It is early December and that means the start of Big Ten Conference play for Wisconsin, as they host Michigan on Tuesday night.

This is the first of two league games before the calendar turns to 2025 for the Badgers, as they will also take on Illinois later this month. 

Wisconsin (8-0) is led by John Tonje, as he is averaging over 20 points per game. John Blackwell and Max Klesmit join him in double figures, as all three have knocked down at least 10 three-pointers on the young season.

The Badgers remained unbeaten with a convincing win over Chicago State this past Saturday at home. They have also scored victories over Pittsburgh, UCF and then-No. 9 Arizona to begin the season.

Leading the way for the Wolverines (6-1) is Tre Donaldson, one of four in double figures at 13 a game. They are coming off a 25-point win over then-No. 22 Xavier and have won five straight since a 72-70 loss to Wake Forest. 

Michigan averages just under 81 points a night, shooting 50 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from the 3-point line. 

Wisconsin has dominated the series with the Wolverines, winning 15 of 25 matchups overall. Michigan, though, has won the last two, including a 72-68 decision last year in Ann Arbor, and are 6-4 in the last 10 vs. the Badgers. 

Here are details on how to watch Wisconsin’s contest vs. Michigan on Tuesday, Dec. 3:

Who: Wisconsin vs. Michigan in men’s basketball action

When: 8 p.m. CT | Tuesday, December 5

Where: Kohl Center | Madison, Wisconsin

Live Stream: Stream Wisconsin vs. Michigan live on fuboTV (Start your free trial)

TV Channel: Peacock

Betting Odds: Not available at this time. Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Our Prediction: Wisconsin 68, Michigan 58

Live Updates, Highlights: Follow the game on Wisconsin on SI for live updates, in-game analysis and big-play highlights throughout Monday’s matchup.

MADISON – The Wisconsin volleyball team was doubly good at blocking Saturday night.

The Badgers not only ignored the distraction of the impending NCAA Tournament, but they also rejected Michigan State’s upset bid with one of their best blocking matches of the season.

UW finished with 17 blocks in the 25-19, 26-28, 25-19, 25-18  win, its second-best match of the season in that statistical category. Twelve of those blocks came during the final two sets when Wisconsin held the Spartans to their lowest hitting percentages of the match.

The victory allowed seventh-ranked Wisconsin to finish the regular season with a 23-6 record and Big Ten with a mark of 17-3, which placed them in third place two games behind Big Ten co-champions Nebraska and Penn State.

The win also sent the team’s six seniors out on a high note – the program honored each of them after the match.

Up next is the NCAA Tournament. The bracket will be revealed at 5 p.m. Sunday on ESPN.

“This is the time of year where dreams come true and we’re certainly looking forward to trying to climb that moutain,” UW coach Kelly Sheffield said.

Senior outside hitters Sarah Franklin and Julia Orzol finished the night 1-2 in kills with 23 and 13, respectively. Franklin posted with a .316 hitting percentage and a season-high five blocks. Orzol hit .290 and with 10 digs to record her fifth double-double of the season.

Freshman setter Charlie Fuebringer (46 assists, 12 digs) posted her ninth double-double of the season.

She also tied a career high for six blocks, all of which she recorded during the final two sets.

The Badgers made an adjustment to their block during the match

“We were making a lot of errors when we went high and tried to overpower them,” said senior Devyn Robinson, who has five blocks. “ I feel like getting low and staying steady is something we focused on it paid off in the end.”

“Also not getting jumpy (was key),” added senior right-side hitter Anna Smrek, who posted four blocks.. “Just being patient, trusting our eyes and then making a really explosive, dynamic move.”

Junior middle blocker Carter Booth led Wisconsin with nine blocks, her second-highest match total of the season. Six came during the final two sets when Wisconsin held Michigan State to hitting percentages of .023 and .107.

The match capped a week that also included a five-set win over Ohio State that lasted 2 hours 43 minutes. The match Saturday went 2 hours 31 minutes.

Next UW will turn its attention to its first-round NCAA Tournament match that is expected to be played at the Field House.

“It’s just resetting after each point,” Orzol said of her focus. “It was mentioned before the game. Reset. That is when we’re playing our best volleyball, when we are like goldfish without no memory., not even short memory. It’s always, always forward.”

Wisconsin basketball rolled past Chicago State 74-53 on Saturday to pick up its eighth victory of the 2024-25 season. As many predicted, it was all Badgers from start to finish.

UW wing John Tonje again captained Wisconsin’s offensive attack with 22 points off 5-of-12 from the field, 3-of-6 from deep and 9-of-10 from the free throw line in 29 minutes of action. The North Omaha, Nebraska native also added five rebounds and three assists in the 21-point blowout win.

Veteran center Steven Crowl logged nine points, seven rebounds, five assists and three blocks in 28 minutes, and sophomore center Nolan Winter added 12 points and six rebounds in 21 minutes as well.

Fresh off their Greenbrier Tip-Off win on Nov. 24, the Badgers set the tone early. UW built a 12-2 lead within the first five minutes of action courtesy of eight points from Tonje and a pair of layups from big men Crowl and Winter.

Wisconsin maintained a relatively comfortable lead from that point forward. Fueled by 10 points from Winter, the Badgers piloted a 21-5 scoring spurt to stretch their lead to 53-32 by the 10:14-minute mark of the second half.

Greg Gard’s bench essentially put a bow on the second half scoring, and Wisconsin claimed its eighth straight win of the 2024-25 slate in dominant fashion.

https://twitter.com/BadgerMBB/status/1862948505808961878

It wasn’t necessarily pretty, but Wisconsin did exactly what it needed to do to snag the victory. As a unit, the Badgers shot an underwhelming 39% from the field and 33.3% from outside. The team shared the wealth with 17 assists, plus scored 19 points off Chicago State turnovers. The Badgers leaned on Winter and Crowl’s size against Cougars — UW out-rebounded Chicago State by eight in the effort.

With the win, Wisconsin starts the season 8-0 for the first time since 2013-14.

The Badgers will now look to keep its undefeated start to the season alive when it hosts the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 3.