When Wisconsin fell to then-No. 4 Virginia by seven points in the Battle 4 Atlantis Title game this fall, it served as validation more than a crushing defeat.
The No. 25 Badgers mustered up just 46 points, as the Cavaliers’ usual stout defense stymied the Wisconsin backcourt. Despite outscoring Virginia in the second half, Wisconsin was limited to just 18 percent 3-point shooting. Ethan Happ led the Badgers with 22 points, but with no one else in double figures, Wisconsin was simply outlasted by an elite opponent.
But after a 2017-18 season in which Wisconsin missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nearly two decades, the showing in Atlantis was promising.