[media-credit name=’Derek Montgomery’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]Another chapter in the burgeoning rivalry between Wisconsin and Marquette will play out Saturday night as the Golden Eagles (8-0) host the No. 24 Badgers (5-1) at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee. Unfortunately for Wisconsin, it may play out without the Badgers’ two leading scorers.

Wisconsin forwards Mike Wilkinson and Alando Tucker both sat out of practice Thursday, though the cause and nature of their injuries has not been released.

“If a guy’s not out there, he’s not out there; if a guy’s injured, he’s injured,” Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said. “I still believe in my guys, and you work with who you have. That’s all I can do. I’m hoping both Mike (Wilkinson) and Tucker will be there Saturday.”

Wilkinson, who tallied one of the finest weeks of his career — scoring 26 and 18 points against Rutgers and UW-Green Bay, respectively — sat out of practice with a “lower left leg injury” and was described as day-to-day. Despite the injury, Wilkinson still fulfilled his role as captain, donning a boot while coaching younger players courtside.

Tucker, on the other hand, missed practice entirely due to an unknown injury. The Wisconsin swingman currently leads the team in points per game (15.0) and field goal percentage (.557). Tuesday night against UW-Green Bay, the sophomore pulled down seven boards and fought through a double team to notch 16 points.

“On any given night, there’s another guy stepping up. We’re not relying on one person,” senior forward Zach Morley said. “[Saturday] everybody’s going to have to step up and knock down the open shot when it’s there.”

As the Badgers gear up for a battle with the Golden Eagles potentially shorthanded, Morley, along with forwards Brian Butch and Andreas Helmigk, are poised to fill the void in the frontcourt. Regardless of Wilkinson’s status, the Golden Eagles, still without 7-foot center Mike Kinsella, will likely find themselves dwarfed up front Saturday.

At 6-foot-9, forwards Marcus Jackson and Steve Novak constitute the height of the Marquette starting five. Although Jackson — at 240 pounds — offers the Golden Eagles a dominating presence in the post, Novak is typically most effective scoring from the perimeter.

One of the premier 3-point shooters in NCAA basketball, Novak has shot 27-for-45 this season from beyond the arc. His unique combination of physical stature and prowess scoring from the perimeter make Novak an anomaly and a difficult player to match up with.

“Novak’s a phenomenal player,” Butch said. “It’s going to be a challenge for us guarding him. Being the great shooter and great player that he is, we’ve got to concentrate on him and try to contain him.”

With the veteran Morley the probable matchup for Novak, both Helmigk and Butch will likely see considerable time against Jackson up front if Wilkinson sits out for the game. Against South Dakota State Tuesday, Jackson ripped down 13 boards, his fourth double-digit performance of the season on the glass.

Although Butch, at 6-foot-11, plays more to the Wisconsin height advantage, Helmigk came up strong off the bench for Ryan against UW-Green Bay. In 10 minutes on the floor, the senior forward fought hard in the post to pull down six boards (three offensive) and shot 3-for-4 for nine points in the 65-55 victory.

“[Helmigk] shows that he just wants to play, whatever he can contribute,” Ryan said. “He works hard and he did some nice things defensively and on the glass.”

Marquette forward Dameon Mason is another figure capable of presenting a threat to a beleaguered Badger frontcourt. Averaging 14.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, Mason twice registered double-doubles this season, including a 26-point, 10-rebound outing on the road against Oakland.

Though he saw relatively little action in Marquette’s 63-59 defeat at the hands of Wisconsin Dec. 20 at the Kohl Center, Butch has seen Mason’s game before. The two faced each other during an All-Star prep game two years ago.

“He’s a great player, very athletic,” Butch said. “He’s improved from the time that I played him. You can tell — even last year — that he was improving. I look forward to playing against him.”

One of the marquis matchups of the evening, however, will likely take place at the one-spot. Sharif Chambliss, fresh off a head-turning performance running the point against the Phoenix, will take the court against veteran guard Travis Diener, who is on track to make a run for All-American honors. Through eight starts, Diener has averaged 5.86 assists and 20.1 points per game as the Golden Eagles have strolled to a perfect mark to open the season.

“He’s good,” Morley said. “He’s one of the better players we’ll play against all year. He can create his own shot, but at the same time, he’s good at creating shots for other guys. You have to have a hand up at all times, but then you have to be ready for him to make that spectacular pass.”

After suffering an ankle injury against Delaware State last week, Diener struggled in the Golden Eagles’ 76-60 win over South Dakota State Tuesday, shooting 2-for-8 from the field. Diener is expected to start against Wisconsin, though Marquette head coach Tom Crean said his star point guard might still be hampered by the injury.

Regardless of which players end up taking the floor, the upcoming battle between Wisconsin’s two premier programs is drawing attention across the Dairy State.

“That’s one of the hottest tickets in Wisconsin right now in any sport,” Chambliss, a Milwaukee native, said of the Wisconsin-Marquette matchup. “If you can get it, get it. Just be happy to be in the building.”

Wisconsin currently leads the all-time series 60-50.