Wisconsin is traveling to University Park, Pennsylvania, to take on Penn State, and it has very little fanfare. It may not help that the Nittany Lions aren't very good, at only 9-9 and one of the worst NET-ranked teams in the Big Ten. Many are overlooking the contest, but not Blackwell, for he remembers another scenario in which Penn State was overlooked.
In his freshman year, the Wisconsin Badgers were ranked No. 11 in the AP Top 25 with a six-game winning streak. They went into University Park to face off against a 9-9 Nittany Lion team. It ended up being a "trap game," as Blackwell calls it, because Penn State won 87-83. Blackwell then lost again at the Kohl Center in his sophomore year to the Nittany Lions. That secret frustration of being 0-2 vs. Penn State is not letting him overlook them again.
The #Badgers lost in their last trip to State College, PA — when then-freshman guard John Blackwell and UW were on a six-game streak.
— Michael McCleary (@MikeJMcCleary) January 20, 2026
"That's what you call a 'trap game,'" Blackwell said.
Blackwell is 0-2 against Penn State in his career and hopes for a better outcome Thursday. pic.twitter.com/YUQcQZoafD
John Blackwell has yet to win a game against the Penn State Nittany Lions
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This is the year he wants to change that. Blackwell did his part in last year's game as he scored 19 points, but it wasn't enough to take down Penn State. The Nittany Lions scored 51 points in the second half to the Badgers' 35, and that was the tale of the game and ultimately the loss.
The Badgers were also ranked in that contest, No. 12, and were taking on a 16-15 Penn State team at home. It was another game in which the Badgers had no business losing, and yet they did. If they don't want history to keep repeating itself, Wisconsin will need to find a way to play 40 minutes of good basketball. Not just 20 like they did against Rutgers, but all 40.
Blackwell does not want to go 0-3 against Penn State, and that secret frustration of being 0-2 against them has him motivated to see this one all the way through to a win.