Tag: wisconsin badgers basketball

LOOK: Wisconsin basketball gets a new locker room

The Badger basketball programs get new-look locker rooms

Ahead of a much anticipated season, both Wisconsin men’s and women’s basketball got to see their newly revamped locker rooms.

Wisconsin spent the offseason redoing the locker room for both programs, and the results were outstanding.

For the men, the Badgers begin their season on November 1 with an exhibition against UW-Stevens Point before the regular season begins with Arkansas State on November 6 at the Kohl Center.

The women’s squad begins with an exhibition against UW-Whitewater on October 29 before the season-opener against Milwaukee on November 7 at the Kohl Center.

Here is a look at both of the new locker rooms:

Wisconsin basketball will have a new analyst on the radio broadcast this season

The Badgers name a former Wisconsin big to the broadcast team

A familiar name is returning to the Wisconsin basketball sidelines, this time with a microphone in hand. Wisconsin has officially named Brian Butch, a former First-Team All-Big Ten performer as a Badger big man, as their analyst on the broadcast.

Butch’s career has taken him all over the game and the world, from an international professional career as a player to three seasons as an assistant coach for the Wisconsin Herd in the NBA G-League.

As a Badger, Butch was a First-Team All-Big Ten player during the 2008 season, and Wisconsin Mr. Basketball in high school in 2003. A Badger State basketball legend will join Matt Lepay on the call this season:

WATCH: Get to know Wisconsin basketball freshman John Blackwell

Get to know one of the newest Badgers

The Badgers signed three newcomers in their signee class of 2022, with John Blackwell, Nolan Winter, and Gus Yalden making their way to Madison.

Blackwell was a three-star combo guard as a recruit out of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and ranked as the No. 26 overall combo guard according to 247Sports.

His father, Glynn, played at Illinois for four seasons. Blackwell brings a long-distance threat to the Wisconsin offense, as he shot 49% from three over his past two seasons in high school.

Wisconsin basketball recently posted a get to know you video with Blackwell on his first few months in Madison and what Badger fans should know about one of their newest signees. He may or may not have got lost in the state capitol as well:

WATCH: The Wisconsin basketball game none of us will forget

The game that lives in every Badger fan’s mind

Wisconsin basketball fans should know what game we are referring to without even reading further.

On Saturday, College Basketball Report on Twitter reminded us of the best moment as a Badger basketball fan.

Wisconsin took down 38-0 Kentucky and its platoon of NBA talent led by Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker. The Badgers took down the Wildcats, 71-64, on April 4, 2015. The Badgers stayed in front the majority of the night and pulled off the biggest upset in program history.

Relive the greatest night to be a Wisconsin basketball fan as the Badgers took down one of the best teams assembled in the sport’s history:

A former Badger basketball star is headed to a new Spanish team

A former Badger basketball star is headed to a new Spanish team

Former Wisconsin basketball star Ethan Happ has a new professional home. The former Badger standout is headed to CB Gran Canaria in the Spanish ACB, a league many consider to be the best outside of the NBA.

This will mark Happ’s second campaign in the Spanish ACB. He appeared in 34 games for Rio Breogan last season. Happ averaged more than 12 points and seven rebounds for the squad a year ago.

The squad recently made its first EuroLeague appearance in 2018-19 and has been building off that success. Here is more on the new signing and the latest with Happ from Eurohoops:

Wisconsin basketball star to start his own YouTube channel

The Badger guard is going to give fans an inside look

Rising sophomore guard Connor Essegian is ready to give Wisconsin fans an inside look at what it means to be a Badger, specifically a Wisconsin Badger basketball student-athlete.

Essegian had a standout freshman season where he set the program record for made threes by a first-year player, and was one of the key Badger contributors down the stretch of the year. He spent this summer with the Armenian National Team as he was able to gain valuable experience playing a pair of exhibition games against France.

Essegian posted on Twitter that he was ready to give Badger fans the inside scoop on what it means to be a Wisconsin basketball player. Who is ready for an Essegian gameday vlog?

Johnny Davis has another solid showing in NBA Summer League

Johnny Davis has another solid showing in NBA Summer League

Year one in NBA Summer League was a struggle for then-rookie Johny Davis, but year two he has shown he is becoming more and more comfortable with the NBA game.

Wizards fans are hoping for a similar trajectory to what Badger fans saw from Davis at Wisconsin, where the La Crosse native took a leap from being a bench player as a freshman to one of the best players in the country as a sophomore.

The early returns from NBA Summer League have been solid, as Davis has gone for 31 points over his first two games in Las Vegas and looked the part on the defensive end. The chances will be there for Davis on a young Wizards team, and he will need to capitalize come the regular season.

WATCH: Johnny Davis mic’d up at Wizards’ practice

With the Wizards hitting the “reset” button in 2023-2024, second-year guard and former Badger Johnny Davis could be set for a larger role.

With the Washington Wizards seemingly hitting the “reset” button in 2023-2024, second-year guard and former Badger Johnny Davis could be set for an increased workload. Both Bradley Beal (Suns) and Kristaps Porzingis (Celtics) were dealt, leaving behind a combined 46.4 points per game to be filled.

Davis didn’t really come on until the final weeks of his rookie campaign in Washington, but he was impressive down the stretch. He averaged 17.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks over 36 minutes per game while starting the final five contests of the regular season.

Now in a position where there isn’t a great amount of established players around him, Davis will look to take the next step up in 2023.

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Every Wisconsin basketball player to be selected in NBA Draft since 1995

Every Wisconsin basketball player to be selected in NBA Draft since 1995

With the NBA Draft just one night away, let’s look back at the history of the Badgers in the draft.

Just around 365 days ago, the Washington Wizards made Johnny Davis the No. 10 overall pick in the 2022 draft. Since 1995, Davis is the ninth Badger to have been drafted. If you expand your timeframe, Wisconsin has had 43 players taken in the NBA Draft all time, with the oldest pick dating all the way back to 1943.

Unfortunately, Wisconsin does not have a name on the board for tomorrow’s festivities.

Who have been the recent Wisconsin selections and where have they landed? Here is a look:

Wisconsin guard Connor Essegian puts up 14 points in international game against France

Wisconsin guard Connor Essegian puts up 14 points in international game against France

Rising sophomore guard Connor Essegian was called up to the Armenian national team this week in a matchup against France at Cal State Northridge.

Essegian set the Wisconsin record for made threes as a freshman and is known for his sharpshooting. In his national team debut, the Indiana native dropped 14 points on 4-10 shooting from distance. Armenia fell 98-83 to France in the international matchup.

Essegian’s debut for Armenia came in the “Armenian Basketball Classic,” an event that took place June 16-17 and saw Armenia take on France. It was the first ever Armenian basketball game to be played  in the United States.