Getty Nate Reuvers of the Wisconsin Badgers
The No. 7 ranked Wisconsin Badgers will kick off their 20-21 basketball season hosting the Eastern Illinois Panthers at the Kohl Center in Madison on Wednesday.
The game starts at 10 p.m. ET and will be televised on Big Ten Network. But if you don’t have cable, here’s how you can watch a live stream of Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin online for free:
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FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of Big Ten Network, the BTN alternate channels (for when there are multiple games on BTN) and 100-plus other TV channels on FuboTV, which you can use for free with a seven-day trial right here:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin live on the FuboTV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the FuboTV website.
You can also watch the game live via FoxSports.com or the Fox Sports app. You need to sign in to a TV provider to watch this way, but you can do that with your FuboTV credentials.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV also comes with 250 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which allows you to watch the game on-demand within three days of its conclusion, even if you don’t record it.
Vidgo
You can watch a live stream of Big Ten Network and 65+ other TV channels on Vidgo, which you can use for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Vidgo, you can watch Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin live on the Vidgo app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Vidgo website.
You can also watch the game live via FoxSports.com or the Fox Sports app. You need to sign in to a TV provider to watch this way, but you can do that with your Vidgo credentials.
Hulu With Live TV
You can watch a live stream of Big Ten Network and 65+ other TV channels via Hulu With Live TV, which you can try out for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin live on the Hulu app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Hulu website.
You can also watch the game live via FoxSports.com or the Fox Sports app. You need to sign in to a TV provider to watch this way, but you can do that with your Hulu credentials.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu with Live TV also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
Sling TV
You can watch a live stream of Big Ten Network and 50-plus other TV channels via Sling TV’s “Sling Blue + Sports Extra” bundle. It comes with a free three-day trial, but if you bypass that, you can get $10 off your first month, and get Showtime, Starz, and Epix included for free:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin live on the Sling TV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Sling TV website.
You can also watch the game live via FoxSports.com or the Fox Sports app. You need to sign in to a TV provider to watch this way, but you can do that with your Sling credentials.
If you can’t watch live, Sling TV comes included with 10 hours of cloud DVR.
Eastern Illinois vs Wisconsin Preview
The Badgers have five seniors returning to the starting lineup this year, with Nate Reuvers and Micah Potter the top two scorers from last year among them. Reuvers averaged 13.1 points last year, and Potter added 10.1. With two additional players also returning who averaged close to double figures (Brad Davison averaged 9.9 points a game, and D’Mitrik Trice chipped in 9.8) the Badgers should have a well-rounded attack fueled by players who are comfortable and familiar with each other.
Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard says his team is ready to get back to work, and he noted that playing games like this one against Eastern Illinois, who play in the Ohio Valley Conference, will be advantageous for the Badgers, particularly this season.
“Overall, with our non-conference schedule, we tried to create the safest environment possible and having so many games at home allows us to have a little more control over some of the variables,” Gard said.
The Badgers finished fourth in the Big Ten last year (23-11 overall, 14-6 in the conference) and they’ll be going up against a Panthers team that finished last in the Ohio Valley Conference (1-11 overall, 1-7 in the conference).
EIU is also led by several returning seniors, including Josiah Wallace (15.6 points a game last year) George Dixon (11.0 points a game) and Mack Smith (13.4 points a game). One intriguing name to watch heading into this game is Jordan Skipper-Brown, who will be a key role-player for this Panthers team.
Skipper-Brown, who spent his first few years playing for a community college, said heading into this season that his unique background as an under the radar player can only help him moving forward, noting he believes that his experience playing at smaller schools most of his life has prepared him for a season without fans.
“At my high school in Washington, we were not that good, so we didn’t have a lot of fans,” Skipper-Brown said. “I’m used to playing with no fans, and I think that’s when I play my best. I get a little bit of anxiety when we play in front of big crowds, so I think I may have a pretty good season because we may not have any fans.”
Wisconsin is 6-1 in the all-time series against Eastern Illinois. The Badgers won last year’s meeting, 65-52. Reuvers led the way for the Badgers in the win, scoring 14 points, hauling in 14 rebounds and accumulating nine blocks.