The Big Ten tournament officially starts today, and that means Wisconsin’s journey to win a national basketball championship has begun.
The Badgers don’t play until Thursday against Maryland and will need to win 10 straight games to secure a national title. Any loss will end our season.
I recognize the staggering odds against us, but as Han Solo would say, “Never tell me the odds.”
Lots of Badgers fans would probably try to argue that we’re playing with house money because nobody expects us to win. That’s an argument that only a loser would make. A winner doesn’t care what the odds are, what our record is, what seed we get or who we play. We just show up and expect to win. That’s a championship mentality.
I don’t want to hear about all the injuries that crippled our season, I don’t want to hear about how young we are, and I don’t want to hear anything that sounds like an excuse. All I want to hear from our team and its fans is that we’re going to Madison Square Garden to win the Big Ten title and then we’re headed to the tournament to win the whole damn thing.
There are two kinds of people in this world: winners and losers. There is no in between.
My Badgers — the team I have sacrificed so much for — are going to New York, and we’re not taking prisoners. This is now a sport of annihilation. Pray for the teams we will face. They have no idea what’s coming.