Wisconsin Badgers forward excited for NCAA Tournament homecoming

Austin Rapp returns to Portland, where he started his college career, as Wisconsin heads to the NCAA Tournament.

Mar. 17, 2026 at 11:23pm

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Wisconsin sophomore forward Austin Rapp is excited to play in the NCAA Tournament's Portland region, as it will mark a homecoming for the former Portland center. Rapp was the only underclassman Wisconsin added from the transfer portal this past spring and has become an important part of the Badgers' rotation, starting 30 games and leading the West Coast Conference in several statistical categories last season. Though it's taken time to adjust to the high-major level, Rapp has started to find his rhythm as Wisconsin enters the final stretch of the season.

Why it matters

Rapp's homecoming provides a feel-good story as Wisconsin makes its NCAA Tournament appearance. The Badgers will be playing in a region familiar to Rapp, which could give him a boost as he looks to help his new team advance in the tournament.

The details

Rapp was the only underclassman Wisconsin added from the transfer portal this past spring and looked like a natural fit to Wisconsin's offense. Not only did Rapp start 30 games for Portland, posting 13.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, but he led the West Coast Conference in three-pointers (83), three-point percentage (35.4%), and defensive rebounds per game (5.9) en route to winning the conference's rookie of the year award. It's taken time to adjust to the high-major level, including the disappointment of losing his starting role after just six games, but Rapp has started to find his rhythm as UW enters the final stretch of the season.

  • Rapp was the only underclassman Wisconsin added from the transfer portal this past spring.
  • Rapp started 30 games for Portland last season.
  • Rapp led the West Coast Conference in three-pointers (83), three-point percentage (35.4%), and defensive rebounds per game (5.9) last season.
  • Rapp won the West Coast Conference's rookie of the year award last season.
  • Rapp will make his NCAA Tournament debut 15 minutes from the arena where he started his college career.

The players

Austin Rapp

A sophomore forward for the University of Wisconsin who transferred from the University of Portland, where he was the conference's rookie of the year last season.

Nolan Winter

A Wisconsin player who missed games due to an ankle injury, allowing Rapp to return to the starting lineup.

Aleksas Bieliauskas

A Wisconsin player who had to step up in the absence of Nolan Winter.

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What they’re saying

“I was so excited. I've got hell of a (lot of) people there. My mom, my sister, and brother are all flying over as well now, so it is going to be really cool.”

— Austin Rapp (si.com)

“(Not having Nolan) put a little bit of pressure on me and AB (Aleksas Bieliauskas). In a sense, Nolan is not here, and we have to step up a little bit. We've got to come in and fill his shoes. Nolan is such a good player, so it's going to be hard to fill what he's doing, but I think we've done a good job in the four games we've played. We've beat some really good teams and fought really hard against the No.3 team, coming down to the wire against the No.3 team in Michigan. It shows we're capable.”

— Austin Rapp (si.com)

What’s next

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The takeaway

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