Badgers face Georgia Tech in Big Ten/ACC Challenge
June 18, 2019 | Women's Basketball
Women’s basketball travels to Atlanta on Dec. 5
MADISON, Wis. -- The Wisconsin women's basketball team will travel to Georgia Tech (17-13 in 2018-19) for the 13th-annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Thursday, Dec. 5 in Atlanta. The annual challenge, which is scheduled to continue through the 2020-21 season, offers 14 high-quality matchups this season.
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"We are excited to have the opportunity to play against a great coach in Nell Fortner in her first year at Georgia Tech in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge," head coach Jonathan Tsipis. Â "Taking our young team on the road against a perennial post-season program like the Yellow Jackets will prepare us for the challenging road games we face in the Big Ten season." Â Â
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Wisconsin (15-18) is 6-6 in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, falling at home to Duke, 60-53, in 2018. Â This will be the first meeting between the Badgers and Yellow Jackets.
Tsipis kicks off his fourth season at Wisconsin in 2019-20, returning three starters and 12 letterwinners. UW will return nearly 64 percent of its points (1,348 of 2,117) and nearly 66 percent (893 of 1,354) of its rebounds this season. Imani Lewis earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors as a freshman last season after ranking second on the team with 12.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
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The Badgers also welcome back Courtney Fredrickson, a 6-foot-2 forward who missed most of the 2018-19 season due to injury. The redshirt junior averaged 8.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore where she started 20 of 30 games. Three other Badgers also missed all or most of the 2018-19 season due to injury or illness. Carmen Backes missed her rookie season due to a knee injury she suffered in high school while Grace Mueller injured her ankle on Dec. 27 in practice and missed the rest of her sophomore season. Alex Luehring missed the last month of her redshirt freshman season due to illness.
Tsipis also welcomes in one of the best freshmen classes in UW history, featuring four of the nation's top 150 players. The signees include Sydney Hilliard, a 5-foot-11 guard from Monroe, Wisconsin; Julie Pospisilova, a 6-foot-1 guard from Prague, Czech Republic; Sara Stapleton, a 6-foot-3 post from Blaine, Minnesota; and Tara Stauffacher, a 5-foot-11 wing from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. All four athletes are ranked among the top 150 players in the country for 2019 by Blue Star Index – Pospisilova (39th), Stauffacher (90th), Stapleton (135th) and Hilliard (146th) and collectively the recruiting class is ranked 18th in the country.
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Wednesday, Dec. 4
Clemson at Iowa             Â
Indiana at Miami
Duke at Nebraska
Boston College at Northwestern
Minnesota at Notre Dame
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Thursday, Dec. 5
Michigan State at Florida State
Wisconsin at Georgia Tech
Syracuse at Michigan
Illinois at North Carolina
Maryland at North Carolina State
Louisville at Ohio State
Pittsburgh at Penn State
Virginia at Rutgers
Purdue at Virginia Tech
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"We are excited to have the opportunity to play against a great coach in Nell Fortner in her first year at Georgia Tech in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge," head coach Jonathan Tsipis. Â "Taking our young team on the road against a perennial post-season program like the Yellow Jackets will prepare us for the challenging road games we face in the Big Ten season." Â Â
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Wisconsin (15-18) is 6-6 in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, falling at home to Duke, 60-53, in 2018. Â This will be the first meeting between the Badgers and Yellow Jackets.
Tsipis kicks off his fourth season at Wisconsin in 2019-20, returning three starters and 12 letterwinners. UW will return nearly 64 percent of its points (1,348 of 2,117) and nearly 66 percent (893 of 1,354) of its rebounds this season. Imani Lewis earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors as a freshman last season after ranking second on the team with 12.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
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The Badgers also welcome back Courtney Fredrickson, a 6-foot-2 forward who missed most of the 2018-19 season due to injury. The redshirt junior averaged 8.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore where she started 20 of 30 games. Three other Badgers also missed all or most of the 2018-19 season due to injury or illness. Carmen Backes missed her rookie season due to a knee injury she suffered in high school while Grace Mueller injured her ankle on Dec. 27 in practice and missed the rest of her sophomore season. Alex Luehring missed the last month of her redshirt freshman season due to illness.
Tsipis also welcomes in one of the best freshmen classes in UW history, featuring four of the nation's top 150 players. The signees include Sydney Hilliard, a 5-foot-11 guard from Monroe, Wisconsin; Julie Pospisilova, a 6-foot-1 guard from Prague, Czech Republic; Sara Stapleton, a 6-foot-3 post from Blaine, Minnesota; and Tara Stauffacher, a 5-foot-11 wing from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. All four athletes are ranked among the top 150 players in the country for 2019 by Blue Star Index – Pospisilova (39th), Stauffacher (90th), Stapleton (135th) and Hilliard (146th) and collectively the recruiting class is ranked 18th in the country.
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2019 Big Ten/ACC Challenge Schedule
Wednesday, Dec. 4
Clemson at Iowa             Â
Indiana at Miami
Duke at Nebraska
Boston College at Northwestern
Minnesota at Notre Dame
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Thursday, Dec. 5
Michigan State at Florida State
Wisconsin at Georgia Tech
Syracuse at Michigan
Illinois at North Carolina
Maryland at North Carolina State
Louisville at Ohio State
Pittsburgh at Penn State
Virginia at Rutgers
Purdue at Virginia Tech
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Players Mentioned
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