Wisconsin Women’s Basketball 2023-24 Schedule Preview

We are just over a month away from the 50th season of Wisconsin Badgers women’s basketball! According to UW’s release about the new schedule, “the Badgers will highlight the program’s rich history and traditions” throughout the season. This is a cool opportunity for fans, both new and old, to learn about the program and the players that paved the way for this year’s team.

UW opens their 2023-2024 campaign with an exhibition game against UW-Whitewater on Oct. 29 at the Kohl Center. With the Big Ten announcing the conference schedule on Thursday, we now have a full slate of games to analyze. So, let’s get to it.

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for!

Our schedule is 𝗦𝗘𝗧.

We open up Big Ten play at home on Dec. 10 against Iowa!

INFO | 📰https://t.co/nWa3TZ0Nm1#OnWisconsin pic.twitter.com/oNiXxJyz4l

— Wisconsin Women’s Basketball (@BadgerWBB) September 21, 2023

Wisconsin Women’s Basketball 2023-24 Schedule Preview

First up, a few key dates:

• Tuesday, Nov. 7, season opener vs. Milwaukee
• Friday, Nov. 24, Fort Myers (Fla.) Tip-Off vs. Arkansas
• Saturday, Nov. 25, Fort Myers (Fla.) Tip-Off vs. Marquette/Boston College
• Sunday, Dec. 10, Big Ten opener vs. Iowa
• Sunday, March 3, final game of regular season vs. Michigan State
• Wednesday, March 6, Big Ten Tournament starts in Minneapolis
• Sunday, March 10, Big Ten Tournament final in Minneapolis

Wisconsin has 29 games on their schedule, including 18 Big Ten games, and will be looking to improve upon last season’s 11-20 (6-12 Big Ten) record that saw them win four of their last five regular season games, including an upset of No. 12 Michigan, and earn a bye in the Big Ten Tournament.

The Badgers have 15 games at the Kohl Center and 14 games away from home, which includes two down in Fort Myers at Thanksgiving. Wisconsin’s non-conference schedule is a bit more forgiving than last year’s slate, but there are still many challenges for a young, inexperienced team.

Based on last year’s Her Hoops Stats rankings, Wisconsin women’s basketball should be favored to win their first two games of the season, before a tough home test against the Jackrabbits of South Dakota State. SDSU, who finished last season as the 14th best team in the nation per HHS, lost two starters from last year’s offensive juggernaut, but they will still pose a challenge to a leaky Wisconsin defense.

After playing Kansas State at Miller Park (I’ll NEVER call it AmFam Field) last season, the Badgers make the return trip to the Little Apple and play the Wildcats before heading off to sunny Florida for the Fort Myers Tip-Off. Arkansas and, most likely, Boston College await UW in the holiday tournament, but a potential matchup with in-state Marquette would be very fun.

UW rounds out their non-conference slate with various directional Illinois’ and a trip to St. Paul to play St. Thomas in a game I hope to attend. Wedged into the end of the non-conference schedule is the Big Ten opener against…ah shit, against national runner-up Iowa and Caitlin Clark. Not to sound glib, but keeping that one within 30 should actually count as a win for Wisconsin.

The Badgers play the Hawkeyes, Purdue, Northwestern, Minnesota, and Rutgers twice this season. As far as single plays, they travel to Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, and Maryland while getting Nebraska, Penn State, Indiana, and Michigan State at home.

All things considered, this is a pretty favorable schedule for Wisconsin women’s basketball. Of their home-and-home series’ the only one in which they’ll be heavy underdogs for both games is against Iowa. Their “road only” games all look like losses to me and, in an ideal world, they’ll split their “home only” games.

Per UW, single-game tickets go on sale to the general public on Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 9 a.m. (CT). The pre-sale for single-game tickets for donors and season ticket holders is set for Tuesday, Oct. 10. Student tickets are available through Area Red.

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