UT Rio Grande Valley (3-2, 0-0 Southland) vs. Wisconsin (4-0, 0-0 Big Ten)

Date/Time – Monday, November 18, 7 p.m. CT

Arena – Kohl Center (16,838)

Watch – Big Ten Network (Jeff Levering and Bruce Weber)

Radio – Badgers Radio Network (Matt Lepay and Brian Butch), Sirius XM 372, stream online on iHeartRadio.

Series – First Meeting

Follow Online: The Badgers' Den

Twitter: @Badger_Blitz

Betting line: Wisconsin -20.5

Player to Watch: After scoring a career-high 41 points in Friday’s win over No.9 Arizona, Tonje is averaging a team-leading 23.5 points per game. The graduate transfer is shooting 55.8 percent overall, 47.4 percent from three-point range, and 94.9 percent from the free-throw line, as well as averaging 5.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.

Player to watch: Abdul Hakim was named the most valuable player of the Greenbriar Tip-Off River Division tournament Saturday, averaging 19.5 points and shooting 15-for-24 from the field. He added four steals against Charleston Southern and five rebounds and two assists against Tennessee Tech.

This will be the first game for Wisconsin against the Southland Conference since 2021.

Wisconsin is 9-0 against the Southland Conference, including 3-0 in the Gard era. The Badgers have won those games by an average of 23.3 points.

The Badgers are 27-11 all-time against teams from Texas, including 13-3 against non-Power Four schools from the state.

Wisconsin is now 51-5 (.911) in regular season, non-conference games under Gard at the Kohl Center.

Wisconsin is averaging 88.5 ppg this year, having scored at least 79 points in each of the season's first four games for the first time since the 2005-06 season.

UW's 103 points against No.9 Arizona was its most scored against a ranked opponent in program history. The Badgers broke the century mark against a ranked foe for the first time since Feb. 1970, at No.14 Iowa, and scored at least 100 for the first time against a Power-Four school since Feb. 1993 vs. Northwestern.

Friday's 15-point win was UW's largest over a top-10 team since a 67-49 victory (18 points) over No. 5 Michigan State on Feb. 2, 2010.

UW is averaging 25.0 free throw attempts per game, an increase of 5.6 attempts per game from last season. Wisconsin has outscored its first four opponents 90-to-48 at the line, making more free throws than its four opponents' attempts (70).

In winning the Greenbrier Tip-Off River Division championship, the Vaqueros won their first MTE since the 2016-17 season when they won the Emerald Coast Classic Pool B Championship.

After finishing last in the WAC, UTRGV has won more games away from home (two) than it did last season (one) and is already halfway towards equaling last season’s win total.

Under first year head coach Kahil Fennell, the Vaqueros have a roster comprised of five returning players, five transfers, three junior college transfers, and four freshmen.

UTRGV was picked to finish seventh in the preseason Southland Conference poll.

UTRGV has made at least 10 three-pointers in four of its five games, including 17 three-pointers in its victory over Champion Christian College. The 17 threes tied for the second most three-pointers made in a single game in program history.

Wisconsin fed off the energy of a sold-out building and the intensity of facing a top 10 opponent to register its first signature victory of the season. It told head coach Greg Gard a lot about the resiliency of his group, especially when Arizona erased an 18-point deficit to tie the game early in the second half.

Tonight will tell Gard and his staff about his group’s maturity and how it handles its business on a short turnaround in an environment that will likely be more subdued. And while the opponent isn’t nationally known, the Vaqueros do enough things that should make Wisconsin take note.

Winning its division of the Greenbrier Saturday afternoon, the Vaqueros shot 52.9 percent in their first tournament game and 48.4 percent in their second. Even against tougher competition, UTRGV hit 14 three-pointers and put four players in double figures in a loss at Nebraska, a game that was within four late with 7:30 to go. Four days later, they battled back from double-digit deficits and got as close as five points with two minutes to play before falling 99-86 at No.15 Creighton.

But after playing Saturday afternoon and traveling to Madison for a Monday tip, how much does UTRGV have in the tank? Furthermore, Wisconsin's core group of veterans should help prevent them from letting their guard down.

UW will win but don’t be surprised if it’s a competitive game.

Worgull’s Prediction: Wisconsin by 16

Record: 3-1

Points off Prediction: 37 (9.3 per game)

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