Nebraska vs Wisconsin Odds and Picks

• Micah Potter and the No. 9 Wisconsin Badgers (6-1) host the Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-3) in the Big Ten opener for both teams Tuesday, Dec. 22 at 7:00 p.m. ET
• The Badgers are coming off an impressive 85-48 blowout win against No. 23 Louisville Saturday, while the Huskers dropped back-to-back games to Georgia Tech and No. 8 Creighton before beating NAIA Doane last Thursday
• Read below for odds, analysis, and our best bet for this matchup

The red-hot No. 9 Wisconsin Badgers (6-1) host the Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-3) in the Big Ten opener for both teams Tuesday, Dec. 22 at 7:00 p.m. ET inside  the Kohl Center.

Greg Gard’s squad — now rated No. 3 overall by KenPom in the utterly stacked Big Ten — is fresh off a 37-point victory against the No. 23 Louisville Cardinals. The margin of defeat was UL’s worst loss since losing to Xavier 99-59 in February 1956. Senior forward Micah Potter had 20 points against the short-handed Cardinals in a rescheduled ACC/Big Ten Challenge game.

Nebraska whipped NAIA’s Doane 110-64 last Thursday following consecutive losses to Georgia Tech and Creighton the week prior. Junior forward Teddy Allen leads the Huskers in scoring this season, putting up over 18 points per game.

The Badgers are big favorites in this Big Ten lid-lifter.

Nebraska vs #9 Wisconsin Odds

Odds taken Dec. 21 at FanDuel.

Class of the Conference

Thanks to its blowout victory over Louisville and Gonzaga’s win over Iowa Saturday, Wisconsin is now the top-rated team in the top-rated conference in the country according to KenPom. The Big Ten features eight teams in the top-30, with Wisconsin leading the way after its dazzling win over the Cardinals.

(12) Wisconsin defeated (23) Louisville 85-48 today, marking the Badgers’ largest margin of victory (+37) against an AP ranked opponent in school history.

Wisconsin made 16 3-point FG, tied for its 3rd-most in a game in program history. pic.twitter.com/E9FQVhewVL

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 19, 2020

Sure, UL was without its top scorer (graduate transfer point guard Carlik Jones — averaging 17.3 points per game coming in — traveled with the team but didn’t play) and was playing its first game since Dec. 1 due to COVID issues. But a 37-point win over a Chris Mack-coached team is huge. The Badgers took control early, opening with a 25-4 run to start off the game.

“We wish we could play everyone full strength, because it makes it more fun, you get more looks. But at the same time, our job is to go out there and win, go out there and execute and play Wisconsin basketball. I thought we did a great job of that today,” said senior guard Brad Davison.

The only loss for Gard’s veteran club this season was a two-point defeat to Marquette. If Nebraska isn’t prepared, Potter and Co. could easily run the Huskers out of the Kohl Center in the first half Tuesday.

Not So A-Maize-ing

Fred Hoiberg’s group is above-500 entering conference play. But with a No. 119 rating by KenPom, the Huskers are the worst in the Big Ten. Prior to their glorified scrimmage against Doane, the Cornhuskers got shucked by Georgia Tech at home and in-state rival Creighton in Omaha. The team’s only wins have come against a pair of Summit League programs (North Dakota State and South Dakota( and a Southland Conference program (McNeese State). In other words, Hoiberg’s team is nowhere near the Badgers’ level.

Allen will try to keep Nebraska in it Tuesday. The 6-foot-5 junior has led the team in scoring in four of Nebraska’s seven games, including a season-high 26 points against the Blue Jays. So, he can light it up against superior competition. Exactly how much he can light it up will be the big question heading into Tuesday.

Trap Game?

After Wisconsin hosts Nebraska Tuesday, it travels to East Lansing for a rare Christmas Day date with Michigan State.

The possibility of a letdown after such an emotional victory — like the one the Badgers had over the Cardinals Saturday, along with  possibly looking past the Huskers in favor of the Spartans — is a very real potential scenario.

But Gard can’t let his team’s guard down against Nebraska. With a team featuring four seniors as its top four scorers (all averaging in double digits), it’s highly unlikely that will be the case.

“We’ve got to play who we’re playing,” said one of those senior in Davison, after the Louisville victory. “We want to make sure we go out there and execute and play our game plan the best we can.”

If UW doesn’t that Tuesday, it should have no issue dispatching of Nebraska to get conference play started on the right foot.

The pick: Wisconsin -17.5 (-112)