Wisconsin Basketball: 3 teams to beat in 2019 Big Ten Tournament

Quarterfinals – Maryland

Previous meetings this season

January 14 (at Maryland): Terrapins 64, Badgers 60 

February 1 (at Wisconsin): Badgers 69, Terrapins 61

Wisconsin’s opening test in the tournament will likely come in the form of Maryland on Friday afternoon.

The fifth-seeded Terrapins (currently ranked No. 21 in the country) will play the winner of Wednesday’s clash between No. 12 Rutgers and No. 13 Nebraska on Thursday, and it’s hard not to like their odds regardless of which squad they play. Should things go as expected, Wisconsin would face off with Maryland for the third time this season.

In the last meeting between these squads, the Badgers got the win in large part because of the play of their complimentary guys on the perimeter, a common theme this season. Brad Davison scored 21 to lead all scorers, while Aleem Ford also hit some big shots off the bench and contributed 10 points. In Wisconsin’s most recent outing against Ohio State, the role players in the backcourt stepped up in a big way as well, led by Khalil Iverson’s 22 points. Davison and D’Mitrik Trice also put up 14 and 8, respectively. Those performances, especially in the case of Iverson, who is playing the best basketball of his career, are very encouraging as we move deeper into March.

With Bruno Fernando, Jalen Smith, and Ethan Happ going at each other in the post, how the guards perform on both sides will decide whether Maryland or Wisconsin moves on to the semifinals.

Prediction

The Terrapins will likely get a tough battle from either Nebraska or Rutgers, as both squads have proven themselves capable of holding their own against more talented opponents this season. Should they emerge with a victory, they will get very little reprieve before taking on this hard-nosed Wisconsin team.

Wisconsin’s guards continue to ball out in the quarterfinals, and the fresh-legged Badgers outlast a tired Terrapins squad to move on to the next round.