maryland is something to watch going forward, but the Trojans got a lift from Jordan Marsh season-high 20 points to keep the Terrapins winless in conference play.

Up Next: Saturday vs. No.5 Purdue

8, Iowa Hawkeyes (12-5, 2-4) Previous: 7

The rugged nature of the Big Ten has hit the Hawkeyes, who have dropped three straight in games they should be kicking themselves over. The Hawkeyes started slowly at Minnesota and against Illinois, falling behind double digits in the second half before a furious rally fell short. At Purdue, the Hawkeyes led by nine early in the second half and were in a two-possession game for nearly the final 11 minutes but couldn't string together offense or stops.

The Hawkeyes are 0-4 against ranked teams this season and extended their losing streak against top-10 opponents to 10 since 2021-22.

Up Next: Sunday vs. No.16 Illinois

9, UCLA Bruins (12-5, 4-2) Previous: 9

A couple wins over winless Big Ten teams have helped the Bruins started trending back in the right direction, even with Skyy Clark still sidelined.

After getting beaten up in the Midwest, the Bruins returned home to wallop Maryland with hot first-half shooting and lockdown defense. Traveling to the East Coast for the first time, UCLA knocked off Penn State by 11, thanks to Trent Perry scoring a career-high 30 points. Perry made four 3-pointers, shot 7 of 13 from the field and all 12 of his free-throw attempts in surpassing his previous career best of 17 points.

Up Next: Saturday at Ohio State

10, Indiana Hoosiers (12-5, 3-3) Previous 8

Indiana was in full control after closing the first half on a 12-2 run and opening the second half on a 10-3 advantage to lead 49-33 with 17:42 left. The Hoosiers were outscored 50-28 the rest of the way.

Lamar Wilkerson has been a stud for the Hoosiers, but more often than not he's been a one-man band. Against the Spartans, he was the only Indiana player in double figures. The lack of size doesn't help either, as Indiana was outrebounded 37-19 mark, had a six-minute scoring drought, and gave up a 19-0 scoring run, 12 coming off IU turnovers.

Indiana needs more toughness and more consistency from others.

Up Next: Saturday vs. Iowa

11, Ohio State Buckeyes (11-5, 3-3), Previous: 10

The Buckeyes split in the Pacific Northwest, winning at Oregon before losing their first road game of the season at Washington. The Buckeyes put five all starters in double figures against the Ducks, but only had three double-digit scorers and three bench points against the Huskies.

Bruce Thornton continues to be a model of consistency, pushing his double-digit scoring run to 16 games.

Up Next: Saturday vs. UCLA

12, Minnesota Gophers (10-7, 3-3): Previous: 12

Two gut punches this week for Minnesota in its home building, where the Gophers hadn't lost all season. Niko Medved has the Gophers ahead of schedule with their rebuild, and missing two starters due to injuries don't help, but playing a Princeton-style offense combined with sound defensive principles makes Minnesota a tough matchup for teams.

The Gophers are about to be tested, however, playing three of the next four on the road with the one home game being against No.8 Nebraska.

Next: Saturday at No.13 Illinois

13, Washington Huskies (10-7, 2-4) Previous: 13

The Huskies stopped their two-game losing streak by knocking off Ohio State, but had a great opportunity to beat Michigan. The Huskies held the Wolverines to 22 percent shooting from three but couldn't get their own three to fall. Washington missed its first 12 shots from 3-point distance and took seven minutes to make its second field goal, resulting in them playing from behind most of the night.

A big bright spot for the Huskies was getting Jacob Ognacevic back on the court. The reigning Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year at Lipscomb made his Huskies debut after missing the first half of the season with a foot injury. He finished with 10 points and three rebounds.

Up Next: Saturday vs. No.12 Michigan State

14, Rutgers Scarlet Knights (9-8, 2-4): Previous: 14

Rutgers responded to getting blown out at Illinois with a gritty overtime win against Northwestern, sealed at the overtime buzzer with Darren Buchanan Jr's block at the rim. Tariq Francis has been the x-factor in both of Rutgers' Big Ten wins. He scored 30 points in overtime in a three-point win over Oregon and came off the bench to score another 30 points against the Wildcats, including seven in a row at one point for the Scarlet Knights.

Up Next: Saturday at Wisconsin

15, Northwestern Wildcats (8-9, 0-6) Previous: 15

Northwestern can't catch a break. The Wildcats couldn't do anything with the two great performances they got from Nick Martinelli. He had 28 points at Michigan State, but no other player scored in double figure, as Jayden Reid was 3-for-14 from the floor. Martinelli had a career-high 34 with a season-high 12 rebounds but saw Rutgers win in overtime.

At least Martinelli (20) has help with 28 points from Jayden Reid, but no other player scored more than seven points on a night where the Wildcats shot 39 percent in an 11-point loss to Illinois.

Up Next: Saturday vs. No.8 Nebraska

16, Oregon Ducks (8-9, 1-5) Previous: 16

Giving up a 21-0 run in a 10-point loss to Ohio State and getting blown out at Nebraska has dropped Oregon to its worst 17-game record in 15 years and its worst start in conference play since 2013-14.

It doesn't help that the Ducks have played nine different starting lineups because of injuries and point guard Jackson Shelstad has missed four straight games with an injury to his right (shooting) hand.

Up Next: Saturday vs. No.4 Michigan

17, Penn State Nittany Lions (9-8, 0-6) Previous: 17

Penn State has such a small margin for error that perhaps having leading scorer Kayden Mingo, who has missed the three games to an injury suffered in practice, would have made a difference in the last week.

Penn State didn't have its leading scorer but shot 57 percent, had a 28-27 rebounding advantage, and had a 29-4 edge in points off the bench. The problem is the defense. Purdue shot 58 percent and committed only three turnovers.

Against UCLA, the Nittany Lions held Donovan Dent and Eric Dailey Jr. to a combined 0-for-9 but went 4-for-22 from three and scored just 13 points in the final 11:46 of the game.

Up Next: Sunday at Maryland

18, Maryland Terrapins (7-10, 0-6) Previous: 18

Getting swept in Los Angeles is just another body blow for the Terrapins, who have lost four straight, seven of eight, and nine of 11. The one bright spot is David Coit, a Kansas transfer who registered his third 30-point game of the season in the loss to USC.

Up Next: Sunday vs. Penn State

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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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