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Wisconsin Badgers earn national recognition for pair of top 10 wins

Nobody in the country had a better week than the Badgers, and awards have been flooding in since
Cam Wilhorn|
Feb 10, 2026; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard gives a hand to player Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) after a win over the Illinois Fighting Illini during the second half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
Feb 10, 2026; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard gives a hand to player Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) after a win over the Illinois Fighting Illini during the second half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers have pulled off a complete 180 over the last five weeks.

A slew of uncompetitive losses before the calendar flipped to 2026 put Greg Gard and the Badgers at risk of missing the NCAA Tournament for the second time in four years.

Since then, Wisconsin has continued to defy expectations, picking up big win after big win.

They added two more top 10 victories to their rapid-growing resume last week, vaulting themselves clearly into the March Madness picture and earning praise from across the country.

Wisconsin Badgers named "Team of the Week" after downing Illinois, Michigan State

Last week, teams in the Top 10 of the AP Poll lost a total of five games to teams outside of the Top 10.

Two of those losses were to Wisconsin, who upended No. 8 Illinois in overtime on the road and dominated No. 10 Michigan State at the Kohl Center. That was enough for the Badgers to be labeled Team of the Week nationally.

While it was Wisconsin's first appearance on the Field of 68's Weekly Superlatives this season as team of the week, it was their second time earning the recognition from Andy Katz.

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The Badgers victory over Michigan in Ann Arbor on January 10 as 19.5-point underdogs was enough to earn the honors.

Other outlets recognized Wisconsin and its players for their exceptional play during the back-to-back upset wins, though the performances seemingly weren't enough for the team of the week label.

Landing the titles of best offense, MVP, and best upset, the Badgers were well represented.

Nick Boyd averaged 27.7 points, 4.5 assists and 1.0 steals while shooting 55.6 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from three-point range during the two wins. He turned the ball over just once.

Related: Nick Boyd is already surpassing John Tonje as Wisconsin Badgers breakout transfer guard

He and John Blackwell fueled the Badgers offense, which delivered 92 points in both games and shredded a Spartans' defense that was widely considered a top-5 unit nationally.

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Cam Wilhorn
CAM WILHORN

Cam Wilhorn is a University of Wisconsin School of Journalism Graduate and Wisconsin native. He's been covering Wisconsin sports since 2023 for outlets like BadgerBlitz.com, Badger of Honor and The Badger Herald.

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