1. SCOUTING THE OPPONENT

Thursday will mark the first-ever meeting between Wisconsin and Jacksonville State. The Gamecocks have a 4-6 record this season and are on a two-game losing streak. 

Jax State is coming off a 55-49 loss against UIC on Friday. Junior Andres Burney was the team's leading scorer off the bench in that game with 12 points.

Graduate guard KyKy Tandy leads the team with 17.4 points per game this season. Tandy is in his first season with the Gamecocks after transferring from Xavier, where he spent four years. Junior guard Quincy Clark is also averaging 10.2 points and 3.3 assists per game.

The Badgers have won 40 consecutive, non-conference home games against mid-major programs. That is the fourth-longest active streak in the Big Ten behind only Purdue (48), Minnesota (48), and Ohio State (45).  

2. BLACKWELL CONTINUES TO BALL

For the second time in three weeks, John Blackwell was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week. Blackwell is the first Badger to earn multiple Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors since Brad Davidson in 2017-18.

Last week, Blackwell averaged 13.5 points per game on 50 percent shooting from the floor. That included a team-high 17 points and team-best seven rebounds on the road against No. 1 Arizona. Blackwell has scored in double figures in seven of 10 games in his debut season.

The Michigan native ranks second in scoring among Big Ten freshmen averaging 9.9 points per game.

3. LAST TIME OUT

The Badgers faced off against the No. 1 team in the nation this past Saturday, playing Arizona in Tucson. Wisconsin fell, 98-73.

John Blackwell once again gave his all off the bench, finishing with team highs in points (17) and rebounds (7). Steven Crowl added 11 points, while AJ Storr tallied his fifth-straight, double-digit scoring effort (10 points).

Despite the loss, the Badgers tied the most points scored on the Wildcats this season with 73. Then-ranked No. 2 Duke dropped 73 points on Arizona back on Nov. 10. The Badgers are averaging 73.5 points per game this season and shooting 45.3 percent, which is a jump from the 65.3 points per game and 41.4 percent shooting last season.

4. ON THE REBOUND

Wisconsin has dominated the glass to start the 2023-24 season, making significant strides in that department when compared to last season. Last year, UW had a -3.4 overall margin on the glass and was out-rebounded, 35.1 to 31.7. Contrast that to UW's effort through 10 games this season, however, and the Badgers hold a +5.6 on the glass.

UW's efforts on the glass have heavily influenced the outcome of its games. This season, the Badgers are 6-0 when out-rebounding their opponents. Wisconsin has also out-rebounded its last seven opponents by a combined 245-187, a span in which its record has been 6-1.

Wisconsin has recorded double-digit offensive rebounds in six of 10 games this season, something that was only accomplished 10 times all of last season.

5. HOLDING STEADY

For the second straight week, Wisconsin held steady at No. 23 in this week's Associated Press Top 25 rankings. The Badgers check in at No. 14 in the KenPom.com rankings, standing as one of just 13 teams with a top-30 offense (No. 14) and defense (No. 27).

UW is one of a few teams in the nation to have three or more wins against teams ranked in the KenPom top 35 (Marquette, Virginia, Michigan State). More impressive, UW did not trail at any point in each of those three wins.