Wisconsin Basketball season is right around the corner

The Wisconsin Basketball team kicks off their season on Friday with an exhibition game against UW-Oshkosh. The first in a long road back to March.

This week our eyes will shift from the disappointing Wisconsin Football season to the Wisconsin Basketball season. The Badgers basketball team kicks off their season on Friday, Nov 2 at the Kohl Center with an exhibition game against UW-Oshkosh. The regular season starts on Tuesday, Nov. 6 against Coppin State.

After missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 20 seasons last year, the 2018-19 squad looks to return to the big dance. The Badgers will have early tests before entering Big Ten Play.

Their second regular season game is Tuesday, Nov. 13 at Xavier as part of the Gavitt Games. Later in November, they will participate in the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas where they will square off first against Stanford and then either Florida or Oklahoma. Their first Big Ten game will be Friday, Nov. 30 at Iowa. Milwaukee fans can mark their calendars, if they haven’t already, for the in-state rivalry game against Marquette at the new Fiserv Forum on Saturday, Dec. 8. The Big Ten regular season really gets underway on Thursday, Jan 3 when the Badgers host Minnesota.

The team returns nearly everyone from last year squad including All-American Ethan Happ. He has already put together an impressive collegiate career and is looking to further cement his legacy. His senior season could also be one for the record books. Happ is only 677 points away from moving from 8th to 1st on the programs scoring list. He would move past iconic Badgers such as Alando Tucker and Michael Finley.

Happ also needs 30 rebounds to move from second to first on the Badgers all-time rebounds list. Essentially Happ is on the cusp of becoming the first player in school history to top 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds for his career. This is something that only four players have ever accomplished in NCAA history.

Head Coach Greg Gard will also get back guards Kobe King and D’Mitrik Trice who were both injured early last season and missed the entire year. Freshman sensation Brad Davison returns looking to build on his successful first year in which in played most of it with a dislocated shoulder.

All three looked impressive in the Red/White scrimmage, with Davison and Trice scoring in double figures. This team has depth at the guard position so it will be interesting to see how Gard utilizes that. There will many times where we will see Davison, Trice and King all on the court at the same time.

For the Badgers to return to the NCAA Tournament and win a game or two, they are going to need other players to take a leap forward in their progression. Nate Reuvers is one of those guys that could. Last year was suppose to a redshirt year for him, but due to injuries, he ended up playing a major role and cracking the starting lineup. This year, he bulked up and added 20-25 pounds to his frame. That additional weight should bode well for him down the stretch in Big Ten play.

One player that Badgers’ fans should remember and keep an eye is newcomer Tai Strickland. He is the son of former NBA Player Rod Strickland. Not to mention he is an explosive guard who plays relentless defense. It will be interesting to see if he can crack the rotation this season, but definitely someone to watch.

Basketball season is upon us and the Badgers have high hopes of returning to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence. Time will tell if this years squad can gel and if multiple players have progressed enough to help Ethan Happ lead this team on a deep March run.