As stated in another thread, I come in peace. By the time tomorrow night rolls around, the #13 next to the Wisconsin might turn into something in the top 10, which is unbelievable stuff for fans of a team that was picked to finish 10th in the B1G before the season. However, I am a big aficionado of the advanced analytics, which has this game as a virtual toss-up - the human rankings are subjective, and we both know that NU is a capable team.
Any conversation about the Badgers has to start with Johnny Davis. He was just sorta ok last year as a frosh coming off the bench of a senior-laden team. We knew his role would expand because the team had to replace so many players, but NO ONE was predicting what has happened. He did make the U19 Team USA last summer that won a gold medal - he was not really the star on that team, but he played a lot, and, in retrospect, it gave him a real confidence boost. So, he's really good now. He is showing up in the mock NBA draft lotteries, so this will likely be his last year. That being said, he is not perfect - he takes a lot of the team's shots, and isn't always particularly efficient.
Reflecting that, as a team, Wisconsin is actually pretty bad at shooting, particularly from behind the arc. The Badgers aren't anything special at rebounding either. Like NU, though, they are very good at not turning the ball over (UW is #1 and NU is #4 in all of college basketball). UW is above average at holding teams below their own shooting averages, which is how they've been able to eke out a lot of games. There's a stat on t-rank called F.U.N. (fortune unexplained by numbers), and UW is ranked #1 on that - i.e., the luckiest damn team in the country. In terms of results, the two losses were at home to Providence when Johnny Davis didn't play, and @ OSU when literally the whole team had the flu. COVID hit after that, and the Badgers had a game cancelled and then struggled mightily with the likes of Nicholls St. and Illinois St. Everyone was expecting a blowout loss at Mackey in the next game, and well, it wasn't. Things are usually dicey in every game we play, but they've found a way.
As to other players, you probably know (and have strong feelings about) Brad Davison. With all the youth and new players, he's been invaluable as the proverbial coach on the floor - perhaps not so proverbial as that is his stated chosen professional aspiration. And, he's scoring at a pretty good clip, too. The next guy to talk about is F Tyler Wahl, who is really coming on with his scoring the last few games. With all the attention on Davis, he's had some openings to take it strong to the rim. Davis, Davison, and Wahl are really the big 3, and the 3 returning contributors from last year.
Chucky Hepburn is a true frosh PG and has been super steady. His stats won't wow you, but he makes few mistakes. He will need to up his offense when Davis departs, but he plays a significant role very well right now. The last starter is C Steven Crowl. He is a bit up and down with his production inside, but can hit an occasional 3. He splits time with a transfer from Cincy named Chris Vogt. Vogt is more of an inside only guy, and allows us to have 5 more fouls to give against the Purdues and Illinoises of this league. Those 6 play most of the minutes.
In the end, I think this will be about whether Wisconsin can make shots or get to the line. There's also this mental hurdle of being the hunted rather than the hunter that they haven't really had to deal with - the expectations for this season were so low, and that has changed dramatically.
Any conversation about the Badgers has to start with Johnny Davis. He was just sorta ok last year as a frosh coming off the bench of a senior-laden team. We knew his role would expand because the team had to replace so many players, but NO ONE was predicting what has happened. He did make the U19 Team USA last summer that won a gold medal - he was not really the star on that team, but he played a lot, and, in retrospect, it gave him a real confidence boost. So, he's really good now. He is showing up in the mock NBA draft lotteries, so this will likely be his last year. That being said, he is not perfect - he takes a lot of the team's shots, and isn't always particularly efficient.
Reflecting that, as a team, Wisconsin is actually pretty bad at shooting, particularly from behind the arc. The Badgers aren't anything special at rebounding either. Like NU, though, they are very good at not turning the ball over (UW is #1 and NU is #4 in all of college basketball). UW is above average at holding teams below their own shooting averages, which is how they've been able to eke out a lot of games. There's a stat on t-rank called F.U.N. (fortune unexplained by numbers), and UW is ranked #1 on that - i.e., the luckiest damn team in the country. In terms of results, the two losses were at home to Providence when Johnny Davis didn't play, and @ OSU when literally the whole team had the flu. COVID hit after that, and the Badgers had a game cancelled and then struggled mightily with the likes of Nicholls St. and Illinois St. Everyone was expecting a blowout loss at Mackey in the next game, and well, it wasn't. Things are usually dicey in every game we play, but they've found a way.
As to other players, you probably know (and have strong feelings about) Brad Davison. With all the youth and new players, he's been invaluable as the proverbial coach on the floor - perhaps not so proverbial as that is his stated chosen professional aspiration. And, he's scoring at a pretty good clip, too. The next guy to talk about is F Tyler Wahl, who is really coming on with his scoring the last few games. With all the attention on Davis, he's had some openings to take it strong to the rim. Davis, Davison, and Wahl are really the big 3, and the 3 returning contributors from last year.
Chucky Hepburn is a true frosh PG and has been super steady. His stats won't wow you, but he makes few mistakes. He will need to up his offense when Davis departs, but he plays a significant role very well right now. The last starter is C Steven Crowl. He is a bit up and down with his production inside, but can hit an occasional 3. He splits time with a transfer from Cincy named Chris Vogt. Vogt is more of an inside only guy, and allows us to have 5 more fouls to give against the Purdues and Illinoises of this league. Those 6 play most of the minutes.
In the end, I think this will be about whether Wisconsin can make shots or get to the line. There's also this mental hurdle of being the hunted rather than the hunter that they haven't really had to deal with - the expectations for this season were so low, and that has changed dramatically.
