The Majority

Eric: Wisconsin 67, Iowa 54

While Wisconsin's last home loss showed some glaring weaknesses, the Badgersstill outplayed Minnesota for almost the entire game. I think Bo Ryan fixesthose late game mistakes, and the Badgers rebound at Iowa.

Ryan: Wisconsin 64, Iowa 56

Wisconsin will get back to playing Bo Ryan basketball at Carver Hawkeye Arena. Iowa is too young and too inexperienced to defeat what should be a hungry Badger team. Look for Jason Bohannon to have a big night in his home state.

Hogey: Wisconsin 59, Iowa 50

It’s been almost a week since the Badgers’ tough loss to Minnesota at home. Bo Ryan likely had his team turning the page by Friday and UW has had plenty of time to prepare for a pretty bad Iowa team. Look for Jon Leuer to continue his breakout season with another big game.

The Minority

Nobody. But let’s play devil’s advocate for a minute. There’s not a better coach in the country that can get a team over a bad loss like Bo Ryan can, but something has been off with this squad all year. On a two-game losing streak, the Badgers are still thinking about what they’ve done wrong lately and they fall behind on the road to the Hawkeyes and never recover.

If that did happen, you could kiss UW’s tournament hopes goodbye.

Who has the edge?

Back court: Wisconsin

Front court: Wisconsin

Bench: Wisconsin

Coaching: Wisconsin

Intangibles: Even

Key Questions:

Will Cyrus Tate play? And what’s the story on Anthony Tucker?

Tate has not played since injuring his ankle Jan. 8 against Minnesota and will likely miss both games this week. That leaves Jerryd Cole as Iowa’s only threat in the paint. The Hawkeyes will struggle to guard Marcus Landry and Jon Leuer in the post. There’s really no excuse for the Badgers jacking up threes left and right, which Iowa will do.
Meanwhile, no one really knows what’s up with Anthony Tucker, the Hawkeyes best player, who has been riding the pine since an alcohol related incident Dec. 7 when he was found unconscious in an alley. After serving a two-game suspension, Tucker only played one minute in the next three games and claimed that he was diagnosed with mononucleosis shortly after Thanksgiving. Dec. 7 is after Thanksgiving, right? So he was getting hammered while he had mono? Nice.

Why is Keaton Nankivil still starting?

Certainly in the category of most disappointing performances in the Big Ten this season, Nankivil would be right up there. Jon Leuer has passed the Madison Memorial product and then some, but Nankivil is still starting. We all know that Ryan never likes "change" (does that mean he didn’t vote for Obama?) and changes in his starting lineup rarely happen. Remember when he started Joe Krabbenhoft over Brian Butch at Ohio State in 2007 when both teams were No. 1? Butch broke his elbow and Wisconsin lost much more than just the game. At this point, why change it? Leuer gets most of the minutes anyway and he is running away with the Sixth Man of the Year Award.

How does this game affect UW’s Tournament hopes?

This is a must-win, no question. Right now, Wisconsin has to win the rest of their home games, win the "must-win" road games and steal a tough road win. A win tonight, is definitely not a steal. A loss tonight and the Grateful Red can start chanting N-I-T!