Ethan Happ and the Badgers huddle during a game against Michigan State
Darren Lee

Men's Basketball

Five Things to Know: Michigan State

Badgers host Spartans at Kohl Center on Tuesday

Men's Basketball

Five Things to Know: Michigan State

Badgers host Spartans at Kohl Center on Tuesday

#20 Wisconsin

17-7, 9-4

#11 Michigan State

19-5, 10-3

Game Coverage

Feb. 12 | 6 p.m. | Kohl Center | Madison, Wis.


MADISON, Wis. — Winners in six of the last seven games, Wisconsin plays its only regular season game against No. 11 Michigan State on Tuesday. The Badgers are 2-0 against top-25 teams this season at home.

Up next, UW seeks its 15th-straight win over Illinois on Feb. 18.

1. RESUME BUILDING: The Badgers checked in at No. 11 in the Feb. 9 NET rankings and No. 11 according to KenPom.com. Wisconsin is one of just four teams with seven Quadrant 1 wins. The Badgers have played the fourth-toughest schedule in the NCAA (per KenPom.com).

2. HOMECOURT ADVANTAGE: Michigan State has won five straight over Wisconsin, but only one of those games was played in Madison. The Badgers have won 11 of the last 14 meetings with the Spartans at the Kohl Center, including three of the last four.

3. BADGER-SPARTAN CLASSIC: The Spartans' last two trips to Madison have been memorable contests.
    Last season, No. 2 Michigan State escaped with a 68-63 win. Then-freshman Brad Davison scored a career-high 30 points despite aggravating a shoulder injury early in the second half. After returning from the locker room and missing just 0:23 of game action, Davison scored 16 points down the stretch to keep UW in the game.
    In 2016, Wisconsin pulled off a 77-76 upset of No. 4 MSU -- the first ranked win for head coach Greg Gard. In that game, then-freshman Ethan Happ scored underneath with 10 seconds remaining to give UW the win.

4. CHASING HISTORY: Senior Ethan Happ is trying to become the first player in Big Ten history to average 15.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. In fact, over the last 25 years, no NCAA player has reached those marks for an entire season.

5. TAKE CARE: Wisconsin ranks second in the NCAA with just 9.2 turnovers per game. The Badgers have had single-digit turnover totals in nine of 13 Big Ten games this season.

For more information, check out the full preview of Tuesday's game (PDF).
 
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Players Mentioned

Brad Davison

#34 Brad Davison

G
6' 3"
Sophomore
Ethan Happ

#22 Ethan Happ

F
6' 10"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Brad Davison

#34 Brad Davison

6' 3"
Sophomore
G
Ethan Happ

#22 Ethan Happ

6' 10"
Redshirt Senior
F