PREVIEW - No. 18 Wisconsin vs. Ohio State

The match-up:

No. 18 Wisconsin (13-3 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) vs. Ohio State (10-36 overall, 0-3 Big Ten)

When/Where:

Thursday, Jan. 12 | 6:00 p.m. CST | Madison, Wisconsin

Broadcast:

TV – ESPN2

Radio – 101.5 FM | 1310 AM | Matt Lepay and Mike Lucas

Streaming – WatchESPN

At a glance:

The No. 18 Wisconsin Badgers return home after their first conference loss of the season to face another rival opponent, the Ohio State Buckeyes, who will be hoping to notch their first Big Ten win of the season on the road in Madison after losing on the road to Minnesota. With Ohio State’s back against the wall early in the season and Wisconsin slipping in the rankings, both squads will be looking for statement wins to steady the ship.

Head Coach

Greg Gard - 28-11 - .718

Last Time Out

Caleb Swanigan and the Boilermakers were too much for the Badgers this past Sunday when Purdue beat Wisconsin 66-55 in West Lafayatte ending Wisconsin's 9-game winning streak. Swanigan tallied 18 points and added 13 rebounds while the Boilermaker defense forced the Badgers to shoot a dismal 39 percent from the field and 14 percent from 3-point range. The loss caused the Badgers to drop five spots in the AP Top 25 rankings.

Nigel Hayes – 10 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

Ethan Happ – 17 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 6 steals

Bronson Koenig – 9 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist

Quick Facts

- Greg Gard’s start as Wisconsin’s head coach (28-11) is the best of any Badger coach in 100 years.

- The Badgers have won 15-straight home games at the Kohl Center.

- Ethan Happ is on the Big Ten leaderboard for scoring (13.4 ppg), rebounding (9.1 avg.) and steals (1.9 avg.).

Head Coach

Thad Matta - 320-108 - .748

Last Time Out

Ohio State continued to slide down the Big Ten standings with a loss in Minnesota. The Buckeyes struggled versus a stingy Gophers defense, with OSU trailing by almost 20 points at times during the first half. The resilient Ohio State squad responded, and in the latter moments of second half they were behind by just three points, 62-59. Minnesota, however, woke up and buried the hopeful Buckeyes with a dagger 3-pointer from Akeem Springs.

Quick Facts

- Ohio State leads the all-time series with Wisconsin 86-69.

-OSU has won at least 10 Big Ten games in the past 11 seasons in a row.

- The Buckeyes' Trevor Thompson has five double-doubles despite playing less than 22 minutes per game.

Wisconsin – 77

Ohio State – 69