1. GOING DANCING

The Badgers were selected to the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, drawing the No. 3 seed in the East Region, facing off against 14-seeded Montana in Denver during the first round on Thursday, March 20. The winner will go on to face the winner of No. 6 seed BYU and No. 11 seed VCU, also in Denver on Sunday, March 23.

This is the 28th NCAA Tournament appearance for the Badgers, who are one of just five teams to make 24 of the last 26 tournaments. It’ll be the seventh appearance under head coach Greg Gard. Wisconsin’s 26 wins this season are the team's most when entering the tournament since the 2014-15 season.

This is the first time the Badgers will play a game in Denver. The team has been in the East Region before in 2016 and 2017, making the Sweet Sixteen both times.

2. GRIZZLIES GAMEPLAN 

Wisconsin’s first round opponent in the Big Dance is the 14th-seeded Montana Grizzlies. The Grizzlies enjoyed a successful season in the Big Sky conference, going 25-9 (15-3 Big Sky), winning both the conference regular season and tournament titles.

This is the third NCAA appearance for Montana under 11-year head coach, Travis DeCuire - the Grizzlies are 0-2 in their previous tournament matchups under DeCuire. As a team, Montana ranks second in the nation with 50.2% shooting mark from the field. Sophomore Money Williams leads the team, scoring 13.3 points per game with 3.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game as well.

Wisconsin is 3-0 all-time against Montana. The two teams have faced off once in the NCAA Tournament before, a first round matchup in the 2011-12 season. Wisconsin, the four-seed, defeated the 13th-seeded Grizzlies, 73-49, with Jordan Taylor finishing the game with 17 points, eight rebounds, and six assists for the Badgers.

3. BIG TEN TOURNAMENT RECAP

Wisconsin went on a stellar run to the Championship game during the 2025 Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis. The Badgers made their second-straight title game, before falling to the Michigan Wolverines in a tight 59-53 battle.

The Badgers started the Tournament with a win over the 13th-seeded Northwestern Wildcats, 70-63. The next day, the Badgers tied a Big Ten Tournament record, pouring in 19 3-pointers against the 4th-seeded UCLA Bruins. Wisconsin won its rematch against the Bruins 86-70.

Wisconsin achieved its most notable win over the top-seeded, No. 7 overall Michigan State Spartans in the semifinal. The Badgers came out on top in a thrilling 77-74 game to achieve their third top-ten victory of the season. Carter Gilmore and John Tonje each blocked potential game tying shots to secure the victory.

4. ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Speaking of Tonje, the Nebraska-native had an electric showing at the tournament. He, along with John Blackwell, earned spots on the Big Ten All-Tournament team - the ninth instance of two-or-more Badgers making it to the All-Tournament team.

Tonje scored 85 points over the four games, the second-most by a Badger in a single tournament. He went a staggering 6-for-6 from the 3-point line against UCLA, finishing with 26 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. Against Michigan State, he scored 32 points - becoming the first Division I player since UConn’s Kemba Walker in 2011 to record three 30 point games against top-ten opponents in a single season.

Sophomore John Blackwell averaged 16.7 points per game during the last three games of the tournament. He scored a game-high 18 points against Michigan in the title game, and hit four 3-pointers against UCLA in the quarterfinal.

5. DENVER FAN EVENTS

There will be multiple opportunities for fans to cheer on the Badgers while in Denver. Ball Arena, the venue for Wisconsin’s game, has an open practice on Wednesday, March 19 at 11:45 a.m. MT. Later in the day at 6 p.m. MT, Wally’s Wisconsin Tavern (1417 Market St, Denver, CO) hosts a “Welcome to Denver” fan event.

Thursday has two events for Badger fans to attend before the game begins. A team send off will be hosted at the Westin Downtown (1672 Lawrence St, Denver, CO), at 9:45 a.m. MT. Afterwards, fans are encouraged to come back to Wally’s Wisconsin Tavern for a pre-game pep rally from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., before the game tips off at 11:30 a.m. MT.