Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Wisconsin Badgers

Wisconsin Badgers (12-5, 3-2) Iowa Hawkeyes (11-7, 1-4)

When: 7:30 p.m., Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Head to Head Matchups (Matchups are not official and are subject to change)

Trevon Hughes vs. Jeff Peterson- Trevon Hughes

The Badgers seem to live and die by Trevon Hughes' handling of the ball. Here is the tell-tale stat… in the Badgers five losses, Hughes has 18 turnovers. In their 12 wins, Hughes has 13 turnovers. The Badgers will need Trevon’s best efforts to win at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Jason Bohannon vs. Matt Gatens- Even

The most coincidental matchup of the night. Two former Iowa High School rivals that both happened to win Iowa’s “Mr. Basketball” and “Gatorade Player of the Year” face off against each other. Both can light if up from beyond the arc and are key offensive components for each team’s success. This is a matchup where Bohannon's much improved on-ball defense will need to be utilized.

Joe Krabbenhoft vs. Jake Kelly- Krabbenhoft

Krabbenhoft will have his hands full in guarding Kelly who is actually a shooting guard playing out of position at small forward. You never know what he can do offensively, but you can always expect Joe Rugged to be solid on the defensive end of the court. Just does what is asked of him!

Marcus Landry vs. Cyrus Tate- Marcus Landry

This matchup will all depend on Cyrus Tate’s health. If Tate is healthy, this will be a fun matchup to watch all game long. Tate is a solid interior player for Iowa and is the only player they have that can matchup defensively on Landry. He averages 7.4 points per game and leads the Hawkeyes in rebounds with 6.3 per game. It is unknown what to expect from Tate in his first game back, but Badger fans can always expect a solid effort from Landry.

Keaton Nankivil vs. David Palmer- Even

David Palmer had not started a game for Iowa until last week against Purdue. Iowa was destroyed, but Palmer did not disappoint. The 6’9 PF/C displayed a complete arsenal on the offensive end of the court, scoring 19 points and bringing down 8 boards. If that’s not enough to scare you, he also hit two three-pointers against the Boilermakers. Nankivil has yet to play consistently for the Badgers, but is technically solid and is due for a breakout game eventually. If Palmer can consistently perform the way he did against Purdue last week than the edge goes to Palmer, otherwise this is an even matchup.

Wisconsin Bench vs. Iowa Bench- Wisconsin

Interesting fact- In his first 16 games for the Hawkeyes, Devan Bawinkle had 66 FG attempts on the season… all 66 of them were three point attempts. With or without Cyrus Tate, Iowa will have nobody in their rotation over 6’6 coming off the bench. Jon Leuer has continued to be the Badgers most consistent scorer and should have a big role in tomorrow’s game. Last week, Leuer almost single-handedly led the Badgers back into contention against Minnesota in overtime.

Bo Ryan vs. Todd Lickliter- Bo Ryan

Bo Ryan has the 2-0 advantage over Todd Lickliter and his Iowa Hawkeyes. Nearly a week after the Badgers struggled to finish off Minnesota, Bo should have his team motivated to play a full game against Iowa. The Badgers have had their fair share of success at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and I see no reason for that to change this year. To go along with my theme from earlier in the week, Bo-lieve!

Analysis:

Injuries have crippled Iowa in recent weeks. Cyrus Tate sprained an ankle against Minnesota, Guard Jeff Peterson broke a bone in his left wrist against Ohio State, and Jake Kelly has a sprained left thumb. As a result, Iowa has struggled in the Big 10. Wisconsin should be able to take advantage of Iowa's misfortunes. The Badgers have four players 6'7 or taller and should be able to exloit the undersized Hawkeyes throughout the game. Wisconsin 78-60.