Wisconsin was one of the hottest teams down the stretch, and they’ll look to continue that success in the NCAA tournament. (Getty)
In early January, Wisconsin looked like they were going to miss their first NCAA tournament since 1998, but a midseason revival quickly turned things around, and now the Badgers enter the Big Dance as a No. 7 seed.
Greg Gard has done a tremendous job with this squad since taking over for Bo Ryan, and he’ll get another significant test with a matchup against Pittsburgh to begin the tourney.
Here’s a look at the matchup and game details:
REGION: East
DATE: Friday, March 18
TIME: 6:50 p.m. ET
TV CHANNEL: TNT
POINT SPREAD: Wisconsin (-3). Click here for more March Madness betting info from Heavy’s partners at OddsShark.
LIVE STREAM INFO: CBS offers live streams of every game on March Madness Live. For games on TNT, TBS or TruTV a cable login will be required.
Wisconsin at a Glance
RECORD: 20-12 (12-6 Big Ten)
LOCATION: Madison, Wisconsin
CONFERENCE: Big Ten
COACH: Greg Gard
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Nigel Hayes (16.3 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.1 SPG, 1.2 3ptPG), Bronson Koenig (13.4 PPG, 2.4 3ptPG, .394 3pt%), Ethan Happ (12.1 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 1.8 SPG, 0.9 BPG, .527 FG%)
Pittsburgh at a Glance
RECORD: 21-11 (9-9 ACC)
LOCATION: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
CONFERENCE: ACC
COACH: Jamie Dixon
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Michael Young (16.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, .539 FG%), Jamel Artis (14.4 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.4 3ptPG), James Robinson (10.3 PPG, 5.1 APG, 1.2 SPG), Cameron Johnson (4.9 PPG, 1.0 3ptPG, .380 3pt%)