Wisconsin continues its season-opening four-game homestand when the Badgers host Fairfield tonight at the Kohl Center.

Coming off a 73-64 win over Delaware on Friday, the Badgers have opened the season 2-0 in back-to-back and five of the last six seasons. Although UW has balanced out its scoring with three players in double figures in the opener and another five against Delaware, the Badgers' strength early this season has been its defense, holding its first two opponents to 66.5 points per game.

Losing its opener to Vermont, the preseason favorites in the America East Conference, Fairfield rebounded with a road win at Bryant on Sunday. Declan Wucherpfennig - the Metro Conference Preseason Player of the Year - led all scorers with a game-best 17 points and had 10 rebounds.

Here is a look at both teams and a prediction for tonight's contest.

Wisconsin continues its homestand tomorrow against Fairfield, which forced 17 steals in a road win at Bryant yesterday. Here's how to watch, listen or stream the game and things to know. #Badgers https://t.co/BDzGhfnUZC

— Benjamin Worgull (@TheBadgerNation) November 9, 2026

Fairfield (1-1, 0-0 Metro) vs. Wisconsin (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten)

Date/Time – Tuesday, November 10, 7:30 p.m.
Arena – Kohl Center
TV/Stream – Big Ten Network (Jeff Levering and Jordan Taylor)
Radio – Badgers Radio Network (Matt Lepay and Brian Butch)
Coaches - Greg Gard at Wisconsin (239-128 in his 12th season). Chris Casey at Fairfield (58-47 in his fourth season, 122-176 overall)
Series – Wisconsin leads 1-0
Last Meeting - Wisconsin won, 76-55, on Dec.31, 1992, in Madison
Point Spread – Wisconsin -23.5

Wisconsin probable starters

1 Braeden Carrington (6-5 Fifth-Year Guard, 15.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
6 Victory Onuetu (6-11 Senior Guard, 8.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 0.0 apg)
15 Owen Foxwell (6-2 Fifth-Year Guard, 15.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 6.5 apg)
31 Nolan Winter (7-0 Senior Center, 8.5 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 4.0 apg)
55 Eian Elmer (6-6 Senior Guard, 14.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.0 apg)
Off the bench
5 Jack Janicki (6-5 Junior Guard, 5.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.5 apg)
22 Austin Rapp (6-10 Junior Forward, 4.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
Player to watch
Onuetu posted his first double-double as a Badger thanks to an 11-point, 11-rebound performance. He hauled in eight defensive rebounds, which were one shy of his career high.

Ready for Game 3️⃣

Badgers 🆚 Stags
⏰ 7:30 p.m.
📍 Kohl Center
📺 @BigTenNetwork
🔗 https://t.co/J8C5gsLq9a pic.twitter.com/ss3VAqZhzd

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) November 10, 2026

Fairfield probable starters

1 Eric Mejia (6-3 Junior Guard, 22.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 4.0 apg)
4 Halon Rawlins (6-6 Sophomore Guard, 6.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.0 apg)
8 Tony Williams (6-1 Sophomore Guard, 10.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.5 apg)
33 Peyton Smith (6-10 Senior Forward, 7.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.0 apg)
44 Declan Wucherpfennig (6-7 Sophomore Guard, 21.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
Off the bench
0 Cole Edelen (6-2 Freshman Guard, 12.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
3 Jah Hatchett (6-0 Freshman Guard, 6.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)
Player to watch
Wucherpfennig was named Metro Conference Preseason Player of the Year after scoring 12.1 points per game and ranking second in the league – first among returning Metro players – with 8.5 rebounds. He finished with the second-most rebounds and fifth-most points by a true freshman in school history.

Welcome to Madison 🏀 pic.twitter.com/xhOPBAFzdW

— Fairfield Men’s Basketball (@FairfieldMBB) November 10, 2026

Series notes

Wisconsin is 8-1 against schools currently in the Metro, last playing a team from the conference in 2019 (a 65-37 win over Rider).

Wisconsin's only loss to a school currently in the Metro came to Canisius in the championship of the 1952 Queen City Tournament, held in Buffalo.

Fairfield is 1-14 all-time against Big Ten opponents. The Stags' lone victory was a 92-74 neutral court win over Northwestern to open the 1976-77 season.

Wisconsin notes

Wisconsin shot 10-for-30 (33.3%) from three-point range on Friday. The Badgers have gone 37-9 (.804) over the last three seasons when making at least 10 3FGs in a game, winning each of their last 13 home games with double-digit triples.

UW only turned it over just eight times against Delaware and is averaging 9.0 turnovers per game this season. Since 2024-25, the Badgers are 23-3 when turning it over fewer than 10 times at home.

Foxwell has 13 assists with just two turnovers in 2026-27. His 6.5 ratio ranks second in the Big Ten.

Through two games, Carrington is shooting 7-for-17 (41.2%) from three-point range. He's scored in double figures in consecutive games. He has scored in double figures 25 times in his career, including nine as a Badger.

Fairfield notes

The Stags were the preseason the pick to win the Metro Conference, tallying six first-place votes from the conference's 12 coaches. It's the first time Fairfield has been tabbed as the preseason favorite since the 2010-11 season, which was its most recent regular season title.

The Stags return 10 student-athletes this season, including three starters and six total players that appeared in 20 or more games. That equates to returning 50.1 percent of their minutes, 42.8 percent of their scoring, and 47.3 percent of their rebounding.

Fairfield's 17 steals on Sunday at Bryant were the most by a Stags' team since a program record 19 swipes in a win at Rider in 2012.

Fairfield shot 5-for-9 from three-point range on Sunday, marking the fewest attempts from long range by the Stags in 105 games under Coach Chris Casey. The Stags last attempted nine or fewer triples in a 2020 win at Manhattan, shooting 2-for-6 in a 66-50 victory.

Prediction

Playing an opponent, whose active defense has carried them for the first week of the season will feel like a mirror image tonight for the Badgers. UW's sluggish offensive start is attributed to timing. The Badgers have three new starters (four if counting Carrington's promotion) and are getting their top two forwards, Rapp and Winter, back in rhythm after an abbreviated offseason.

Gard said Friday that this year's team will score efficiently like last year's team, but when will that proclamation start to bear out?

Most mid-majors can't match Wisconsin's interior size, which is the case for Fairfield's lineup. The Stags' thrived on turnovers in their win against Bryant and are averaging 14.0 fast-break points per game. If UW continues its stingy ball security, I'd expect the Badgers' interior size to start showing signs of being the strength of an offense that needs to show more consistent signs of life with bigger opponents coming on the horizon.

Prediction: Wisconsin by 22
Worgull's Prediction: 2-0 (1-1 ATS)