Busting Brackets
Fansided

Wisconsin Basketball: 3 reasons the Badgers will be better than Marquette in 2018-19

By Jason Burgess

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 24: The Wisconsin Badgers mascot performs against the Florida Gators during the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional at Madison Square Garden on March 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 24: The Wisconsin Badgers mascot performs against the Florida Gators during the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional at Madison Square Garden on March 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next
MADISON, WI – FEBRUARY 04: A general view of the Kohl Center as the Wisconsin Badgers take on the Ohio State Buckeyes on February 4, 2012 in Madison, Wisconsin. Ohio State defeated Wisconsin 58-52. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
MADISON, WI – FEBRUARY 04: A general view of the Kohl Center as the Wisconsin Badgers take on the Ohio State Buckeyes on February 4, 2012 in Madison, Wisconsin. Ohio State defeated Wisconsin 58-52. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

The early-season schedule should help Wisconsin more

The non-conference schedules of the two teams are at different ends of the spectrum, Marquette undoubtedly has the tougher of the two schedules, but the Badgers slate should give them a confidence boost as they head into Big Ten play.

Greg Gard’s squad opens with a game against Coppin State and has matchups with Grambling State, Savannah State, and Houston Baptist, but they also take part in the Battle 4 Atlantis with Virginia, Stanford, Middle Tennessee, Florida, Oklahoma, Dayton, and Butler, as well as having a road games against Xavier, Marquette, and Western Kentucky. Lastly, they host N.C. State as a part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

The schedule, in theory, should allow the Badgers to rack up some wins while giving them some games to challenge themselves before league play. A small improvement during league play could put Wisconsin in the at-large conversation come March.

Next. Top 10 Big Ten recruits for 2018-19. dark

The home portion of Marquette’s non-conference schedule is strong, as they welcome Buffalo, Wisconsin, UTEP, Kansas State, and NCAA tournament darling UMBC to Milwaukee and travel to Indiana and Kansas as well as a matchup with either Louisville or Tennessee as a part of the NIT Season Tip-Off. The strong non-conference schedule could put Marquette behind the 8-ball if they have a tough time of it before the new year.

Home/Wisconsin Badgers