Even after losing a ton of star players and suffering another early tournament exit, the Wisconsin Badgers were still named to a way-too-early top 25.
USA TODAY’s Erick Smith and Paul Myerberg put together their top 25 poll for the 2026-27 season. They included the Badgers at No. 24.
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Michigan State topped the chart at No. 1, with the Michigan Wolverines falling to No. 3. Other Big Ten teams listed include: No. 6 Illinois, No. 16 Purdue, No. 18 Nebraska, and No. 19 Iowa.
“With guard John Blackwell entering the portal, look for the Badgers to be active in adding depth and shooting to the wing rotation,” they wrote. “What Wisconsin has is an experienced frontline led by Nolan Winter and Austin Rapp, which should lead to a different look on offense. But the pieces are in place for another top-six finish in the Big Ten.”
All things considered, Wisconsin should be in fine shape if both Winter and Rapp stick around. Those are two key building blocks to Greg Gard’s future. Without them, who knows what this lineup will look like come November.
No. 24 is a place Badgers fans should be comfortable with. Wisconsin always finds a way to exceed expectations, and that could certainly be the case a year from now, depending on how things pan out in the portal. Gard has some young talent on his bench that no one is talking about, but it’s hard for the national media to look at Hayden Jones, Zach Kinziger, and Will Garlock as top 25-caliber talent when they all averaged fewer than 10 minutes per game as freshmen.
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This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin men’s basketball USA Today’s Top 25 poll ranking 2026-27
