SWEET 16
Wisconsin has advanced to its 4th-consecutive Sweet 16 and the team's 6th trip in the last 7 years. UW is the only school to accomplish either feat. The Badgers have won 13 NCAA tournament games over the last 4 years, the highest mark in all of college basketball.

The eighth-seeded Badgers face No. 4 seed Florida in New York City on Friday at approximately 8:59 p.m. (CT) on TBS.

GAME 37  |  #8 WISCONSIN vs. #4 FLORIDA
Date	Friday, March 24  |  8:59 p.m. (CT)
Location	New York, NY  |  Madison Square Garden
Watch	TBS  |  Watch Live
Listen	Badger Sports Network  |  Listen Live
Follow	Live Stats  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  Instagram
Notes	Wisconsin  |  Florida

SWEET 16 STAPLES
- Over the last 7 years, Wisconsin has experienced as much success in the NCAA tournament as nearly any program in the nation.
- The Badgers are making their 4th-consecutive trip to the Sweet 16, the nation's only team to accomplish that feat. UW's 4 straight Sweet 16 appearances also matches the Big Ten record for consecutive trips to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament.
- The Badgers have recorded 13 NCAA tournament wins in the last 4 years, the top mark in the nation. Kentucky (12) and North Carolina (10) are the only other schools with at least 10 wins over that span.
- Wisconsin is also the nation's only team to have been to the Sweet 16 in 6 of the last 7 seasons.
- Wisconsin has gone 17-5 in the NCAA tournament over the last 7 seasons. The Badgers' 17 wins since 2011 rank 2nd in the nation, trailing only Kentucky (22).

GARD MAKING HISTORY
- Greg Gard has now piloted the Badgers to the Sweet 16 in each of his first 2 years as a head coach. Over the last 20 years, only 2 other coaches have taken their team to the NCAA tournament's second weekend in their first 2 seasons in charge.
- The Badgers are 4-1 in the NCAA tournament under Gard. Last season, in Gard's first year, 7th-seeded UW defeated No. 10 Pitt and No. 2 Xavier to advance to the Sweet 16. The Badgers eventually fell to No. 6 Notre Dame.
- The Badgers have been to the NCAA tournament in all 16 seasons Greg Gard has been on the bench (14 as an assistant and 2 as head coach). In those 16 appearances, UW owns a 29-15 (.659) record and has advanced to 9 Sweet 16s, 3 Elite Eights and the 2014 and 2015 Final Four.
- Wisconsin's 29 NCAA tourney wins since 2001-02 (Bo Ryan/Greg Gard era) rank 7th in the nation and 2nd among Big Ten teams (Michigan St., 31).
- What Bo Ryan/Greg Gard have accomplished at Wisconsin is impressive for any school, but considering UW's NCAA tournament history prior to 2002, it is particularly staggering.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT
- No active player has been more productive in the NCAA tournament than Wisconsin's senior duo of Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig. Hayes leads all active players with 166 points scored in NCAA tournament games and Koenig is right behind with 159 career NCAA tournament points.

NCAA Tournament Points, Active Players
Player (School) Points
1. Nigel Hayes (Wis.) 166
2. Bronson Koenig (Wis.) 159
3. Justin Jackson (UNC) 158
4. Josh Hart (Villanova) 143
5. Grayson Allen (Duke) 142

- Koenig has also made the most 3FGs in the NCAA tournament of any active player. Koenig is 31-for-79 (.391) from long range.

HISTORY vs. FLORIDA
Friday's game marks the 5th-ever meeting between Wisconsin and Florida.
- The Badgers and Gators split a pair of home-and-home series, with each team winning the contests on their home floor.
- Wisconsin won the most recent meeting, with a 59-53 victory in Madison in 2013. UW senior Nigel Hayes played 18 minutes in that contest, scoring 8 points (4-7 FGs) and grabbing 2 rebounds.

ALL-TIME AT THE GARDEN
The Badgers are making their second trip to Madison Square Garden of the season and their third trip in the last 14 months.
- Wisconsin played Rutgers earlier this season at MSG as part of a "Super Saturday" doubleheader. The Badgers men's hockey team played Ohio State that same evening. The Badgers defeated Rutgers, 61-54, in overtime. Sophomore Ethan Happ scored a career-high 32 points, including the game-tying basket with 0:02 left to force overtime. He also tallied 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 4 steals. Nigel Hayes grabbed 11 rebounds to go with 7 points and 4 assists in the win.
- Last season, Wisconsin participated in the 2015 2K Classic at the World's Most Famous Arena, suffering a 71-61 loss to Georgetown before knocking off VCU, 74-73. Bronson Koenig hit the game-winning shot against VCU on a spinning, left-handed lay-in with 5.9 seconds left. Koenig finished with 22 points in the win.
- Wisconsin also played in the previous building known as Madison Square Garden (closed in 1968) 5 times, going 3-2. UW went 1-1 in the 1947 NCAA Tournament, losing to City College of NY in the semifinals and beating Navy in the third-place game. UW also went 2-1 in the 1961 ECAC Holiday Festival, beating Providence and Dayton and losing to Cincinnati.

LAST TIME OUT
(8) WISCONSIN 65, (1) VILLANOVA (62)
March 18, 2017 | Buffalo, NY

- Trailing 57-50 with 5:15 remaining, Wisconsin closed the game on a 15-5 run, including the game-winning lay-up from Nigel Hayes with 11.4 seconds remaining.
- UW held Villanova 15 points below its scoring average and the Wildcats' 62 points was their 4th-lowest total of the year.
- The Badgers shot 53.1% from the field, the team's highest mark since Dec. 10 at Marquette (58.2%).
- UW had four players score in double figures for the 3rd time in 5 postseason games.
- Hayes led Wisconsin with 19 points and 8 rebounds (5 offensive) in 39 minutes. He has scored in double digits in 8 straight games, averaging 15.1 ppg over that stretch.
- Senior Bronson Koenig, who sat for 8:00 of the second half after picking up his 4th foul, finished with 17 points (3-6 3FGs), hitting game-tying and go-ahead 3-pointers in the final minutes.
- Sophomore Ethan Happ tallied 12 points and 8 rebounds. He also added team highs in assists (3), blocks (2) and steals (2).
- Senior Vitto Brown hit a trio of 3-pointers to finished with 10 points. He also recorded the game-sealing steal when he stripped Villanova senior Josh Hart with UW clinging to a 2-point lead and 0:04 remaining. Brown connected on his most 3FGs since hitting 3 at Ohio State on Feb. 23. In fact, it marked just his 5th game this season with 3+ 3-pointers.

WISCONSIN IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Wisconsin is making its 23rd appearance in the NCAA tournament. The Badgers are 38-21 (.644) all-time in the Big Dance, advancing to 4 Final Fours and winning the 1941 NCAA title.
- The Badgers earned a No. 8 seed in the East Region. UW has been seeded 8th or higher in 10 of the last 11 years.
- Wisconsin is 7-2 all-time as a No. 8 seed. The Badgers advanced all the way to the 2000 Final Four as a No. 8 seed, knocking off No. 9 Fresno State, No. 1 Arizona, No. 4 LSU and No. 6 Purdue. UW also went 1-1 as a No. 8 seed in 2002, beating No. 9 St. John's before falling to eventual national champion, No. 1 seeded Maryland.
- Since 2002, the Badgers have gone 14-2 in opening-round NCAA tournament games. UW's only two first-round losses came as a No. 9 seed in 2006 and a No. 5 seed in 2013.
- UW has won 12 of its last 13 NCAA tournament games played in the month of March.
- This marks the 10th time UW has been in the East Region, most recently advancing to the Sweet 16 in Philadelphia last season. The Badgers' only national championship came out of the East Region in 1941.
- Wisconsin has qualified for each of the last 19 consecutive NCAA tournaments, the 5th-longest streak in NCAA history.
- UW's 19 consecutive NCAA tournaments is also tied as the 2nd-longest streak in Big Ten history. Only MSU's active streak of 20 consecutive is longer.