The Wisconsin Badgers have almost completed their non-conference scheduling and will shortly publish the final result. The Big Ten schedule is finalized, and that's already been published. We also know that Wisconsin will be playing Marquette on December 5, Villanova on December 12, Auburn on December 19, and Colorado State on December 30. However, there's a bit of a gap at the beginning of the year after Wisconsin plays Denver (exhibition) on November 2 and the Bahamas Championship later that month.
In that gap is Campbell, which was leaked a couple of months ago, but that has also yet to be officially announced.
Another part of that gap has been shored up with a scheduled game against Coastal Carolina. A team the Badgers haven't seen since their run to the title game in 2015. It was a magical tournament started by Wisconsin taking down a Cinderella that some thought could give the Badgers a legitimate test. Even as a 1-seed vs. a 16-seed, Coastal Carolina posed a bit of a challenge.
According to D1 Docket and Cole Amundson, the Badgers will take on Coastal Carolina on Sunday, November 15, presumably at home. There's a lot of intrigue in taking on the Chanticleers in a non-conference game, and it will add an early enough test for the Badgers to get things set right for the upcoming tournaments, other non-conference games, and the Big Ten schedule.
Per @TheD1Docket , Wisconsin will host Coastal Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 15.
— Cole Amundson (@playformarch) July 24, 2026
The last time Wisconsin played Coastal Carolina? A "decent" 1-versus-16 game to open their eventual run to the title game.
Wisconsin's schedule leak features a fun match against Coastal Carolina
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This game hasn't been finalized or officially released by the Wisconsin Badgers; right now, it's considered just a leak. But it's an intriguing one that provides some fun upside for the Badgers. Coastal Carolina finished as the 226th-ranked NET team last year, with their best wins coming over Winthrop and St. Joseph's.
What makes the Badgers intriguing is that Coastal Carolina last season was a top-5 defensive rebounding team in the nation. It's how they stay in games and even push the pace. Wisconsin has struggled with offensive rebounding over the years; the stretch nature of the offense and the bigs often playing on the softer side have forced Wisconsin to adjust.
Now that the season is new with Nolan Winter and Austin Rapp as the most likely starting bigs, followed by Will Garlock and Victory Onuetu, there's a real emphasis on rectifying this. The addition of Onuetu by himself shows that Gard wants to be a better rim-protecting and rebounding team. Coastal Carolina will be the first test to help see how the progress is going.
It's early enough in the season, too, that Gard can continue to make adjustments as needed. He's also talked about flirting with alternate lineups when it comes to the bigs. Is this the first time we see maybe a Winter/Garlock lineup or a Winter/Onuetu lineup to start the game?
As the schedule continues to get finalized, each game adds a little bit of intrigue, but this one has some nostalgia attached to it.
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