The sixth-seeded BYU Cougars, who are 25-9 overall and 14-6 in the Big 12, take on the No. 3 seed Wisconsin Badgers who are 27-9 overall and 16-8 in the Big Ten in a 2nd Round NCAA Tournament game. The game is being played in Denver on Saturday at 7:45 p.m. on CBS.
Wisconsin is only a 1.5-point favorite, so this will be a close game. BYU defeated VCU in the opening round on the strength of shooting 19-0f-28 at the free throw line. That will not work for BYU in this game as Wisconsin is a great free throw shooting team. Will BYU be able to leverage stellar individual performances to prevail?
BYU’s Keys to Victory
BYU was ranked 17th in the most recent AP poll. Their first and most important key to victory is just to be themselves. Second, BYU got some great individual performances in their win over VCU and could use some more. For instance, freshman Guard Egor Damin had 15 points and shot 3-of-7 from three-point range. Junior Forward Richie Saunders scored a team-high 16 points in the win. He is the leading scorer for the Cougars. Junior Center Keba Keita finished with 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 blocks.
Third, BYU is 29th in the nation in points scored at 80.2. They rank 12th nationally in three points made and hit four key three-point field goals in the win over VCU. The Cougars rank 11th nationally in assists. To win the game against Wisconsin, BYU must live up to these statistics. Especially important is that BYU must make three-point field goals.
Wisconsin’s Keys to Victory
The first key to victory for Wisconsin is the last key to victory for BYU. The Badgers rank 30th in the nation in three-point field goals made. They must hit three-point baskets to win. The Badgers were 7-of-23 on three-point shots in their win over Montana. They need to do better to prevail in this game.
The second key to this victory in this second-round game is that their leading scorer, senior Guard John Tonje, must score. In their win over Montana, Tonje only scored 15 points. He averages 19.1 points per game on the season. Wisconsin indeed got balanced scoring in their win over Montana. The Badgers got 19 points from John Blackwell and 18 points from Steven Crowl for balanced scoring. They are not likely to get balanced scoring in this game.
The Badgers were ranked 13th in the final Associated Press poll, the same as their ranking in the Ken Pom rankings. This is a pretty lofty ranking. All Wisconsin needs to do is to live up to its lofty ranking. The Badgers will probably not make it out of the East Region. Duke and Alabama are the top two teams in the region. However, they should prevail in this contest over BYU.
What Is Next?
The winner of this game makes the Sweet Sixteen, the final 16 teams left in the NCAA Tournament. The loser goes home. In the Sweet Sixteen, the winner of this game will face the winner of the Alabama-St. Mary’s game for a spot in the Elite Eight. Alabama is the second seed in the East Region. That promises to be a tough game for Wisconsin or BYU.
Prediction
The Badgers are 13th in the Ken Pom rankings. The Cougars rank 23rd. BYU is playing well enough to prevail in this game. That is why the Badgers are only 1.5-point favorites. A close game is expected and likely to happen. Wisconsin is a better shooting team, particularly at the free-throw line. If the Badgers stay out of foul trouble, they will win this game narrowly, 68-65.
Conclusion
The second-round tournament game between the Cougars and Badgers will be a close one. The Badgers are ranked slightly higher than the Cougars and should win this game. Nevertheless, this will be a close game that could come down to the last possession.
