Game 23 Preview: #2 Purdue @ #6 Wisconsin
MADISON, Wis. — With sole possession of first place in the Big Ten on the line, second-ranked Purdue visits No. 6 Wisconsin at the Kohl Center Sunday afternoon, the two schools now tied atop the league standings after the Badgers’ OT loss at Nebraska and the Boilermakers’ OT win over Northwestern.
DETAILS: Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024 | 1 p.m. ET | TV: CBS (Ian Eagle, Bill Raftery) | Radio: Purdue Radio Network
PURDUE (20-2, 9-2 B1G): ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATS
WISCONSIN (15-5. 6-3 B1G): ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATS
THREE THINGS ABOUT PURDUE
• Purdue has ascended back to No. 1 nationally in offensive efficiency, per KenPom.
• The Boilermakers are riding a six-game winning streak and have won three straight on the road, but have had to endure some harrowing moments late in both the win at Rutgers and the overtime win over Northwestern.
• Purdue’s shooting 40.7 percent from three-point range, a number that normally dips in Big Ten, but that’s actually slightly better than its full-season clip. Fletcher Loyer is shooting 51 percent.
A FEW THINGS ABOUT THIS GAME
• Wisconsin’s been a pleasant surprise of sorts in a profoundly different Big Ten, hitting the top 10 in the AP poll this past week and jumping out to a quick two-game lead on Purdue in the Big Ten standings, a lead that evaporated this week in Pinnacle Bank Arena.
These two teams meet again in the regular season finale March 10 at Purdue.
• The numbers show this to be an atypical Wisconsin team, as did the second half on at Nebraska, as a huge lead slipped away in part due to the Badgers turning the ball over and taking less-than-ideal shots at times.
Wisconsin’s turnover percentage of 15.3 percent is 64th nationally. Last season the Badgers were third in that category.
Defensively, Wisconsin has been average. Opponents’ offensive rebounding percentage of 22.7 percent sticks out like a sore thumb leading into a matchup with Purdue.
• St. John’s transfer A.J. Storr has changed Wisconsin some, giving them a real scoring playmaker in the backcourt, as they had a few years back in Johnny Davis. Storr averages 16.5 points per game.
• Something to watch: Badger big man Steven Crowl shoots 48 percent from three. Often in such cases, Purdue has flipped its defensive matchups at the 4 and 5. Power forward Tyler Wahl is not much of a perimeter shooter.
• Depth is a major strength for Wisconsin, with seven players averaging double-digit minutes. Connor Essegian, one of the best freshmen in the league last season, isn’t even one of them, as he’s been relegated to a much smaller role this season.
Freshman guard John Blackwell has been a revelation this season, as has returning forward Max Klesmit, one of the conference’s best shooters. They’re shooting 50 and 41-and-a-half percent, respectively, from three.
| THE FRONTCOURTS | TURNOVERS | TKR AND GILLIS |
| Purdue needs to overpower Wisconsin up front and hammer the glass, while also being on top of Crowl on the arc and solid against Wahl’s post-ups. | It’s always turnovers when Purdue struggles. There may be a little more margin for error than usual against this UW team, but Purdue doesn’t want to need it. | Could this be a game where Purdue can attack Wahl on offense as much as he attacks Purdue? |
GOLDANDBLACK.COM PREDICTION: PURDUE 76, WISCONSIN 71
There won’t be anything easy about this game, nor is there ever in Madison. Wisconsin has a lot of guys who can score and still can’t be expected to beat itself in any way, no matter what that Nebraska game looked like. The first half was the real Wisconsin.
