“42-16 has been talked about quite a bit the last few days,” head coach Greg Gard said to reporters Monday morning.
The last time the Badgers faced off with the Boilermakers was when they travelled to Mackey Arena and were manhandled to the tune of 70-51. UW was outrebounded 42-16 on the glass with Brad Davison leading the team with four rebounds. Nobody else on the team surpassed two rebounds.
The biggest message from the coaching staff has been the need to be the more physical team when Tuesday night rolls around.
“We have to be better,” Gard said.
The good news for the Badgers is that they will be welcoming the Boilermakers to Madison this time around. UW owns a 5-3 record against Purdue dating back to 2010 with the last two matchups inside the Kohl Center being memorable ones, while they have yet to win at Mackey Arena since 2014
The 2019 contest saw the Badgers come back from a seven point deficit in the last four minutes to force overtime but they could not hold on for the win. The matchup in 2018 saw UW pull out an emotional 57-53 win on a night where the team was honoring Badgers legend Frank Kaminsky.
One of the more prevalent trends throughout the Big Ten is the difference in team success when on the road and when at home. The same carries over for Purdue and Wisconsin. UW owns an 11-1 record at home this season with the one loss coming by one point to Illinois. Purdue on the other hand is 3-6 on the road overall and just 2-6 in the conference when on the road. The road wins for the Boilermakers have come against Indiana, Northwestern and Ohio. Indiana and Northwestern are 12th and last in the conference, respectively, while Ohio is winless against teams in power five conferences.
The date with Purdue kicks off a pair of home games for Wisconsin. The Badgers host Rutgers this Sunday at noon as well. The consecutive home games will be the first time UW plays consecutive home games since they had four straight home games back in November.
“That’s crazy. That we haven’t had two straight home games. It is what it is,” Gard said.
Gard’s message to the team has been that it’s “not the venue that determines our success. It’s not the location. It’s our play.”
That’s a fair message but there is no denying the players seem to have more juice at home, much like teams across the Big Ten, and they will be happy to be playing in the Kohl Center come Tuesday night.