Wisconsin Basketball Entering A State Of Crisis, Fans Should Be Very Nervous

It appears the Wisconsin Badgers might be fool's gold on the basketball court.

The Badgers lost to Michigan 72-68 Wednesday night to fall to 16-7 on the year, and it's the third straight loss in a week. Let's run down the tape since last Wednesday:

• Blew a massive second half lead to lose to Nebraska in overtime.
• Lost a game to Purdue that was very winnable at the Kohl Center (granted, there were some horrible calls late in the game).
• Lost to a Michigan team that entered the game 7-15 and 2-9 in the B1G.

Wisconsin is in big trouble.

The Badgers were ranked sixth in America going into the Nebraska and Purdue games. Now, the team will be lucky to be in the top 20 when the new rankings come out next week.

Welcome to the Wisconsin experience. Pundits and analysts were talking about the Badgers being a serious contender for a one or two seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Now, the team can't even beat a horrible Michigan team, and Greg Gard appears to have a huge problem on his hands. How is it possible the Badgers have fallen so hard and fast?

Wisconsin basketball is sliding in the wrong direction. (Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)

Again, the team was 16-4 a week ago. Gard's squad was viewed as one of the best in America. Now, you'd have to be very foolish to buy into this team.

Wisconsin's record over the past seven games is an abysmal 3-4. Three wins over the past seven games! The defense looks weak, shot selection is comically bad at moments and there appears to be little to no consistency.

Ultimately, that falls on Greg Gard and the rest of the coaching staff. Players playing poorly is going to happen, but it's on the staff to make changes.

What changes are being made? Wisconsin is currently playing itself from the two seed line to possibly being unranked.

Will Greg Gard be able to turn the Badgers around? (Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)

There's no reason to be a state of complete panic just yet, but I can see it on the horizon. Wisconsin desperately needs a win, and a loss to Rutgers is going to send fans through the roof. There's simply no excuse for this kind of disappointing play in February. Let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.