Penn State Men’s Basketball vs. Wisconsin Preview
Penn State is looking to build momentum after a big home win over Iowa in double overtime as it will head to Madison to battle against No. 11 Wisconsin on the road.
Home court has been a big advantage for Penn State this year, improving to a 7-3 overall record. On the flip side it is 1-5 on the road with that single win being over Northwestern.
“You have to be resilient on the road. Things aren’t always going to go your way,” coach Micah Shrewsberry said.
This marks Penn State’s fourth road game in its last five outings. The previous three game road stretch resulted in a three-game losing streak, which could have been broken up if it weren’t for the postponement of the home contest against Minnesota.
Now sitting at 9-9, Penn State is looking to build momentum to make a case for a postseason tournament. In the win over Iowa, they scored a season-high 90 points with five players getting double figures, the first time all season.
John Harrar scored a career-high 19 points alongside 10 rebounds against Iowa. Greg Lee also scored his Penn State career-high 16 points.
Myles Dread has been giving Penn State valuable minutes whether he is in the starting lineup or not. He’s averaging 10 points per game in the last three games with eight total 3-pointers.
Dread played a career-high 41 minutes against Iowa featuring a big 3-pointer late in the game.
“He’s always ready to just do his role,” Shrewsberry said. “When you have guys like that is when you can have a successful team.”
Scouting Wisconsin
Everyone counted the Badgers out at the beginning of the season. The Big Ten preseason poll had them ranked 10th with no recognition toward Johnny Davis for the preseason awards.
Sitting tied for third in the conference, Wisconsin has proved a lot of people wrong and that comes from its experience. It has been able to grind out wins being 10-1 in games decided by six points or less, the most “close” wins in all of Division-I basketball.
Alongside Davis, the Badgers have veteran guard Brad Davison, who is averaging 15.2 points per game. Tyler Wahl is another player on the roster who is hot with 14.9 points per game in his last seven performances.
It is clear that Davis is the guy for Wisconsin. He is the only Big Ten player who leads his team in points, rebounds and assists. If he doesn’t win Big Ten player of the year, he surely is the most improved player.
“He’s a pretty good player,” Shrewsberry said about Davis. “We need everybody to be ready because he does such a good job of attacking all the time. He puts a lot of pressure on your whole team.”
Seth Lundy again will be assigned the task of guarding the opposing team’s best player. His presence will be important, but the help side defense will also be important for Penn State.
Prediction
The Badgers are coming off a tough loss on the road against Illinois and will be hungry for a win. Not only are they looking for a win, but they hold an impressive 20-game win streak over Penn State at home.
The key for Penn State to keep this game close revolves around their ability to prevent Davis from scoring. Penn State will be wearing the black and pink uniforms, which historically has brought them success, but won’t be enough to get the win.
Nittany Lions keep it close in another Big Ten battle.
Wisconsin 70, Penn State 68
Austin Groft is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism, to contact him please email atg5271@psu.edu.
