No. 24 Badgers face 3rd-ranked Purdue to begin Big 10 season

Could be the biggest game so far of Johnny Davis’ career, as the 24th-ranked University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team takes on No.3 Purdue.

The La Crosse native has turned into a superstar — not just for the Badgers, but in all of college basketball. The sophomore leads UW in in points (20.8), rebounds (6.6), assists (2.5) steals (1.5) and turnovers (1.9). He averaged 7.0 points a game last season.

The 6-foot-5 guard is shooting 43.8% from the field and 34.1% from beyond the arc.

Purdue (12-1) is coming off a 104-90 win over Nicholls — a team Wisconsin beat 71-68 without Davis.

The Boilermakers have beaten two ranked teams this season — Villanova (9-4), which is ranked 22nd heading into Monday, and North Carolina (10-3), which has since fallen out of the Top 25.

Their only loss came 70-68 to Rutgers (7-5) on Dec. 9.

Wisconsin has beaten No. 12 Houston and No. 21 Providence (13-1) — the Friars were unranked at the time — while losing to 13th-ranked Ohio State (9-2).

The AP rankings could change later Monday.

Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.