Badger of Honor staffers predict the Wisconsin Badgers round of 32 NCAA Tournament matchup
The Wisconsin Badgers and the Xavier Musketeers are set to square off in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament after the seven-seed Badgers survived 10-seed Pittsburgh and the two-seed Musketeers took down 15-seed Weber State.
Wisconsin, despite a poor shooting performance against Pittsburgh, held off a late-game shot attempt from the Panthers and survived for a 47-43 victory in a low scoring affair. Xavier, meanwhile, took care of business against Weber State on the way to a 71-53 victory.
Both teams are seeking a spot in the Sweet Sixteen, and a win Sunday night will punch that ticket.
More badgers: Badgers to Face Xavier in the Second Round
Here’s how our staffers see the game playing out:
Taylor Johnson: If Wisconsin has another poor shooting night like they did against Pitt then they will be run out of St. Louis faster than when the Rams bolted for the city of Angels. I don’t expect that to happen. I do see this game being close and going back and forth. Wisconsin might have trouble dealing with the two big men for Xavier, James Farr and Jalen Reynolds. They will need to keep those two out of the paint and off the glass. Nigel Hayes will bounce back and Ethan Happ will have another solid game for the Badgers.
More from Badger of Honor
- Wisconsin Football flips 3-star defensive tackle from Northwestern
- Former Wisconsin Football stars to be featured on the next Wheaties box
- Believe it or not, Wisconsin Football has never played these FBS teams
- Four-star running back Darrion Dupree commits to Wisconsin Football
- Wisconsin Football wide receiver enters the transfer portal
In the end however, I think the Musketeers will prove to be too much for Wisconsin. Just like in 2009 when these two met last in the NCAA Tournament, the Badgers season will end. I hope I’m wrong.
Xavier 68, Wisconsin 59
Erik Buchinger: While Friday night’s game against Pittsburgh was a bit difficult to watch, it was nice to see the Badgers were able to pull out a victory with leading scorers Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig finishing a combined 4 of 25 from the field. The Badgers come into Sunday’s game as four-point underdogs, and I expect them to come out with much more fire. Xavier scores 81.3 points per game, so the Badgers need to play as well as they did defensively on Friday, and I think they will. Badgers will be headed to the Sweet 16.
Wisconsin 61, Xavier 59
Rayan Vatti: There is nothing that bothers me more than having to picking against Wisconsin. I rarely do it, I hate doing it, but for this game, I have to do it. Xavier is a really tough matchup for Wisconsin. They have good guards, solid shooting, and enough size and physicality to cause a lot of problems for the Badgers inside. To put it simply, the Musketeers have no real weaknesses on the offensive end.
To make matters worse, Wisconsin only has one full day to prepare for the hectic, confusing Xavier 1-3-1 defense, which they play on 33% of their possessions. In order to have a chance to win, Wisconsin needs to shoot the lights out. But after their shooting woes against Nebraska and Pittsburgh, I can’t see that happen.
Xavier 68, Wisconsin 58
More from Wisconsin Basketball
- 2023-24 Big Ten opponents for Wisconsin Women’s Basketball announced
- Wisconsin Basketball: Recruiting and transfer portal updates
- Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers fumble the game away
- Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers headed for Sin City
- Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers roast the Ducks
Jim Oxley: Given recent evidence, there’s absolutely no reason to suggest that Wisconsin’s shooting woes will magically correct themselves in time for Sunday night’s matchup against the Xavier Musketeers. Wisconsin has struggled to shoot in each of their last three times out on the court, inside the three-point line and out.
Xavier presents multiple matchup issues and their 1-3-1 zone will force the Badgers to make shots from the outside. Despite everything stacked against the Badgers, the optimist in me says Wisconsin finds the bottom of the net a few more times and gets back on track. No one expected this Badgers group to even get this far, and I don’t think the run is over yet.
Wisconsin 58, Xavier 54
Next: Badgers Avoid Upset Amid Chaos in First Round
Wisconsin and Xavier tip off at approximately 7:45 p.m. CT Sunday night. The winner will advance to the Sweet Sixteen to play the winner of No. 6 Notre Dame and No. 14 Stephen F. Austin, which tips at 1:40 p.m. CT Sunday afternoon.