CHICAGO -- There are pluses to playing the first game of the day during Championship Week. The Wisconsin Badgers enjoyed one such luxury Friday after beating the Michigan Wolverines before many had finished their lunch breaks.
"We had a lot of down time [Friday] just to watch basketball," forward Frank Kaminsky said. "That's what most of us do. We're basketball players."
The Badgers spent Friday afternoon and evening flipping through the various conference tournament action, but the ACC tournament, in particular, caught their eye. Josh Gasser, Traevon Jackson and Duje Dukan watched both the Virginia Cavaliers and Duke Blue Devils go down, while Wisconsin's chances of earning a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament went up.
All three teams are under consideration to occupy one of the top lines when Sunday's selections are unveiled. But only Wisconsin is still playing in its conference tournament after pummeling the Purdue Boilermakers 71-51 at United Center. The Badgers delivered arguably their best defensive half of the season, holding Purdue to 16 points and recording five steals and three blocks, to erase a 35-30 deficit following the first 20 minutes.
If teams still can state a case for a No. 1 seed with the selection committee, Wisconsin made a pretty strong one Saturday.
"If winning was that case, then I guess, yes, we did make a case for it," forward Nigel Hayes said. "But I'm not on that committee. Whatever they do, whatever magic they come up with, whether it's 1 or 2, we'll have to take it when it comes."
The Badgers have been a top-four seed six times under Bo Ryan, including a No. 2 seed last year en route to a Final Four appearance, but they've never headlined a region. Their slim chance of earning a top seed vanished in last season's Big Ten tournament when they stumbled in the same semifinal round against Michigan State.
Gasser admits it's "natural" to watch Virginia and Duke lose and wonder how it affects Wisconsin's tournament position. Duke has a head-to-head win over the Badgers on Dec. 3 at the Kohl Center. Wisconsin isn't the type of team to get wrapped up in the seeding debate, but a group that has achieved so many milestones can appreciate another.
"Coach Ryan's teams have been really, really good," Gasser said. "To be the only team that's a 1-seed, one of the few teams who's won a Big Ten regular season [title] and a Big Ten tournament [title], that would be pretty impressive."
The Badgers impressed throughout the second half Saturday, holding Purdue to 24 percent shooting and grabbing seven offensive rebounds in the first 13 minutes, 41 seconds. Hayes (15 points, six rebounds, five assists) triggered Wisconsin on both ends, and Sam Dekker and Kaminsky also delivered strong all-around performances while Bronson Koenig scored 14 of his game-high 19 points.
Following 60 minutes of Big Ten tournament play that could be kindly described as ordinary, Kaminsky held Purdue center A.J. Hammons scoreless in the second half.
"One-on-one, Frank did an unbelievable job," Ryan said.
Afterward, seeding talk filled the Badgers' locker room.
"Thirty and three right now," Dekker said, referring to Wisconsin's record, "is pretty tough to ignore."
"For all we know, we could be a No. 1 seed right now," Dukan said. "It's all really speculation. It's just a matter of another 24 hours, whatever it is, to find out."
Wisconsin soon will learn how the committee values conference tournament performance. It has a chance to win its first Big Ten tournament title since 2008. It has a chance for another quality victory.
In Gasser's mind, a title in this tournament is required for a top seed in the next one.
"If we don't win [Sunday]," he said, "that's unrealistic."