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Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers jump 10 spots to 13 in latest AP Poll

By Christian Borman

Jan 6, 2022; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Tyler Wahl (5) is greeted as he returns to the bench during the game with the Iowa Hawkeyes at the Kohl Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 6, 2022; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Tyler Wahl (5) is greeted as he returns to the bench during the game with the Iowa Hawkeyes at the Kohl Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports /
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Last week when I looked at the Wisconsin basketball team’s upcoming schedule, I figured the Badgers would be in good shape if they got out of the week with a 2-1 record. They played two of the three games on the road, including a game at Mackey Arena against the #3 Purdue Boilermakers. They also had a home game against Iowa, their rivals, who had the country’s top scorer in Keegan Murray. Then a trip to College Park to take on the Maryland Terrapins.

I’m not going to lie, I was expecting a 1-2 record after the week, especially with how the team looked against Illinois State the week before. But this Wisconsin basketball team continues to surprise and make everyone look stupid for their preseason predictions of this team.

After their 3-0 week, the Badgers sit at 13-2 and vaulted up 10 spots to #13 in the country in the latest AP Poll.

The Badgers received 784 points. LSU and Houston are ahead of the Badgers received 889 points and 949 points, respectively. The Badgers are just ahead of Villanova and Iowa State who received 682 and 648 points, respectively. So the Badgers are pretty set in their spot at 13 this week.

With their surge up the rankings, the Badgers are now the third-highest ranked Big Ten team behind Purdue (7th) and Michigan State (10th).

The Wisconsin basketball team actually makes a case to be ranked even higher. Their only two losses on the season came at the hands of two teams who are currently ranked. They lost to #23 Providence without Johnny Davis and on the road to Ohio State, who is now ranked #16.

They also have wins over #7 Purdue and #10 Houston.

Despite all this success, Jesse Newell, from the Kansas City Star, left the Badgers off of his rankings. In fact, he put Indiana (#23) and Iowa (#24) on his poll, two teams the Badgers have already defeated.

The majority of the voters had the Badgers somewhere between 11-18, but some had some high praise for the Wisconsin basketball team. They had at least three votes for each of the spots from 5-8.

This Wisconsin team is trending upwards and will have a chance to strengthen their case, even more, in their next game. The Badgers will have a chance to exact some revenge on the #16 Buckeyes when they come to town on Thursday.

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