MADISON, Wis – After a stretch of battles against ranked opponents, the Wisconsin (3-8, 0-8 B1G) women's basketball team looks to pool its new-found experience as it travels to Purdue (5-6, 2-5) Thursday for a matchup with the Boilermakers. Tip time is 4 p.m. CT live on the Big Ten Network.

Here are five things you need to know before tuning in:

1. THREE-PART ATTACK: The Badgers out shot No. 9 Maryland in all three categories in their last outing Sunday, shooting 44.1% (26-59) from the field, 33.3% (6-18) from 3-point range and a season high 92.3% (12-13) from the free-throw line. The Badgers also saw three players score in double digits for the first time in four games. Sydney Hilliard, Imani Lewis and Julie Pospisilova led the Badger offense. Hilliard led all players with19 points against Maryland while Lewis shot 7-of-8 from the free-throw line to tally 17 points. She also added a season-high 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. Pospisilova rounded out the Wisconsin attack, going 4-6 from deep in her 18-point outing. The balanced scoring was the first for Wisconsin since three scored in double figures vs. Minnesota on Jan. 3.

2. DEFENSIVE GROWTH: Over its last two games, Wisconsin has held a ranked team well below its season average for points. Wisconsin held Maryland to more than 14 points below its season average of 93.7 points per game, and also held Michigan to more than 14 points below its season average of 83.2 ppg. UW also held the Big Ten's leading scorer, Michigan's Naz Hillmon to just six points, nearly 22 points below her season average of 27.7 ppg. The Badgers increased defensive presence, especially after playing a stretch of tough ranked opponents, will look to be a key part of their game plan moving forward. A large part of this defense has been the play of sophomore Julie Pospisilova, who ranks fifth in the Big Ten with 1.5 blocks per game and ties for 17th in the conference with 1.6 steals per game.

3. HANDLING THE ROCK: On the other side of the ball, the Badgers continue to grow their ball control skills, recording a season-low 11 turnovers against the Terrapins. In addition to low turnovers, Wisconsin also dished off 16 assists to improve its assist-to-turnover ratio. Sophomore Sydney Hilliard leads the team and ties for eighth in the Big Ten with 4.8 assists per game, tallying 53 assists on the season while giving the ball up 38 times. 

4. SCOUTING PURDUE: The Boilermakers sit ninth in the Big Ten with wins over Penn State and Nebraska. Their last outing came Monday as Purdue dropped a tough game on the road in Iowa City against the Hawkeyes. The Boilermakers are led by junior guard Kayana Traylor, who averages just over 15 points a game and sits 17th in the Big Ten in scoring. But very similar to Wisconsin, Purdue boasts multiple players who can put up big numbers including Madison Layden and Fatou Diagne, who totaled 19 and 16, respectively, in its loss at Iowa.

5. HOW TO WATCH: Thursday's game was a late pick-up by the Big Ten Network with tip time moved to 4 p.m. CT. Fans can also listen to the voice of the Badgers Jon Arias on U-100.9 FM in the Madison area or anywhere using the iHeartRadio app. Live updates and stats can also be found by following @BadgerWBB on Twitter.