The Wisconsin men's basketball team will open the NCAA tournament in Milwaukee. What to know about the game | Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball

The screen blacked out moments before the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team found out their fate for the NCAA tournament. Senior Brad Davison was the first person up when the screen lit up as the crowd at Union South cheered the Badgers draw. Sunday.

UW earned a No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA tournament. The NCAA selection committee rewarded the Badgers’ 24-7 season by sending them about 80 miles to the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee for the first two rounds.

“It’s a reward for the last four or five months,” UW coach Greg Gard said. “… It’s great for our fans to be in Milwaukee, great for the old, old players. But understand when the ball goes up on Friday, we’re going to be ready to play against a really good team.

The Badgers take on No. 14 seed Colgate on Friday at 8:50 p.m. A win would result in a game against the winner of No. 6 LSU and No. 11 Iowa State in the second round. for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight.

But they don’t focus on what comes after Friday.

“When you go into the NCAA Tournament, it’s win or go home,” Davison said. As much as we want to get to the next round, we really just want to have another opportunity to compete with each other and wear the Wisconsin jersey with this group of guys. So you have to leave everything there.

“There has to be a sense of urgency right from the tip. And we have to put 40 minutes together no matter who we play or where it’s at. So that’s definitely the mindset we have at this time. of the year.”

The Badgers have lost their last two games – the regular season finale to Nebraska and their Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal to Michigan State. It’s the first two-game losing streak of the season for UW.

“I’m not really talking about chips on the shoulders,” Davison said. “Every time you go out and compete, whether you win or lose, it’s an opportunity to learn and improve. There’s a lot of things that, a lot of opportunities for us to learn and improve. , to clean up and adjust as we continue to focus on ourselves to make sure we are in top form on Friday night.

“I don’t have a chip on my shoulder, a little bad taste in my mouth. But we can’t wait to get back to this pitch as well.”

UW and Colgate have met only once, with UW winning 68-41 in November 2011. Colgate defeated Navy on Wednesday to win the Patriot League tournament and claim automatic league qualification. .

They are ranked 128th in the NET, 0-2 in Quad 1 matches and have won their only Quad 2 match.

“I haven’t seen them play, but obviously they’re a talented team if they play in an NCAA tournament,” said UW sophomore star Johnny Davis.

The game is expected to air on TBS.

UW was joined by eight other Big Ten teams in the tournament, with UW and Purdue being the highest-ranked teams at No. 3. The Big Ten placed the most teams of any conference; it’s only the sixth time a conference has had nine Big Ten teams tied the conference record, which was set last year.

Rutgers will play in the top four against Notre Dame for the No. 11 seed in the West. Michigan State is also in the West Region as the No. 7 seed.

Illinois earned a No. 4 seed in the South Region and will face former UW assistant coach Lamont Paris’ Chattanooga team. Joining the Illini in the South are Ohio State (seeded No. 7) and Michigan (seeded No. 11).