Oct. 6, 2026, 6:03 a.m. CT
- The Wisconsin males’s basketball workforce is projected to complete eleventh within the Massive Ten within the USA TODAY Community preseason ballot.
- Wisconsin’s preseason projection in 2026-27 is notably decrease than the sixth-place projection in 2025-26.
- Wisconsin ahead Nolan Winter was named to USA TODAY’s all-Massive Ten first workforce.
MADISON – Wisconsin is approaching the 2026-27 males’s basektball season with comparatively low expectations in one other preseason media ballot.
A ballot of USA TODAY Community reporters who cowl Massive Ten faculties projected Greg Gard’s Badgers to complete eleventh within the convention in 2026-27. That’s the identical as UW’s projected end within the Columbus Dispatch media ballot.
It’s a noticeable distinction from 2025-26, when USA TODAY Community reporters projected the Badgers to complete sixth within the convention. UW barely outperformed these expectations with a fifth-place end within the convention standings and a visit to the Massive Ten match semifinals.
Wisconsin ahead Nolan Winter earned a spot on USA TODAY’s all-Massive Ten first workforce, becoming a member of Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr., Nebraska’s Pryce Sandfort, Illinois’ David Mirkovic and Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau.
The UW 7-footer additionally earned a spot on the Massive Ten’s official 11-player all-conference preseason workforce and was a second-team honoree within the Columbus Dispatch preseason ballot, which had a number of the similar voters.
Winter’s accolades observe a junior season with 12 double-doubles, 13.1 factors per recreation and eight.5 rebounds per recreation. His 8.5 rebounds per recreation led the Badgers and ranked fourth within the Massive Ten. He was not named to any of the Massive Ten’s all-conference groups after the 2025-26 season, although.
Winter leads a 2026-27 Wisconsin workforce that once more has eight newcomers. Different key returning gamers embody ahead Austin Rapp and guard Jack Janicki. Braeden Carrington may also return, relying on the end result of his lawsuit towards the NCAA.
The Badgers misplaced John Blackwell to the switch portal, and fellow beginning guards Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility. UW changed them with former Australian skilled participant Owen Foxwell and switch guards Trey Autry and Eian Elmer, amongst others.
Wisconsin’s 2026-27 season will tip off with an Oct. 10 exhibition vs. UW-Parkside – the primary of three exhibitions this yr. The Badgers’ season opener might be Nov. 2 vs. Denver.
2026-27 USA TODAY Community preseason Massive Ten ballot
- Michigan State
- Illinois
- Michigan
- UCLA
- Nebraska
- Purdue
- USC
- Ohio State
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Wisconsin
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Oregon
- Washington
- Northwestern
- Rutgers
- Penn State
Participant of the yr: Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
Newcomer of the yr: Stefan Vaaks, Illinois
Freshman of the yr: Anthony Thompson, Ohio State
All-Massive Ten first workforce:
- Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State
- Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska
- David Mirkovic, Illinois
- Elliot Cadeau, Michigan
- Nolan Winter, Wisconsin
All-Massive Ten second workforce:
- Trey McKenney, Michigan
- Andrej Stojakovic, Illinois
- John Mobley Jr., Ohio State
- Pharrel Payne, Maryland
- Rodney Rice, USC
