Bracketology 2023: USC, Seton Hall and Kentucky suffer big setbacks

Bracketology 2023: USC, Seton Hall and Kentucky suffer big setbacks this week

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 09: Kadary Richmond #0 of the Seton Hall Pirates is introduced before the first round of the Big East Basketball Tournament against the Georgetown Hoyas at Madison Square Garden on March 9, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

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Bracketology Wisconsin Badgers forward Tyler Wahl Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /

Wisconsin Badgers

The Badgers had three games this past week, starting with a home battle with Northwestern. It was a defensive battle that went down to the final seconds but they came up short with a 54-52 defeat.

The next game came on the road at Penn State. It was a “must-win” for both teams that ultimately went into overtime but Wisconsin managed to get the 79-74 victory. The guards led the way in this one, with Chucky Hepburn going for 19 points and Connor Essegian having 18. Tyler Wahl filled up the stat sheet with 16 points, six rebounds, and eight assists.

If Wisconsin had lost to anyone else in the Big Ten outside of two teams, I wouldn’t have had them in the “losers” category. But even if they’re improved, you can’t lose on the road at Nebraska if you’re outside of the bubble trying to get in. Yet that’s what happened, falling 73-63 in overtime.

It’s a brutal defeat for the Badgers, who doesn’t have a loss outside of the Quad 1/2 range but has a NET ranking close to 80 right now. The good news for them is that they have three straight home games against Michigan, Iowa, and Rutgers. At this point, they have to go 3-0 to have a fighting chance at an at-large bid.

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