The Wisconsin Badgers pulled off a thrilling 77-74 victory over the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday, finishing strong in a back-and-forth battle to reach the Big Ten Tournament Championship for the second straight year.
It was a nail-biter for Wisconsin that went down to the very last possession, where John Tonje secured a huge deflection to take away a potential game-tying three-point attempt from Michigan State, giving the Badgers the victory.
Entering the tournament, there were questions about where the Badgers would ultimately land on Selection Sunday, as their 86-75 loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions was a big blow to their hopes of obtaining a No. 3 seed and playing the first weekend in Milwaukee.
But, with three wins in the Big Ten Tournament, including a Quad 1 win over UCLA and a Quad 1A win over Michigan State, I shared my projection that the Badgers are not only a three seed, but looking favorable to get the Milwaukee draw on Selection Sunday.
Of course, they could ease all questions with another win on Sunday to claim the Big Ten Tournament Championship, but let’s see where the Badgers stand with NCAA Tournament projections after the win over Michigan State.
ESPN: Entering Saturday, Wisconsin actually already jumped Iowa State on the No. 3 seed line in Joe Lunardi’s projection, landing them in the Midwest with the Milwaukee regional draw.
Wisconsin was the No. 11 overall seed in Lunardi’s projections, coming behind Texas Tech (No. 9), Maryland (No. 10), and ahead of Kentucky (No. 12) on the three-seed line. The Badgers win over UCLA moved Wisconsin ahead of both Texas A&M and Iowa State.
Then, after Wisconsin’s win on Saturday, Lunardi bumped Wisconsin up to No. 10 overall, exchanging spots with Maryland, and keeping them in the Midwest with the Milwaukee draw.
T3 Bracketology: After the win Saturday, the Badgers bumped up to the three-seed line, moving ahead of Texas A&M and Iowa State. That would also likely get Wisconsin to Milwaukee with the regional draw.
CBS Sports: Updated before Wisconsin’s win over Michigan State, CBS Sports’s Jerry Palm had the Badgers as the No. 10 overall seed and in the Midwest with the Milwaukee regional draw as a No. 3 seed.
Only Maryland (No. 9) was higher on the three line than Wisconsin, who came ahead of Kentucky (No. 11) and Texas Tech (No. 12). Iowa State and Texas A&M were both No. 4 seeds for Palm.
FOX Sports: Mike DeCourcy also updated his projections before Wisconsin’s win over Michigan State, having the Badgers as a No. 3 seed in the East region.
They joined Texas Tech, Texas A&M, and Kentucky on the three line, while Purdue, Iowa State, Maryland, and Arizona were his No. 4 seeds.
That would likely also have the Badgers ending up in Milwaukee for their first weekend draw.
Overall, projections are seeming favorable for the Badgers, especially after their big win over Michigan State on Saturday. The full picture will only become clearer on Selection Sunday, but things have gone Wisconsin’s way since their late-season struggles and brutal loss to Penn State.
Iowa State bowed out early in the Big 12 Tournament and hasn’t been able to improve its resume. Texas Tech fell in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals. Texas A&M bowed out in the second round of the SEC Tournament to Texas. And Kentucky lost a 29-point game to Alabama on Friday.
Wisconsin, on the other hand, has now won three straight games, including Quad 1 and Quad 1A games against UCLA and Michigan State, respectively. Things are looking good for the Badgers heading into Sunday.
