Wisconsin (11-6, 4-2 Big Ten) was able to register an important win against Maryland as the victory over the Terrapins puts Wisconsin in a tie for second place with Rutgers and Illinois. The Badgers will have a chance of creating a tie at top of the Big Ten standings if they can beat Michigan State (13-4, 5-1) on Friday night and give the Spartans their second Big Ten loss of the season.
In this Badgers Wire feature, we will look at the three keys or questions for Wisconsin as they prepare to play Michigan State on Friday.
LAYUP: CAN WISCONSIN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SPARTANS MISTAKES?
Tom Izzo’s teams generally don’t beat themselves but through six conference games, Michigan State is averaging 13.5 turnovers a contest, which is the third most amongst Big Ten teams.
If Wisconsin continues to play actively on the defensive side of the floor and stays disciplined they’ll put themselves in the position of creating double-digit turnovers against the Spartans. Considering during Big Ten play Wisconsin has forced its conference opponents into an average of 11.3 turnovers a game.
Wisconsin hasn’t generated a lot of steals over Big Ten play as they’re averaging 4.3 steals a game. As the Badgers have been able to create their turnovers by playing tough defense and forcing their opponent into making a mistake with the basketball.
If Wisconsin is able to generate those extra offensive possessions they’ll need to take advantage considering the Spartans are allowing conference foes to shoot 38.3 percent (146-for-381) from the field.
Wisconsin has done well of finding ways to cash their opponents mistakes into points as they’re averaging 12 points off of turnovers during Big Ten play. Wisconsin’s ability to continue to have success in this area could help Wisconsin kick start their offense and help the Badgers stay in the game against the Spartans.