MBB Preview: Wisconsin resumes conference play against Indiana

The Wisconsin Badgers welcome 2018, and a return to conference play, with open arms when Indiana Hoosiers come to Madison on Jan. 2.

Entering Tuesday's matchup, the Hoosiers (8-6,1-1) and the Badgers (8-7, 1-1) are two of eight BIG Ten teams boasting an early .500 record in conference play.

Yet, only one of them is looking for its fifth-straight victory on Tuesday evening.

Game information and team previews are below.

Game: Jan. 2, 2018, at the Kohl Center

Time: 6:00 PM CDT

Watch: ESPN

Listen: BadgerSports Network (iHeartRadio)

Follow Online: The Badgers' Den

Twitter: @Badger_Blitz, @McNamaraRivals, @JohnVeldhuis and @realJ_Mills

Hoosiers' Pre-Game Notes:

The 2017-18 Indiana program will give UW everything it can handle, and perhaps a little more, come Tuesday evening.

Entering the season, expectations surrounding IU were not high, especially after the program mustered just seven conference wins and fired head coach Tom Crean after nine years at the helm.

However, if Indiana's first 14 games have proven anything it's that consistency is hard to come across in Bloomington. For example, Hoosier fans witnessed Indiana go head-head against the previously No. 1 Duke Blue Devils and lose to Fort-Wayne by 20 points just two days later. Not surprisingly, consistency continues to be an underlying theme in 2017.

"I think we have to get some guys out of the clouds, so to speak, out of the fog of why aren't I shooting good or why haven't I been doing this," IU head coach Archie Miller said after his team faced Youngstown State on Dec. 29. "Just worry about winning the game. Worry about playing the right way. Do your job and execute better."

In particular, one player who is "doing his job" this year is junior forward Juwan Morgan, who leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and rebounds (7.2 rpg). Additionally, Morgan was second in the conference in scoring (18.4 ppg) during the month of December.

However, the Hoosiers will need more than Morgan's nightly contributions to remain competitive and consistent.

Through 14 games, IU averages roughly 75 ppg on 47 percent field goal shooting, but converts just 66 percent of its free throws. In comparison to the rest of the conference, the Hoosiers rank 12th overall, which is just above Michigan (62 percent) and Rutgers (61 percent).

Thus, the Hoosiers can benefit if starters like De'Ron Davis (50 percent FT) and ironically, Morgan (70 percent FT) to accumulate points in close games.

Badgers' Pre-Game Notes:

The Wisconsin Badgers, winners of four straight games, hope to keep its streak alive in the New Year when the Hoosiers visit the Kohl Center.

Fortunately, history is already on UW's side, as the Hoosiers have not won in Madison since 1998, when IU defeated UW, 69-59. Since then, Indiana has lost 15 straight contests at the Kohl Center.

Yet, the Badgers must focus on the road ahead, rather than what lies in its rearview mirror.

Currently, UW head coach Greg Gard continues to mix and match rotations in wake of the injury to starter D'Mitrik Trice and the frequently-called upon freshman Kobe King.

However, when two Badgers went down, two Badgers (not named Brad Davison or Ethan Happ) began to rise.

As of late, sophomore Brevin Pritzl and freshman Aleem Ford are impressing as starters. For example, against UMass Lowell last week, Pritzl set a new career high in points (18) while recording a career best in rebounds (7). Also on the court was Ford, who notched 10 points, marking the second-straight game he has scored double digits.

"He's got great potential, I'm excited about his future and he wants to learn and get better," Gard said of Ford last week. "At the same time he understands that there are a lot of things he needs to get better at, specifically on the defensive side of the ball."

As UW's schedule grows significantly tougher, the stakes quietly rise. After facing Indiana on Tuesday, the Badgers battle Rutgers followed by Nebraska.

As any Badger fan might assume, walking away with wins during this mini-stretch of conference play is instrumental to Wisconsin's chances for a Tournament appearance.

Coach's Corner:

Indiana: Head coach Archie Miller believes the BIG Ten doesn't get enough credit.

“I don't think we had a great non-conference as a league, but I think we have two Final Four teams, potential Final Four teams in our conference in Michigan State and Purdue," Miller said after IU defeated Youngstown State. "And from there, there's a lot of teams that have done some good things and a lot of teams that have been up-and-down.’’

Wisconsin: Head coach Greg Gard is 4-1 against Indiana.