Wisconsin basketball vs. Oklahoma scrimmage preview
The Badgers have an exhibition game tonight vs. the Oklahoma Sooners at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Here's everything to know heading into the game.
The return of Wisconsin basketball is a nice respite from having to endure the fandom of the Wisconsin football team this season. Although it’s only a scrimmage, the Badgers will take on Oklahoma tonight as a part of The Bad Boy Mowers Series.
Usually, the Wisconsin basketball team schedules just one ‘official’ scrimmage before the start of the regular season, and usually it’s against an in-state WIAC (Division III) team. This year, they are hosting UW-Platteville (led by Greg Gard’s brother, Jeff). But the addition of Oklahoma to the exhibition schedule will give the Wisconsin basketball team a challenging opponent before they kick off their season on Nov. 3 against Campbell.
Here’s everything you need to know heading into the Badgers’ exhibition game against Oklahoma tonight.
Game Details and Information
When: Friday, October 24, 2025 - 7:00 PM
Where: Fiserv Forum - Milwaukee, WI
How to Watch/Stream: B1G+ (subscription required)
How to Listen: Badger Radio Network
Probable Lineup
We haven’t seen this squad in action yet outside of the Red-White Scrimmage, so we don’t know for sure what the starting lineup will be. This is what I would consider to be the starting lineup tonight.
Starters
G - #2 Nick Boyd - Sr.
G - #25 John Blackwell - Jr.
G - #7 Andrew Rohde - Sr.
F - #22 Austin Rapp - So.
F - #31 Nolan Winter - Jr.
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Bench
G - #0 Braedyn Carrington - Sr.
G - #5 Jack Janicki - So.
G - #13 Hayden Jones - Fr.
G - #4 Zach Kinziger - Fr.
F - #32 Aleksas Bieliauskas - Fr.
F - #23 Will Garlock - Fr.
F - #6 Elijah Gray - Sr.
Since it’s a scrimmage, I think we are going to see a good rotation of players. I’m sure Greg Gard will use this game to go a little deeper on his bench than he normally would in the regular season to see what he has in his depth.
When Gard recently met with reporters, he talked about the ability to go 10 or even 12 players deep this season, something he doesn’t normally do.
“Idealistically, you’d like to be able to play 10. How each game plays out determines whether you can do that or not and to what extent. I have to learn, they have to learn, and we’ll see where they are,” Gard told reporters. “I like the depth of this group. I’m going to have some tough decisions to make.”
In the regular season, playing that many guys regularly just isn’t feasible. There aren’t enough minutes to go around. But it is definitely a nice problem to have.
What I’m Watching For
Rotations
I feel like we have a pretty good sense of who the starters are going to be. Greg Gard and his staff went out aggressively to get Nick Boyd, Andrew Rodhe, and Austin Rapp.
Jack Janicki is someone I’d imagine is among the first off the bench. The Badgers made a concerted effort to make sure he stuck around Madison this offseason. He will be a big part of the team this year, even if he doesn’t start.
But they also added Braedon Carrington and Elijah Gray via the transfer portal. I’m really interested to see where they fit in. I think Carrington is going to be a guy off the bench who will do a lot of the dirty work and be depended on more defensively than as a scoring threat. I’m not expecting a whole lot from Gray if he plays. He was in street clothes during the scrimmage.
This squad also has a good number of freshmen. Outside of Garlock, who I think will get some playing time as a true freshman this season, there’s Hayden Jones, Zach Kinziger, and Aleksas Bieliauskas. Playing true freshman isn’t a common thing for Greg Gard, or at least it hasn’t been. In recent years, he’s had a handful of players get playing time early, like John Blackwell. I’m very curious to see where these true freshman fit in the rotation.
Then there’s Jack Robison. In the Badgers’ offense, there’s always a spot for a deadly three-point shooter. But like I said, there’s only so many minutes to go around on this team. I think next year when players like Blackwell, Boyd, Rohde and potentially Nolan Winter are all gone, Robison will have a bigger opportunity to contribute.
How will Blackwell and Boyd play off each other?
Last year, Blackwell was depended on to be more of a point guard. Max Klesmit and Jack Janicki also occupied that role a bit, but Blackwell was usually at the 1 with the offense revolving somewhat around John Tonje.
The addition of Nick Boyd changes that, and I’m sure that’s by design. With Boyd running the offense, Blackwell will be able to be more of a scorer rather than a facilitator. With Tonje gone, Blackwill will look to take up that mantle. Make no mistake, Boyd will be one of the primary scorers, but I think ultimately, Blackwell is going to be option 1A on this offense.
I am very intrigued to see how well these two play with each other. If everything goes according to plan, this could be one of the better backcourt duos in the Big Ten.
Will Winter and Rapp be a force defensively?
Wisconsin basketball has a history of having bigs in the post that are aggressive and physical. When you run the Swing offense, you need players who can do that.
With this new Wisconsin offense that is much more fast-paced and relies more on shooting from the perimeter, it feels like that physicality has disappeared a bit. Steven Crowl was a great player for the Badgers, but I always felt a 7-foot center would be more aggressive in the post getting rebounds and blocks. Part of that could be been due to the lack of depth in the frontcourt over the past few seasons, so getting into foul trouble would be a problem.
That shouldn’t be a case this season.
That’s what I’d like to see from Winter and Rapp. I know both will be solid offensively. Rapp was brought to Madison because he was a defensive stud, but he still can’t be a liability on the defensive end of the floor if he wants minutes.
True freshmen Garlock and Bieliauskas could also fill that need as reserves.
The Big Ten is a physical conference. You need bigs who can hold their on defensively in the post and grab rebounds. Giving up second-chance points is always a recipe for losing.
I love the pace of the Badgers’ offense, but I’d also love to get back to having some bigs that can defend the paint, force tough shots down low and grab defensive boards.
Again, this is just a scrimmage, but there is still plenty to watch for as the Badgers prepare for the start of their 2025-2026 season.
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