Wisconsin basketball ended its three-game losing streak on Saturday with an 83-74 win over Butler.
The victory improves the Badgers to 9-3 on the 2024-25 season. Importantly, it guarantees momentum entering the holiday break, barring an unforeseen loss to Detroit Mercy (No. 318 in KenPom) on Dec. 22.
Related: Big takeaways from Wisconsin basketball’s important win over Butler
The Badgers had tumbled in both KenPom and ESPN BPI during the mentioned losing streak. The team fell from a fringe-top-20 contender down to the mid-30s of both rankings.
The win over Butler righted that trajectory. Wisconsin rose in both rating metrics:
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KenPom: No. 33 (up from No. 35), with the No. 15 offense and No. 89 defense in the country.
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BPI: No. 34 (up from No. 35), with a projected record of 20.3 – 10.7 and a 5.5% chance to win the Big Ten.
The Badgers are the No. 9 and No. 8-ranked team in the Big Ten in those two rankings, respectively. While a step down from where the team was after its 8-0 start, each slot is a significant upgrade over where it stood entering the season (No. 46 in KenPom, No. 39 in BPI).
That sentence likely captures the tone of the fanbase: the three-game losing streak paused big-picture expectations, especially in a gauntlet Big Ten. But overall, the Badgers look far better than any expected when the season began.
Wisconsin is back on the court on Dec. 22 at home against Detroit Mercy. It is then off until Jan. 3, 2025 when the Big Ten schedule continues with a home matchup against Iowa.
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