The 1995–96 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team represented the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

as a member of the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

during the 1995-96 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. It was head coach

Dick Bennett Richard A. Bennett (born April 20, 1943) is an American former college basketball coach who is best known for building the Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix men's basketball program into a mid-major power and revitalizing the Wisconsin Badgers basket ...

's first season leading the Badgers. The team played its home games in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

at the UW Field House. Wisconsin finished the season 17–15, 8–10 in Big Ten play to finish in eighth place. The Badgers returned to the postseason by accepting a bid to the

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...

, in which they beat

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before falling to Illinois State in the second round.

Offseason

Head coach

Stan Van Gundy Stanley Alan Van Gundy (born August 26, 1959) is an American former basketball coach who is a television commentator for ''NBA on TNT'' and '' College Basketball on CBS''. Prior to TNT, he was most recently the head coach for the New Orleans Peli ...

was fired on March 14, 1995, after one season that ended in a disappointing 13–14 record. The university announced the hiring of Dick Bennett as the 13th head coach in program history on March 31, 1995. Bennett had compiled a 361–188 (.658) record over 19 collegiate seasons at UW-Stevens Point and UW-Green Bay. Just prior to taking his "dream job" in Madison, Bennett had led UW-Green Bay to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances out of the

Mid-Continent Conference The Summit League, or The Summit, is an NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic conference with its membership mostly located in the Midwestern United States, from Minnesota in the east, to the Dakotas, Nebraska and Colorado to the West, and Mis ...

and

Midwestern Collegiate Conference The Horizon League is a collegiate athletic conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the league's eleven member schools are located in and near the Great Lakes region and in pa ...

. Though 6-foot-7 Sam Okey had verbally committed to Van Gundy the previous year, the

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American multinational fast food chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea. Brothers ...

honored his commitment to play in-state for the Badgers. Okey was regarded across the country as a top 15 recruit despite hailing from tiny Cassville (pop. 1,025) in southwest Wisconsin.

Season summary

Wisconsin started the Bennett-era with losses to a pair of top teams at the Maui Invitational, No. 3 Villanova and defending national champion

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

(No. 4). In the midst of attrition, the Badgers still put together two separate four-game winning streaks during non-conference play, including a home defeat of

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, 57–54, in overtime. Incumbent point guard Darnell Hoskins started the first nine games, then transferred to his hometown

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a Private university, private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary (Marianists), Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the U ...

in mid-December with the team's record at 5–4. Freshman Duany Duany suffered a season-ending injury to his right foot during practice the weekend of Thanksgiving and played only two games before taking a medical

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

. Sophomore guard Sean Mason also suffered a season-ending right knee injury late in a win over No. 21

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, 51–46. In that game, the Badgers held the Wolverines to three second-half field goals to make Bennett the first Wisconsin coach to win his Big Ten opener since Walter "Doc" Meanwell in 1912. The benefits of Bennett's defense-first mentality were evident on other occasions. Wisconsin finished the season 10–1 when holding opponents to fewer than 60 points. The Badgers also held

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

scoreless for the first 9:38 of the teams' game in Madison. Wisconsin managed to go above .500 in conference play (3–2) for the first time after consecutive wins with only seven scholarship players available. First the Badgers beat No. 11

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, 80–71, on January 13, 1996, behind 23 points from Okey. It was the third of 12 sellouts the team took part in away from Maui. The next game, defense and Mosezell Peterson's 23–11 double-double spurred Wisconsin to the aforementioned 61–48 win over visiting Michigan State. Beyond Okey's all-around brilliance, the emergence of freshman guard Hennssy Auriental eased the loss of Hoskins. After scoring in double figures in nine of 11 contests earlier in the year, Auriental made a game-tying three-pointer with under a minute left to help Wisconsin outlast

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

in overtime on January 24, 1996. The

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native also hit the game-winning jumper with seven seconds left at Illinois on February 3 to propel the Badgers to a 57–56 win. On February 21, 1996, Northwestern completed a season sweep of the Badgers at the Field House when Geno Carlisle hit for 39 points in a game televised by

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. The loss was part of a 2–5 closing stretch that put an NCAA Tournament bid out of reach, despite a buzzer-beater by sophomore Sean Daugherty to beat No. 16

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

on March 6. Wisconsin settled for an NIT bid.

Postseason

The team hosted a first-round NIT game against Manhattan at the UW Field House. The Badgers held the Jaspers without a field goal for the final 11:28 of the game to pull out a 55–42 win. However, Peterson, the team's second-leading scorer, dislocated his left knee cap in the victory, an injury that would ultimately end the sophomore's career. Wisconsin hosted Illinois State in the second round. Despite 28 points from Okey, a career-high to that point, the Redbirds advanced with a convincing 77–62 win.

Awards

Sam Okey * Big Ten Freshman of the Year (coaches and media) * All-Big Ten Honorable mention (media)

Roster

Schedule

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Player statistics

Records & trivia

Okey became the first player in Big Ten history to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists and blocked shots over a full season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1995-96 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball seasons

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

Wisconsin Badgers men's b Wisconsin Badgers men's b