1. Off to Indianapolis
For the third time in four seasons, the Wisconsin football team is off to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship game. They’ll take on the Ohio State Buckeyes who claimed the Big Ten East division title going through conference play with a perfect record.
The Badgers advanced to the Big Ten championship game after their 34-24 defeat of Minnesota last Saturday. The win not only sent Wisconsin to Indianapolis, but kept Paul Bunyan’s Axe in Madison for the 11th straight season.
Wisconsin and Ohio State last met in 2013 when the Badgers fell to the then-No. 4 Buckeyes 31-24 in Columbus. Ohio State eventually advanced to the championship game last season but fell to Michigan State, 34-24. The Badgers’ three appearances in Indianapolis are the most of any Big Ten team thus far and Wisconsin has won both of their previous games. In 2011, Wisconsin defeated Michigan State before blowing out Nebraska in 2012.
The Badgers and Buckeyes will kick off the 2014 version of the Big Ten championship game at 7:17 p.m.
2. Did the Wisconsin volleyball team win the Big Ten?
http://youtu.be/xIVy5XdQhOM
Have they lost in their last 19 matches?
The volleyball team clinched their first Big Ten Title since 2001 with a three-set sweep of Purdue Friday night. The Badgers open the NCAA Tournament Thursday night as a one-seed and the No. 4 overall seed when they take on Western Michigan at the UW Field House.
3. Kings of the Lost World: Wisconsin wins Battle for Atlantis
The Badgers won three games in three days in Paradise (technically on Paradise Island) in the Bahamas this Thanksgiving weekend to take the Battle for Atlantis Tournament crown.
The first game was a thumping of Alabama-Birmingham 72-43. Redshirt sophomore Zack Showalter ruined UAB’s hopes and dreams with this putback.
The Badgers escaped a close one against Georgetown with a 69-66 victory in the semifinal, and took home the hardware with a 69-56 win over Oklahoma in the championship. Frank Kaminsky was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament.
Now for Dec. 3rd, the day we’ve all been waiting for. Duke vs. Wisconsin. No. 2 vs. No. 4. The game has been circled on our calendar for months, and it’s finally time for the Grateful Red to get rowdy in the Kohl Center.
Remember the last time Duke came to town?
Good times.
4. Finally! Men’s hockey gets their first win of the season!
In a weekend series with Ferris State, the Badgers snapped an eight-game losing streak Friday night when they fought to a 1-1 tie. Saturday night, UW won their first game of the 2014-2015 season with a 5-2 victory.
Is it comparable to the 1980 U.S. victory over the USSR? No, but it’s still a reason to celebrate like it’s the 80s.
Goalie Joel Rumpel won the 5oth game of his career, which moves him into a tie for eighth place all-time in career wins at Wisconsin.
The Badgers begin Big Ten play this weekend, hosting Penn State Friday and Saturday night. The Badgers were 5-0 against the Nittany Lions last season.
5. Women’s Hockey is quietly the No. 3 team in the country
UW trounced New Hampshire on the road this past weekend, winning each game 5-0. This weekend, the Badgers play host to North Dakota in a pair of matinees Friday (3 p.m.) and Sunday (2 p.m.).
This is the second series between the Badgers and North Dakota this season in WCHA play, as the two teams met a month ago in Grand Forks. The first game was a 3-3 tie and the second was a 3-2 Badger victory.
