St. Thomas, VI -- (Sports Network) - The opening round of the Paradise Jam wraps up with the Iona Gaels tangling with the 25th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center tonight. The squad that emerges victorious in this battle will move on to the semifinals against either San Diego or Valparaiso.

The Gaels have played just one game up to this point, capturing a 59-46 victory over Hampton a week ago. With the win, Iona improved to 47-16 all-time in season openers, although it has gone just 12-12 over its last 24 lid lifters. Getting off to a good start is imperative for the Gaels, who return three starters from a squad that finished just 12-20 a season ago.

As for Wisconsin, it is 2-0 on the young season following an 88-58 trouncing of SIU-Edwardsville on Tuesday. It was a nice follow up for the Badgers, who struggled a bit in a season opening win over Long Beach State (68-61) on Sunday. Winning is nothing new for this program, as Wisconsin has captured at last 24 victories in five of the last six seasons.

Tonight's game represents the first-ever meeting between Wisconsin and Iona on the hardwood.

The Gaels connected on 42.6 percent of their field goal chances and won the battle on the glass, 37-34, as they downed Hampton to open the season. Iona also clamped down on defense, holding Hampton to a dismal 30.8 percent shooting effort from the field. Gary Springer led the Gaels and all scorers with 22 points and seven rebounds. Springer, the team's leading returning scorer (10.9 ppg), went 7-of-10 from the floor and 8-of-10 at the foul line in the victory. Rashon Dwight also turned in a decent effort, as he posted nine points, five assists and five rebounds. It was a respectable start for Dwight, who contributed 6.3 ppg as a freshman last season.

The Badgers shot a sizzling 59.3 percent from the floor and made 8-of-15 three-pointers, as they coasted past SIUE on Tuesday. It was a nice follow up from the opener, when Wisconsin hit on 44.0 percent of is total shots and 8- of-18 three-pointers in a win over LBSU. Jon Leuer came off the bench and poured in 19 points to lead the Badgers on Tuesday. The talented sophomore chipped in with seven points in 15 minutes in the team's opening win. After netting a team-high 23 points in the opener, Marcus Landry had 15 points and five blocks against SIUE. Jason Bohannon added 14 points last game and Trevon Hughes finished with 11 points and four assists. In the opener, Bohannon posted 12 points and Hughes had just six.