The Wisconsin Badgers took one on the nose against Oregon over the weekend. The Ducks have slowly become the giant killers of the college basketball world with nine quad-1 wins. They found a way to knock off the Badgers on the road, and it was absolutely aggravating for Wisconsin fans. Many fans turned off their TV and declared the sky was falling, but it turns out that not only bracketologists shrugged off the loss, but also the AP Voters did.
Staying steady pic.twitter.com/9uWG7AFQFX
— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) February 24, 2025
The Wisconsin Badgers are ranked No. 11 in the AP Top 25 for the second week in a row
The AP voters didn't have a big enough problem with Wisconsin losing to drop them any spots. Nor did they move them up any spots for dismantling Illinois. They simply said, "Weird week for the Badgers, just leave them."
It may have helped that so many teams around them struggled to perform this week. Purdue, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech all lost twice. Only St. John's and Michigan State won both games this week (in the range around Wisconsin's 11). That means there wasn't much reason to move Wisconsin. Things shifted around them, but going 1-1 wasn't as big of a killer as many Wisconsin fans thought.
They still have everything in front of them. They may be out of the Big Ten race (not officially but unofficially), but they are still cruising into the Big Ten tournament and the NCAA tournament. Right now, they have the double-bye for the Big Ten tournament and they are projected as a 2 or 3 seed for March Madness.
Their next game is tomorrow against the Washington Huskies, who are currently in last place in the Big Ten. They will need a big win against the Huskies to get the momentum back and confidence for the Michigan State game later this week.