Wisconsin Badgers vs Penn State Nittany Lions Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 01/22/2026

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Thursday, January 22, 2026

Venue:  Bryce Jordan Center, State College, PA

Where to Watch:  Fox Sports 1

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Wisconsin -5.5, PSU +5.5; Over/Under:  159.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Wisconsin -5.5, PSU +5.5; Over/Under:  159.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Wisconsin -5.5, PSU +5.5; Over/Under:  159.5 points

Wisconsin Badgers:  13-5 (5-2) (6th place, Big Ten)

Penn State Nittany Lions:  9-9 (0-7) (17th place, Big Ten)

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Wisconsin Badgers:  4-1  last 5

Penn State Nittany Lions:  0-5  last 5

Wisconsin is entering this game with a 13-5 record overall, a 5-2 record in conference games, and they are 2-1 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in their last game. Nicholas Boyd led the team in points in that game with 32 while John Blackwell was next on the team with 19. Nicholas Boyd led the team in assists with 9 in that game while Nolan Winter and John Blackwell each led the team in rebounds with 5. They were 48.3% from the field, 40% from 3-point range, and 89.7% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 83.5 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 75.7 PPG against them. Wisconsin has an ATS record of 9-9 this season and their O/U record is 11-7.

Penn State is entering this game with a 9-9 record overall, a 0-7 conference record, and they are 7-4 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the Maryland Terrapins in their last game. Kayden Mingo led the team in points in that game with 19 while Dominick Stewart was next on the team with 17. Kayden Mingo led the team in assists with 5 in that game while Dominick Stewart led the team in rebounds with 4. They were 50% from the field, 37.5% from 3-point range, and 66.7% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 76.8 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 76.3 PPG against them. Penn State has an ATS record of 7-11 this season and their O/U record is 9-9.

The current betting odds have Wisconsin listed as a 5.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Wisconsin has looked good in their games this season with their 13-5 record overall and their 5-2 conference record which has them in the top half of the Big Ten. They have been a good road team so far too with their 2-1 road record this year. Meanwhile, Penn State hasn't looked good in their games this season with their 9-9 record overall and their 0-7 conference record which has them right near the bottom of the Big Ten. They have looked better on their home court with their 7-4 home record this season. Penn State has looked terrible in their games lately, losing 5 games in a row now and coming off a loss to Maryland in their last one. They have still been competitive in these games with 3 tighter games against some of the top teams in the Big Ten, but their last 2 losses have both been by double digits against much weaker teams in the conference. Penn State is slowly turning into a disaster this year and now they have to face a team that has looked good to start the conference schedule and is starting to figure things out now. Wisconsin is off a big win over Rutgers in their last one and they have been rolling lately with 4 wins in a row now. Things really started to change for them in that upset win over Michigan on the road, and they haven't really been slowing down since that win. Wisconsin is getting into a groove now and they have a lot more talent than Penn State that can compete at a high level in this conference. The best way to place a bet here is on Wisconsin to cover the spread in this game. 

Wisconsin Penn State Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Thursday, January 22, 2026 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Wisconsin 88 Penn State 74.

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Wisconsin Badgers: 0-3 ATS after 3 or more consecutive wins. 2-7 ATS versus teams who are called for 17 or less fouls/game. 6-1 OVER when the total is 160 to 169.5. 22-12 OVER off a win against a conference rival. 33-18 OVER versus teams who are called for 17 or less fouls/game.

Penn State Nittany Lions: 11-3 ATS as a home underdog or pick. 12-6 ATS off a road loss against a conference rival. 16-9 ATS versus teams who average 6 or less steals/game on the season. 8-2 OVER as a home underdog of 6 points or less or pick. 6-3 OVER after a loss by 15 points or more.

Wisconsin Badgers:  None.

Penn State Nittany Lions:  T. Mirtic (F) Questionable - Leg. R. Grodin (G) Out - Redshirt.

"Obviously a really good 20 minutes. For the second half, I want to take some time before I do anything other than opinions and really, see, I thought Rutgers was more aggressive. I thought we were less aggressive, you know, so credit to them. Did not lay over and just just fold up, continued to battle back.” - Greg Gard after his team’s win against Rutgers in their last game. 

“The consistency of our defense has been an issue. We don't play consistently in half-court defense, just enough to get stops and continuous stops, and when we have, we haven't rebounded a high enough clip, getting clean rebounds and one-and-dones to create greater offense.” - Mike Rhoades after his team’s loss against Maryland in their last game. 

A. Bieliauskas 

J. Blackwell 

N. Boyd 

A. Rohde 

N. Winter

I. Juric 

K. Mingo 

J. Reed 

D. Stewart 

M. Tunca

PPG: Nick Boyd (19.9)

APG: Nick Boyd (3.7)

Reb/G: Nolan Winter (8.7)

PPG: Kayden Mingo (15.2)

APG: Kayden Mingo (4.5)

Reb/G: Ivan Juric (4.2)

Coaches:

Wisconsin Badgers: Greg Gard (11th season)

Penn State Nittany Lions: Mike Rhoades (3rd season)