Tag: Standings

Wisconsin a two-seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology

Wisconsin a two-seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology

Wisconsin basketball continued its tear earlier this week with a 71-60 road win over Ohio State. The Badgers are now 12-3 on the season and 4-0 in Big Ten play. The team has won five straight contests, and 11 of its last 12.

The surge has the team trending in the AP Poll, KenPom ranking and discussions regarding Purdue’s top contenders in the conference. Another week of dominance with another Purdue slip-up or two, and we could be talking about the Badgers as the favorite to win the Big Ten.

ESPN’s Joe Lunardi sees that trend, and now has Wisconsin as a two-seed in his latest Bracketology:

Wisconsin basketball is off to its best start in 12 years

Wisconsin basketball is off to its best start of the last 12 years

Wisconsin basketball left Columbus, Ohio with a 71-60 win over Ohio State last night, improving to 12-3 on the season and 4-0 in Big Ten play.

They held a halftime lead of just two on the road against a 12-3 Big Ten team, but a second-half surge capped off by a 19-4 run to close the game proved to be the difference. The Badgers have now won five straight and 11 of their last 12 dating back to mid-November. They’re currently playing like one of the best teams in the country.

The win is yet another in now a growing list of big performances from Greg Gard’s team this season. The resume now includes a spotless conference record, plus out-of-conference wins against Marquette, Virginia and others.

WOZN’s Zach Heilprin pointed out postgame that this is the program’s first 4-0 start conference since 2012-13. Or, in other words, this is Wisconsin’s best start to a season in 12 years.

Up next for the Badgers is a home bout with Northwestern on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats are one of the two programs at 3-1 in-conference, so adding a win on Saturday would start building a decisive lead in the conference race.

Wisconsin basketball continues its meteoric rise in latest AP Poll

Wisconsin basketball continues its meteoric rise in latest AP Poll

Wisconsin basketball rose to No. 15 in the latest AP Poll, up six spots from its previous rank.

The Badgers dominated Nebraska 88-72 in their only win of the week. But the team is up to 10 wins in its last 11, with the only loss coming on the road at then-No. 1 Arizona.

The only Big Ten teams ahead of Wisconsin in the poll are Purdue at No. 1 and Illinois at No. 10. The conference standings tell a bit of a different story at the moment, as the Badgers (3-0) are the only undefeated team and currently hold a narrow advantage over Purdue (3-1), Minnesota (3-1) and Indiana (3-1).

Wisconsin will continue to get chances to prove itself to the national voters as the next week includes games at Ohio State and at home against Northwestern.

NFC South standings, Week 18: The dust has settled

The Saints won Sunday but didn’t receive the help needed to make the playoffs. Where do they sit in the final NFC South standings?

The New Orleans Saints took down the Atlanta Falcons in dominating fashion to close out the 2023 season. There were multiple young players flashed their talents, hopefully it transfers to next season. Unfortunately for New Orleans, the Buccaneers, Seahawks and Packers all won their season finales. This leaves the Saints on the outside looking into the playoffs.

New Orleans loses the tiebreaker to Tampa Bay because the Buccaneers have a better conference record. This leaves the Saints second in the division at the end of the season. Let’s take a look at the final NFC South divisional standings.

Wisconsin basketball climbing in national rankings after decisive win over Nebraska

Wisconsin basketball climbing in national rankings after decisive win over Nebraska

Wisconsin coasted to an 88-72 win over Nebraska on Saturday, improving to 11-3 on the season and 3-0 in conference play.

The team has now won 10 of its last 11 games, the only loss coming at then-No. 1 Arizona. After some road bumps early in out-of-conference play, Greg Gard’s team seems to have reached full throttle with the Big Ten schedule now underway.

As of today — Monday, January 8, 2024 — the Badgers are ranked just No. 21 in the nation in the AP Poll. That number is sure to shrink in the coming days.

Other metrics actually view the team more favorably. Wisconsin is currently No. 13 in the NCAA NET ranking and No. 12 in KenPom, with one of the more impressive combinations of resume and results in the nation.

The Badgers’ No. 7 offense efficiency rank is behind just Alabama, Purdue, UConn, Baylor, Arizona and Illinois. We know the defense will show up throughout the season, but an offensive ceiling of top-10 in the nation is what can form a truly special Wisconsin team.

Up next is a weekday road trip to Ohio State as the Big Ten gauntlet continues.

Nebraska HC Fred Hoiberg: Wisconsin can be ‘one of the best offenses in the country’

Nebraska HC Fred Hoiberg: Wisconsin can be ‘one of the best offenses in the country’

Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg had high praise for the Wisconsin basketball team that defeated his Cornhuskers 88-72 this afternoon.

When the Badgers’ offense is on, which it was today, it can be “one of the best offenses in the country,” Hoiberg said.

Wisconsin hit the 88-point mark thanks to a 51-point first-half outburst, the highest first-half total of the Greg Gard era. Tyler Wahl led the way with 17 points on 6/10 shooting, Connor Essegian netted 12 points off the bench, Chucky Hepburn finished with 13 points and John Blackwell contributed 10 points on 4/7 shooting.

It was an all-around effort from the starters and the bench and from inside and from three-point range. The Badgers shot a whopping 55% from the floor and 50% from three. The offense flowed all afternoon, which also coincided with stellar shooting nights from everybody on the floor.

Nebraska was no pushover as well. The Cornhuskers were 12-2 entering this afternoon and had KenPom’s No. 68-ranked defense. Wisconsin just dominated in every facet.

Here is Hoiberg’s comment postgame, courtesy of CBS 3’s Andrew Bandstra:

Wisconsin improved to 11-3 with the win and 3-0 in Big Ten play. It is a promising start to 2024 for a team with rising expectations.

NFC South standings, Week 18: Division up for grabs headed into finale

Three teams have a chance to win the NFC South in Week 18. How does the division stack up headed into the season finale?

The New Orleans Saints ruined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hopes of clinching the NFC South after defeating Tampa Bay on New Year’s Eve. Tampa remains on top of the division, but now there’s a lot to play for in the final week of the season.

Coming into Week 17, it seemed as if the Buccaneers would defeat the Saints based on each team’s trajectory. The Saints put together one of their better games of the season and saved their playoff hopes for another week. With just a little help, the Saints could surprisingly win this division. Atlanta could also win the division. Here’s how the NFC South stacks up going into Week 18:

Wisconsin finishes 2023 season as highest-ranked Big Ten West team

Wisconsin finishes 2023 season as highest-ranked Big Ten West team

There aren’t any consolation prizes for finishing 7-6 against a Big Ten West schedule without a scary out-of-conference schedule and avoiding having to play Michigan and Penn State. But with bowl season now complete, Wisconsin does finish the 2023 season as ESPN FPI’s highest-ranked Big Ten West team.

The Badgers sit at No. 40, followed by division champs Iowa at No. 47, Northwestern at No. 58, Nebraska at No. 59, Illinois at No. 62, Purdue at No. 68 and Minnesota at No. 69.

It in no way is a consolation prize. If anything, the end-of-season look at the division makes the 5-4 conference record that much more disappointing. FPI has the Badgers with the No. 60 strength of schedule in the nation, in a year before everything changes and the conference path gets exponentially tougher. Next year’s slate is a gauntlet starting with a home game against Alabama in early September.

Either way, Wisconsin’s ReliaQuest Bowl loss to LSU was somehow a moral victory entering the offseason. WRs Will Pauling and Bryson Green both went off, we finally saw Phil Longo’s offense work as advertised and Luke Fickell seems to have the program heading in the right direction.

But whether expectations were too high this season, injuries killed all momentum or whatever reason people point to, the postseason look does not help the feeling around the program’s pedestrian showing this season.

Updated NFC playoff standings after Week 17

Updated NFC playoff standings after Week 17: Where do the New Orleans Saints clock in?

The New Orleans Saints pulled off a badly-needed win on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but where do the y rank in the updated NFC playoff standings? They’re still on the outside looking in for the postseason tournament, but another win next week (combined with some big help from other games) could clinch a playoff berth for New Orleans.

Here’s how the layoff picture looks after Week 17:

Several teams enter Week 17 capable of either the playoffs or a top-10 draft slot

Several teams enter Week 17 capable of either making the playoffs or earning a top-10 draft slot

With two weeks left on the NFL’s regular-season calendar, several fan bases find themselves in an unusual situation. There are 14 teams with records of either 8-7 or 7-8. All of them still have viable playoff aspirations, but nearly all of them could also find their way into a top-10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, too.

It’s an especially pronounced phenomenon in the South divisions of both conferences.

In the NFC, Tampa Bay leads the South at 8-7, with the Falcons and Saints each 7-8. New Orleans plays each of its division foes in the final two weeks; if the Saints win out, they’re in decent shape for a playoff berth and perhaps a division title. But if they lose both, a top-10 pick is very much in the cards.

The AFC South is just as contrived. Houston, Indianapolis and Jacksonville are all 8-7. If the Texans win out, they’re guaranteed a playoff berth. Lose out and they’re in real contention for a top-10 pick — which they’ve already traded to Arizona.

Here’s the current draft slot and order of the cluster of 7-8 teams. Note the Packers and Vikings play one another in Week 17, with the winner looking good for a wild card berth and the loser looking good to seize a top-12 pick.

10. Falcons

11. Saints

12. Packers

13. Raiders

14. Broncos

15. Vikings

Now for the teams entering the final two weeks at 8-7. Getting a top-10 pick is effectively, if not mathematically, out for nearly all these teams, but the range between picking 13th and 23rd is wide open.

16. Texans (traded to Cardinals)

17. Steelers

18. Bengals

19. Buccaneers

20. Colts

21. Seahawks

22. Jaguars

23. Rams

It’s going to be a fascinating final two weeks for fans of these teams, vacillating between postseason dreams or a much better draft slot.