The Wisconsin Badgers are an NCAA Division I college basketball team competing in the Big Ten Conference. The Badgers' home games are played at the Kohl Center, located on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus in Madison, Wisconsin. Wisconsin has 1,732 wins through the end of the 2024–25 season which is top 50 all-time among Division I college basketball programs. Wisconsin has appeared in the NCAA tournament 29 times. The Wisconsin Badgers currently have 51 players in their 1,000-point club as well.

History

Early years (1898–1911) Wisconsin Badger basketball began in December, 1898 with the formation of its first team coached by Dr. James C. Elsom. The Badgers played their first game on January 21, 1899, losing to the Milwaukee Normal Alumni 25–15 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin . In 1905, Christian Steinmetz became the first Wisconsin Badger basketball player to be named All-American. In the 1906–07 season, Wisconsin won its first share of the Big Ten Championship, under the coaching of Emmett Dunn Angell. They won it again the next year in 1908.

Walter Meanwell era (1911–1934)

Walter Meanwell began coaching the Badgers in 1911. In his first season, he led Wisconsin to an undefeated season (15–0), and then led them to another 15–0 season in 1913–14. Meanwell's teams would win eight Big Ten Championships during his tenure, in 1912, 1913, 1914, 1916, 1921, 1923, 1924, and 1929. Between the 1917–18 and 1919–20 seasons, Guy Lowman coached the Badgers, leading them to a 1918 Big Ten Conference Championship before Meanwell returned in 1920. Meanwell would also coach two All-Americans during his Wisconsin career, George Levis in 1916 and Harold "Bud" Foster in 1930. On December 18, 1930, the first game was played in the new Wisconsin Field House, a basketball arena with a capacity of 11,500.

Bud Foster era (1934–1959) Starting with the 1934–35 season, former UW basketball player Bud Foster began coaching the Wisconsin Badgers. In his first season as head coach, he led the Badgers to their 12th Big Ten Conference Championship in 28 years. In 1941, Foster led the Badgers to their only national championship in history. With the help of tournament MOP John Kotz and All-American Gene Englund, the Badgers beat Washington State 39–34 in the final game of the NCAA Tournament. It was their first ever invitation to the NCAA Tournament, after winning the Big Ten Championship in that year. Foster coached three All-Americans during his tenure – Gene Englund in 1941, John Kotz in 1942 and Don Rehfeldt in 1950. The Badgers won one more Big Ten championship in 1947 and attended their second NCAA Tournament. It would be their last postseason appearance of any sort for 42 years, and their last NCAA appearance for 47 years.

1959–1994

The mediocre records of the last decade of Foster's tenure would remain largely the norm for the Badgers for the next four decades. From 1954 to 1995, the Badgers would have only eight winning seasons. They also notched only two winning records in Big Ten play and finished as high as fourth only four times. Among the few bright spots during this time were the 1962 win over number one ranked Ohio State and stars Jerry Lucas and John Havlicek, NIT appearances under Steve Yoder in 1989 and 1991, and another in 1992 under Stu Jackson. The revival of Wisconsin basketball began in the early 1990s, when Yoder and Jackson recruited and developed Michael Finley, Tracy Webster, Rashard Griffith and other talented players. In 1994, the Badgers returned to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1947 and notched their first win in that tournament since winning it all in 1941.

Dick Bennett era (1995–2000) In 1995, Dick Bennett then took over after leading Wisconsin-Green Bay to mid-major prominence. In 1997, he led the Badgers to their first winning Big Ten record in 23 years, and only their second in 43 years. The Badgers began a run of consecutive NCAA tournament appearances in 1999, and reached the NCAA tournament Final Four in 2000.

In 2000, the Badgers entered the NCAA tournament seeded #8 in the West bracket. Beyond most expectations, they defeated #9 Fresno St, #1 Arizona, #4 LSU, and #6 Purdue in order to advance to the Final Four. However, the Badgers then lost to #1 and eventual national champion Michigan State, 53–41.

After three games into the 2000–01 season (in which he went 2–1), Bennett abruptly retired due to burnout. His final game was a 78–75 win over eventual Final Four participant Maryland. Assistant Brad Soderberg was named interim head coach. Soderberg led Wisconsin to a 16–10 record (18–11 overall), but was upset in the first round of the NCAA tournament by Georgia State.

Bo Ryan era (2001–2015)

Soderberg was let go at the end of the 2000–01 season, and Wisconsin hired University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee coach Bo Ryan as the new head coach. Ryan had previously won four Division III national championships at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

Coach Bo Ryan brought the program continued success, achieving greater regular season and NCAA tournament success in his 15-year tenure than the program had achieved over the prior 60 years. Since the late 1990s Wisconsin has turned into a basketball powerhouse making regular trips to the NCAA Tournament. Since 2001-2002 Wisconsin has finished in the top 4 in the Big Ten regular season standings 19 times in the past 21 seasons, and have won 6 Big Ten regular season championships and 3 Big Ten tournament championships.

In the 2001–02 season, under the new leadership of Bo Ryan, the Badgers went 19–13 (11–5) and won a share of the Big Ten regular season title for the first time since 1947, tying for first place in the Big Ten with Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio State. The Badgers defeated St. John's 90–80 in Ryan's first NCAA tournament game before falling to eventual national champion Maryland.

During the 2002–03 season, Wisconsin secured its first outright regular season conference title in 56 years. The Badgers lost in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament to Ohio State. They then attended the NCAA tournament with a #5 seed, beating Weber State in the first round and Tulsa in the second round. The Badgers then lost to Kentucky in the Sweet Sixteen.

In the 2003–04 season, Wisconsin finished second in the Big Ten behind Illinois. They went on to win the Big Ten tournament for the first time since its inception in 1998. The Badgers defeated Minnesota in a quarterfinal, rallied to beat Michigan State in a semifinal, and defeated Illinois in the final. However, because the game was played too late to be taken under consideration by the NCAA tournament selection committee, the Badgers received a #6 seed. They defeated Richmond in the first round before losing to #3 seed Pittsburgh in the second round.

In the 2004–05 season, Wisconsin finished third in the Big Ten. In the Big Ten tournament semifinal against Iowa, Alando Tucker made a long shot at the buzzer to give UW a 3-point win, but the Badgers lost to #1 ranked Illinois in the championship. In the 2005 NCAA tournament, Wisconsin advanced to the Elite Eight by defeating #11 seed Northern Iowa, #14 seed Bucknell, and #10 seed North Carolina State before losing to #1 and eventual national champion, North Carolina.

In the 2005–06 season, the Badgers had a somewhat disappointing season that culminated in a loss to Indiana in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals, and another loss to Arizona in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The highlight of the season was a win over intrastate rival Marquette.

The Badgers' lone non-conference loss was against Missouri State. On February 19, 2007, the Badgers earned their first #1 ranking in school history with a 26–2 record, but the next day, were defeated by the unranked Michigan State Spartans 64–55 at the Breslin Center. Entering the Big Ten tournament as the #2 seed, they defeated Michigan State 70–57. The Badgers defeated the Fighting Illini in the semi-finals, 53–41, to advance to the finals against Ohio State, where they were beaten 66–49.

The Badgers were selected as a 2nd seed in the NCAA tournament, but were defeated by 7th-seeded UNLV in the second round.

In the 2007–08 season, the Badgers finished first in the Big Ten, winning the Big Ten regular season outright and the conference tournament, defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini in the finals. In the NCAA tournament, the Badgers were awarded a No. 3 seed and won their first game against California State University, Fullerton. They followed that up with a win in the second round over Michael Beasley and the Kansas State Wildcats, due in part to 25 points from sophomore Trevon Hughes. The Badgers then lost to the No. 10 seed Davidson Wildcats and Stephen Curry by a score of 73–56 in the Sweet Sixteen.

In the 2008–09 season, the Badgers finished tied for 4th in the Big Ten with an overall record of 19–11 and 10–8 in the Big Ten. In the NCAA tournament, the Badgers were awarded a No. 12 seed and upset No. 5 seed Florida State University in the first round, 61–59. In the second round the Badgers lost 60–49 to the No. 4 seed Xavier University. The Badgers finished the 2008–09 season with an overall record of 20–13.

In the 2009–10 season, Wisconsin defeated three top 5-ranked teams during the regular season: Duke, Purdue, and Michigan State. The Badgers finished the season tied for 4th in the Big Ten, with a record of 23–7 overall and 13–5 in the Big Ten. In the NCAA tournament, the Badgers were awarded a #4 seed. They beat #13 seed Wofford in the first round, 53–49. In the second round the Badgers lost 87–69 to the #12 seed Cornell University. The Badgers finished the 2009–10 season with an overall record of 24–9.

Ryan led the Badgers to the school's third undefeated season at home in 2010–11. The Badgers finished 25–9 overall (13–5 Big Ten). In February 2011, they beat then-undefeated Ohio State University, the school's second win over the AP No. 1 team. After falling to Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten tournament, the Badgers secured a No. 4-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The team beat 13th-seed Belmont and fifth-seed Kansas State. They fell to Butler in the Sweet Sixteen. Jordan Taylor was named a second-team All-American, and Jon Leuer was honorable mention. Leuer was selected in the second round of the NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Badgers finished the 2011–12 season 26–10 overall (12–6 Big Ten). In the Big Ten tournament, Wisconsin was the #4 seed and defeated the #5 seed Hoosiers before losing to the #1 seed Spartans. In the NCAA Tournament, the Badgers were awarded the 4th-seed in the East Region. The team defeated 13th-seeded Montana and 5th-seeded Vanderbilt. In the regional semifinal, Wisconsin faced the #1 seeded Syracuse, losing 64–63.

The 2012–13 Badgers lost junior starting point guard Josh Gasser, who tore his ACL in October. Wisconsin defeated Michigan and Indiana in the Big Ten tournament before losing to Ohio State in the championship. The Badgers earned a #5 seed in the NCAA Tournament and faced #12 seed Ole Miss, where they were upset 57–46. The Badgers finished with a 23–12 record, including a 12–6 mark in Big Ten play.

In the 2013–14 season, the Badgers tallied 16 wins before their first loss of the season at the hands of Indiana. They lost four of their next five games. The team finished the Big Ten schedule with one loss to Nebraska in the regular season finale, earning the #2 seed in the Big Ten tournament. They lost in the semi-finals to the Michigan State Spartans. The Badgers were awarded a #2 seed in the NCAA tournament. They beat #15 seed American, then Oregon, Baylor, and the #1 seed Arizona Wildcats. This led to the third Final Four appearance for the Badgers in school history. The Badgers lost the Final Four match-up with Kentucky, when Aaron Harrison hit a last second three pointer.