Wisconsin (12-8) vs. Ohio State (11-10)

Game: Thursday, Feb. 2 inside Value City Arena

Time: 6:00 P.M CT

Watch: FS1

Listen: 1310 WIBA AM and 101.5 FM (Matt Lepay and Mike Lucas on the call); stream online on iHeartRadio

Prediction: Wisconsin 69, Ohio State 67

Follow Online: The Badgers' Den

Twitter: @Badger_Blitz

Wisconsin fell to Illinois on Saturday, dropping its third straight for the second time this season. The Badgers are now sitting at a perilous 12-8, and 4-6 in the Big Ten.

If you believe in the semi-exact science of Joe Lunardi's Bracketology, you'd notice Wisconsin — surprise, surprise — isn't in the best place right now. Specifically, they're part of the "First Four Out," or the four teams that just miss qualifying for the tournament. They need to turn it around, and quick, if they want to avoid missing the tournament for the first time since 2018.

Memories of the mighty No.3 seeded Badgers of just a season ago are all but gone. If Wisconsin does indeed sneak into the dance, it'll be through the back door. They can do it, though — and it starts with stopping their skid at three and beating a beatable Ohio State team.

The Buckeyes, like many teams this season, have been humbled by the cruel reality that is Big Ten play. After starting 10-3, including 2-0 in conference play, they've lost a brutal seven of their last eight games. Every game in the Big Ten can feel like a street fight, and the Buckeyes have played in some tooth-and-nail contests. They lost by two to the No.1 team in the country, Purdue. They fell to both Rutgers and North Carolina in overtime.

They've also had some losses that are tough to swallow during their tailspin. Minnesota, easily the worst team in the conference, came into Columbus and left with a victory. Nebraska, the second-worst team in the Big Ten, knocked them off in Lincoln.

Ohio State, who has won at least 20 games in the past five years, would essentially have to run the table to hit that mark this season. That's a stretch with how tough this conference is.

The Badgers aren't in great shape. Not only are they losing, but they're playing uncharacteristic of what Wisconsin teams usually do. Poor defense, getting beat on the glass, and an ineffective offense has plagued this team since early January.

Their three-point shooting, which had been creeping up on 40 percent for a while, has since cooled way off. Everyone not named Chucky Hepburn and Connor Essegian is struggling to shoot the three consistently.

As for the Buckeyes, they have similar tendencies to Wisconsin in some regards. For starters, they barely turn the ball over. They're in the upper echelon of teams that take care of the ball, while the Badgers are the third best in the nation at it.

Ohio State has been shooting the three ball well recently, about as well as Wisconsin was at the height of their powers. The freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh is shooting at a scorching 47.4% clip from downtown. He's their most impressive scorer all around, and easily leads the lineup in scoring with 17.6 points-per-game in his first collegiate season. He could be playing his way to some professional opportunities at the end of the year.

Bruce Thornton and Sean McNeal are each shooting just under 40% from long range. The Buckeyes can hit threes, although those three are the only players in their lineup that shoot them regularly.

In order to win Thursday evening, Wisconsin must win the three-point battle. They need to defend it well and they need to hit their shots. They also need to avoid having too many of their signature lulls, where the offense goes comatose for a five-minute stretch. As they learned against Indiana and Trayce Jackson-Davis, that's a death sentence on the road, especially when your opponent has a 17,18,19 point-per-game guy.

We've been using the metaphor of the road getting narrow for the Badgers. That road is now a tightrope. The Badgers must maintain their balance, snap out of their funk and steal a few wins down the stretch if they want to play in March. It starts with a doable game against a Buckeyes team just one win over .500.

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