Evers picks Wisconsin to defeat Duke for NCAA championship

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers might just be the biggest homer in Wisconsin.

Evers said the Badgers will somehow beat Duke to win the NCAA men’s basketball championship.

Evers, a Wisconsin alumnus, issued a news release Thursday predicting Wisconsin, Duke, Texas Tech and North Carolina will reach the Final Four.

He predicts Badgers big man Ethan Happ will draw so much defensive attention that other Wisconsin shooters will get open shots.

Wisconsin (23-10) and faces Oregon (23-12) in the first round Friday in what is considered to be very much not a shootout.

The Badgers average 69.1 points a game, while Oregon averages 70.5.

That ranks the Ducks 236th in the country in scoring, and the Badgers 269th — out of 353 Division I schools this season.

Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes wasn’t quite as homerish, but pretty close. He picked Wisconsin, Marquette, Kansas and Maryland to advance to the Final Four. He thinks Kansas will beat Maryland in the championship.

Duke, a perennial college basketball powerhouse, is 29-5 and boasts freshman phenom Zion Williamson, a potential No. 1 pick in the NBA draft in June.