The Wisconsin men's basketball program has enjoyed a good amount of success under the direction of head coach Greg Gard. In his 11 seasons as head coach of the Badgers, Gard has compiled a 237-128 record, winning nearly 65 percent of his games.
Despite that, the Badgers have appeared in the AP Preseason Poll just four times in 11 seasons. Season No. 12 appears to be no different.
The AP Preseason Poll was released on Monday, and the Badgers were nowhere to be found. In fact, Wisconsin didn't receive a single vote from AP voters, a group of college basketball beat writers and journalists.
Yes, the Badgers have had a lot of roster turnover since last season, losing star players like Nick Boyd (NBA) and John Blackwell (transfer portal). But they also bringing back veterans like Nolan Winter, who was just named to the Big Ten All-Big Ten Preseason team, along with Braeden Carrington and Jack Janicki. All three played major minutes in 2025-26.
They also added some players who are already showing they will be a big part of the team in 2026. Owen Foxwell and Eian Elmer have both already shown us that in the team's pair of exhibition games. Transfers Victory Onuetu and Trey Autry will also be in the mix for some extended playing time.
But because these weren't among the top-ranked transfers, expectations for the Badgers will remain low, like being picked to finish in the bottom half of the Big Ten -- again.
Yes, the Big Ten is a tough conference to play, and they will most definitely have their struggles. But each year, it feels like the Badgers win games they aren't supposed to win and end up finding themselves among the rankings at some point in the season and more often than not, make it into the NCAA Tournament with no higher than an 8 or 9-seed. In fact, they have been a 3 or 5-seed in their last four tournament appearances.
Maybe there's a negative perception or bias against the program due to the lack of success in the NCAA Tournament under Greg Gard. If there is, maybe that's warranted.
Either way, the Badgers will begin the season as an unranked team no one expects much from. Maybe this year they will finally be right, but history shows the Badgers will exceed expectations and finish higher than the 11th place they are projected to finish.
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