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.
After Saturday's win, the #Badgers rank:
NCAA NET: 13
KenPom: 12
Offensive Efficiency: 7
Defensive Efficiency: 34
Strength of Schedule: 13 pic.twitter.com/sgsclHW9zq— Evan Flood (@Evan_Flood) January 7, 2024
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.