Tag: wisconsin badgers basketball

Wisconsin makes top five schools for top-100 class of 2025 center

Wisconsin makes top five schools for top-100 class of 2025 center

Wisconsin basketball was listed among the final five schools for top class of 2025 center Tommy Ahneman on Tuesday.

Big Ten rivals Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota, plus Notre Dame, round out his top five.

Ahneman dropped his final list just eight days after releasing his first four official visits for this fall. The rising senior will travel to Madison, Wisconsin for an official visit the weekend of Sept. 14 — the same date as four-star SF Amari Allen and four-star SG Davion Hannah.

Importantly, Sept. 14 is the day that Wisconsin football hosts Alabama at Camp Randall Stadium. With three top-ranked hoops prospects slated to visit, Greg Gard and his staff are looking to capitalize on an exciting time around the athletic department.

The Cretin-Derham Hall High School product remains the No. 1 recruit from Minnesota, and has moved up to No. 11 center and No. 84 recruit overall recruit in the class of 2025.

Wisconsin extended its offer to big man on June 25, 2024.

Before representing Cretin Derham Hall in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Ahneman pocketed the 2023-24 North Dakota Gatorade Player of the Year award. Early high school success yielded offers from several programs, including Penn State, Northwestern, Iowa, DePaul, Notre Dame, Minnesota and Nebraska.

As of July 23, Wisconsin’s class of 2025 ranks No. 7 in the nation with commitments from three-star in-state shooting guard Zach Kinziger and three-star center Will Garlock.

Ahneman, Hannah and Allen represent Wisconsin’s three top targets in the class.

Big Ten expansion marks the end of an era for legendary advertisement

Big Ten expansion marks the end of an era for legendary advertisement

With the Big Ten conference expanding to 18 teams officially on Monday, the end of June marks the end of an era for the legendary Big Ten map television advertisement.

The ad takes the viewer from the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California, to each of the current 14 Big Ten campus locations from west to east, wrapping up at Rutgers, while “Silver Lining” by Guards plays in the background.

The current iteration of the Big Ten came into effect in 2014 when Maryland and Rutgers joined the conference, expanding to 14 teams for a decade. Now in 2024, Oregon, USC, UCLA and Washington will all be joining the Big Ten.

It’s unclear if the conference will simply adjust their popular advertisement, adding the new the programs, or if they’re scrap the whole thing and go a different direction.

Nonetheless, it’s the end of an era for the Big Ten and the future is officially here for the 18-team conference.

Wisconsin men’s basketball offers first class of 2027 athlete

Wisconsin men’s basketball offers first class of 2027 athlete

The Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team offered Donovan Davis, a class of 2027 forward from Kaukauna, Wisconsin, on Thursday. The 6-foot-7, 200-pound athlete is the first player in the class of 2027 that Greg Gard’s staff has offered.

The Badgers extended the offer after Davis’ strong showing at the program’s recent high school camp.

Davis is still a long way from making any sort of college decision considering he just wrapped up his freshman year at Freedom High School. Wisconsin is the first school to offer him a scholarship, with many more likely to come.

When it comes to the Badgers incoming class of 2024, Wisconsin reeled in two three-star athletes, guard Daniel Freitag (Minneapolis, MN) and forward Jack Robison (Lakeville, MN). Freitag in particular could be set for a significant role this season after Chucky Hepburn transferred to Louisville after the 2023-2024 campaign.

BREAKING: Wisconsin basketball lands first transfer portal addition

BREAKING: Wisconsin basketball lands first transfer portal addition

The Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team secured the commitment of former Central Arkansas guard Camren Hunter from the transfer portal on Sunday. Hunter was in Madison last week for a visit and he decided to become a Badger.

Hunter sat out the 2023-2024 campaign due to a medical redshirt, but he averaged 16.9 points, 3.9 assists and 5 rebounds per game while shooting 42.3% from the field in 2022-2023 with the Bears. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound athlete carries multiple years of eligibility with him to Madison.

Wisconsin had seven players from its roster this past season enter the transfer portal, including starting point guard Chucky Hepburn (Louisville). It’s unclear whether Hunter will be in a position to take over as the team’s primary ball-handler in 2024, but he will likely compete with sophomore John Blackwell and four-star freshman Daniel Freitag for the role.

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Greg Gard’s staff was catching significant criticism for the lack of activity in acquiring replacements in the portal, so far this offseason. Fans must hope Sunday’s move is just the tip of the iceberg in Madison.

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Wisconsin basketball hosts top-150 recruit on official visit

Wisconsin basketball hosts top-150 recruit on official visit

The Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team hosted EJ Walker, a three-star forward from Erlanger, Kentucky, this weekend. It was Walker’s first official visit to Wisconsin after a pair of unofficial trips to Madison in June and November of 2023.

Walker is considered a top-150 recruit in the country and he narrowed his list of potential programs to 12 in March, which included Ohio State, Iowa, Purdue, Minnesota and Wisconsin within the Big Ten. Also included are South Carolina and West Virginia, amongst others.

The 6-foot-8, 230-pound athlete has been in contact with the Badgers for quite some time and he’s a potential big piece of their 2025 recruiting class, which already includes a commitment from three-star guard Zach Kinziger (De Pere, WI).

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Greg Gard’s squad lost seven players to the transfer portal this offseason and they may have to rely on their two incoming freshmen in 2024, three-star guard Daniel Freitag (Minneapolis, MN) and three-star forward Jack Robison (Lakeville, MN).

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Wisconsin basketball transfer portal target set for unofficial visit with Big Ten rival

Omaha transfer forward set for unofficial visit with Big Ten rival

The Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team has been in contact with Nebraska-Omaha transfer power forward Frankie Fidler, but he’s set to visit Big Ten rival Nebraska on Thursday.

Fidler averaged 20.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 45.2% from the field in his junior season with the Mavericks. Considering he’s from Bellevue, Nebraska, it’s not surprising he’s visiting the Cornhuskers in Lincoln.

What makes the 6-foot-7 athlete so intriguing as a portal option for the Badgers is his relationship with point guard Chucky Hepburn, his former teammate at Bellevue West.

You have to imagine that if Nebraska doesn’t lock him up, a visit to Madison will likely be in store in the near future.

Wisconsin has also been in contact with another of Hepburn and Fidler’s teammates from high school, William Kyle III, who entered the portal from South Dakota State.

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Wisconsin is up to a season-high ranking in the latest AP Poll

The Badgers are soaring up the rankings

We officially have a top-ten matchup at the Kohl Center this weekend. Wisconsin basketball is now up to No. 6 in the latest AP Poll, as they sit at 8-1 in the Big Ten on top of the conference standings. The Badgers are 16-4 overall.

After a Thursday trip to Lincoln, Nebraska Wisconsin returns home for a top-ten matchup against Purdue. Assuming both teams take care of business early in the week, the matchup will be for first place in the conference at this midway stage.

Wisconsin moved up seven spots this week, and UConn retained the top spot in the latest rankings.

Where Wisconsin basketball lands in ESPN’s latest Bracketology

Where Wisconsin basketball lands in ESPN’s latest Bracketology

ESPN college basketball inside Joe Lunardi updated his latest bracket on Friday and Wisconsin is cemented as a two-seed.

The Badgers will see the only Big Ten team ahead of them in the bracket next week as Purdue travels to the Kohl Center to take on Wisconsin. The latest update came yesterday just before Wisconsin took down Michigan State 81-66 in a dominant home victory.

Wisconsin basketball is currently a No. 2 seed in Lunardi’s bracket as they sit at 16-4 overall and 8-1 in the conference. Despite trailing Wisconsin in the league standings, Purdue is the lone Big Ten No. 1 seed in the ESPN bracket.

 

Wisconsin social media reacts to a statement win over Marquette

Wisconsin social media reacts to a statement win over Marquette

A Wisconsin basketball season that started rocky has begun to get rolling. The Badgers used a tremendous first half from Max Klesmit and physicality on the glass and defensive end to down No. 3 Marquette 75-64.

The Kohl Center sellout crowd certainly made a difference, as they were engaged from the opening tip. Klesmit led the way with a monster first half and finished with 21 points to lead all scorers. He knocked down five of his ten three-point attempts on the afternoon.

Despite a 9-0 Marquette spurt to begin the second half, the Badgers regained their composure and closed it out on the defensive end and the boards. Wisconsin out-rebounded Marquette 38-23 on the day and looked like the more physical, stronger basketball team.

Here is how Wisconsin social media reacted to the win that lifts the Badgers to 6-2 and drops the Golden Eagles to 6-2 on the young season:

Wisconsin basketball is doing something special with the crowd on Saturday

The Badgers take on Marquette on Saturday

Wisconsin basketball has already played some massive games in 2023, but there is no bigger non-conference test than the annual I-94 rivalry. Wisconsin and Marquette will meet on Saturday at the Kohl Center. The Golden Eagles are currently the No. 3 team in America at 6-1 on the year.

Wisconsin fans are set for a white out at the Kohl Center in the biggest game of the year to date. The teams have played annually since 1958 and the Badgers lead 70-59 all-time against the Golden Eagles.

Expect the biggest crowd of the early season when Wisconsin and Marquette tip off at 11:30 a.m. CT on Saturday.