Auburn basketball officially sets matchup with Big Ten program in Nashville
By Ethan Stone
Published:
Auburn basketball will face off against Big Ten foe Wisconsin next season in Nashville, the program announced on Tuesday. The non-conference neutral site matchup will take place on December 19 at Bridgestone Arena.
Incredibly, next season’s game will be the 2nd all-time meeting between these 2 programs. The Badgers beat the Tigers in 2006 in another neutral site matchup in Texas.
This matchup was first reported in early April, but officially confirmed on Tuesday.
Wisconsin isn’t an elite basketball program, but they’re as close as possible to that distinction without actually being in the top-tier when it comes to Big Ten programs. Greg Gard’s team has been to the NCAA Tournament in 5 of the last 6 seasons, averaging around 25 wins per season across that span.
Next year’s Wisconsin team will look a little different. Won’t every college basketball team? The Badgers lost leading scorers John Blackwell to Duke and Nick Boyd to eligibility. Nolan Winter is back, and Gard has brought in a decent transfer haul that includes Miami (OH)’s Eian Elmer and George Washington’s Trey Autry.
As for Auburn, there’s a lot to like about Steven Pearl’s 2nd squad. Tahaad Pettiford and Kevin Overton are back with Troy transfer Thomas Dowd and Santa Clara transfer Bukky Oboye set to be instant impact players.
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
