Preview: No. 12 Wisconsin hosts No. 23 Louisville

No. 12 Wisconsin (5-1, 0-0) vs. No. 23 Louisville (4-0, 0-0)

Game: Saturday, Dec. 19 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin

Time: 11 AM CT

Watch: ESPN2 (Dan Shulman and Jay Bilas)

Listen: 1310 AM and 101.5 FM (Matt Lepay and Mike Lucas)

Follow Online: The Badgers' Den

Twitter: @Badger_Blitz

Louisville will finally be traveling to Madison for a matchup that was originally scheduled to be played back on Dec. 9. Better late than never, though, as the Cardinals present a great test for the Badgers as they prepare for the gauntlet that will be league play.

Greg Gard mentioned to reporters Friday afternoon that after the loss of so many non-conference opportunities, "this is the challenge we need." Under normal circumstances, Wisconsin would have non-conference games lined up against the likes of No. 10 Tennessee, a preseason tournament that would have included a game against Butler and either Colorado or South Florida, and even a game against a Big East opponent as part of the Gavitt Tipoff Games.

"I think this is the challenge we need and is also a good measuring stick heading into conference play that starts next week," Gard said.

No. 23 Louisville is led by the backcourt of Carlik Jones, a grad transfer from Radford, and David Johnson. Jones, who is leading the team averaging 17.3 points per game, has scored 18 points in three of four contests. The sophomore is also a playmaker at the point guard position with a little over five assists per game. Jones presents a tough challenge with his shooting touches, ability to get to the rim and, most notably, the amount of screens Louisville's bigs set for the talented guard.

Louisville represents Wisconsin's final non-conference test before getting into Big Ten play. The Cardinals are coming off an 18-day gap between their last game - they last stepped on the court on Dec. 1 against Western Kentucky.

“We want to play good teams, we want to be challenged," Nate Reuvers said. "Some of those earlier teams, no offense to them but we were kind of on a different level than them and a team like Louisville or Loyola-Chicago, if you don’t play well, they can beat you. And that’s what it’s going to be like in the Big Ten so that’s what we want to be prepared for.”

Saturday's early meeting will be only the second all-time meeting between the two programs. Louisville won the only contest between the two, 70-53, in the 1978-1979 season.