Wisconsin Men’s Basketball: Game Preview and Thread vs USC Trojans

Wisconsin Men’s basketball played tough yesterday against the 3rd ranked Kansas Jayhawks and quite honestly should have won. In the end though, Wisconsin lost a heartbreaker and the refs did them no favors late on a blatant missed call. So is life as a Wisconsin basketball fan. How many times have you heard that? Anyway, Wisconsin finishes up their trip to Altantis today with a meeting with USC. Here’s your preview and tread for the contest!

Quick Facts

Who (are the Badgers playing): USC

What (are they): Trojans

When: Noon CT

Where: Atlantis, Bahamas

How (to watch): ESPN

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Opponent Preview

The USC Trojans come into this game 4-2 on the season with their most recent contest being a loss to the Tennessee Volunteers in Atlantis. Thus far this season the Trojans have been very reliant on their guard play and the stars they have at those two spots.

Leading the team is guard Boogie Ellis who comes into this contest fresh off a 21 point game yesterday. Ellis is currently averaging 18 points per game on the season. In addition to Ellis, USC also returns forward Drew Peterson who came back to USC for his senior season. Peterson is a 6’6” two guard that averaged 12 points per game last season and is currently averaging 14 points per game this season.

The focal point of USC’s offense is using these two players in the screen-and-pop game. Peterson is a player that possesses really good size and he can really stretch the floor to make you guard him on all parts of the offensive end. That matchup will be an interesting one for Wisconsin, but you’d think Tyler Wahl likely grabs that assignment and will look to really defend the high post that Peterson likes to use.

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What to watch for Wisconsin

Can Chucky get something going: The 2022 season has been a tough one to start for guard Chucky Hepburn. After scoring 14 points in the opener Hepburn has really struggled to knock down shots. In Atlantis, Hepburn has scored just 8 points and is shooting just 16% from the field. Today, Hepburn will look to get it going on the offensive end but he’ll also be tasked with a tough defensive assignment assuming he guards Boogie Ellis. Hepburn is a good two-way player but we’ll see how he fares here.

Defensive Turnovers: Thus far this season Wisconsin’s defense has played incredibly well. They’ve defended the perimeter, they’ve slowed down some really talented players, and they’ve forced some turnovers. USC has been very turnover prone of the offensive end which could be a big thing to try and exploit for Wisconsin. If the Badgers can cut USC possessions short on that end they should have another strong day offensively.