Wisconsin Basketball: Keys to a Badgers Victory vs. Illinois Fighting Illini

Coming off a fifth straight road loss Tuesday against Indiana, March has arrived for the Wisconsin Badgers basketball program. February was a month to forget for the Badgers. After starting the month 16-4, Wisconsin went 2-6 in February and are now in fifth place in the Big Ten. A huge home game against 13th ranked Illinois happens today.

Can the Wisconsin Badgers find some way to get out of their funk and start March on the right note? It’s getting to be now or never. Tip time is Noon on BTN. Here are three keys to victory today.

Wisconsin Basketball Has to Have the Better Defense

Illinois is coming off a 105 point performance against Minnesota Wednesday night. The Fighting Illini scored on 77% of their offensive possessions. Right now, this is one of the best offenses in college basketball.

On the other hand, Illinois is really struggling on the defensive side. They gave up 97 points to Minnesota at home. This Wisconsin basketball team only allowed 59 to the Golden Gophers in Minneapolis. It hasn’t mattered for Illinois as their offense is good enough to stay in shootouts.

Wisconsin, on the other hand, does not have a good enough offense has can hide their defense. This is a really bad Wisconsin Badgers defense. The players know it, but they have done little, if anything, to try and improve it.

I think the Badgers can score enough in this game to win, but they have to get it done on defense. With a red hot Illini offense coming into Madison, that might be too big of an ask.

Can Chucky Hepburn Contain Terrance Shannon Jr?

There’s no doubt Terrance Shannon Jr is the best point guard in the Big Ten. He is strong and a great ball handler. Shannon Jr enters this game averaging 21.9 points a game. The ball is in his hands a ton and it will be today.

It seems like Chucky Hepburn has to guard a great player every game. That’s how many really good point guards are in the Big Ten. Shannon Jr might be the best of them. I love what Hepburn’s game is right now on both sides. Along with John Blackwell, Hepburn looks to be one of a few players that look like they care on defense.

If Hepburn limits Shannon Jr, I like Max Klesmit on Marcus Domask. I also think Tyler Wahl and Steven Crowl match up well with Coleman Hawkins as he is not a true post player. Can these two bring it in on the defensive side? We will see.

A Badgers Run Has to Start Now

This is a put up or shut up time now for this Wisconsin basketball team. We know how good this team is. We saw it for three months. In February, this team did not care one bit on the defensive side.

Like most fans, I’m getting tired of hearing from the players saying they know what they have to do and they know they have to be better on defense. What is being said in press conferences is not happening on the court.

This is a tough game and every game moving forward will be tough. We have to see the December and January Badgers. Right now, this team is worse than they were last season. That Wisconsin basketball team had much less depth and talent, but they had effort every night. The same can’t be said with this team.

I know they hear it. If they want to get this off their back, they have to start buying into the defensive side right now. How this Wisconsin basketball team comes out today will be interesting.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to read our work at BadgerNotes.com. For more Wisconsin Badgers Athletics and Big Ten content, follow us on Twitter & Facebook. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. You can also follow Dylan Buboltz on Twitter @Dylanbuboltz.

Also, be sure to check out our shop, subscribe to our newsletter, and the BadgerNotes After Dark podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other streaming platforms. Because of your support, we have become one of the fastest-growing independent media outlets focused on giving a voice to the fans!