After dominating a three-game home stand, the Badgers look to keep the momentum rolling as they hit the road this week. The first stop is at Purdue, where Wisconsin has not won in 30 years.
The Badgers are coming off their most impressive victory this season after trouncing Penn State 86-55. The win makes five in a row, sitting Wisconsin in third place in the Big Ten at 5-2. This sets the stage for major showdown Wednesday as the Badgers trail conference-leading Purdue by only one game. With a chance for a share of the lead, the Badgers must have all cylinders clicking.
“[We’re] trying to go into the game with one thing in mind — taking care of that game,” head coach Bo Ryan said. “[The chance] for first place will never be mentioned. It’s just not the time for it. This team knows that if they want to do things later on, they have to take care of now.”
The Badgers not only have a shot at the top but also have a chance at making history. Head coach Gene Keady and the 24th-ranked Boilermakers are riding a long stretch of home-court advantage against Wisconsin. While the Badgers have beaten Purdue in five of the last six meetings, they have not won a single game at Mackey Arena since 1972.
“It’s a tough place to play,” Ryan said. “It’s loud [and] I can’t remember coming out of there with a lot of smiles.”
However, the youth of the team may be to Wisconsin’s advantage. With the only meeting against Purdue being in Madison last season, Wednesday’s matchup will be the first time for most of the team to play in the unfriendly confines of West Lafayette.
“There’s not a lot of history there with the guys,” Ryan said. “This is the precious present again. Let’s go in there and see what we can do.”
While being completely focused on each game at hand, Ryan has noticed that the Badgers’ winning ways have not gotten them any respect in the polls.
“Wake Forest is playing well. If we had knocked off a Wake Forest would that have people [talking]? We can’t get that one back. We’ve got Purdue,” Ryan said.
Dating back to last season, Wisconsin has won 11 of its last 13 conference games. For a defending Big Ten champion, the Badgers have received little national attention. Sitting at 15-4 overall, the Badgers have tallied a handful of votes, but not enough to crack the Top 25. Even so, Ryan remains lighthearted about the situation.
“My mom called last night,” Ryan said jokingly. “She thought we were playing pretty well.”
If the Badgers can continue to tear up the Big Ten, the recognition will come. However, Bo Ryan and the boys must first break the curse of Keady and his killer comb-over at Purdue, if they want a chance to shine in the spotlight.
