The Wisconsin Badgers have been in a groove recently after some early ups and downs, winning their last four games. They’re sitting just outside the AP Top 25 after being unranked for the last eight weeks,
and will have a good chance to crack the list should they beat the Penn State Nittany Lions and USC Trojans this week.
It was a rougher start for the Badgers, who were winning the games they were supposed to, but couldn’t win any of their first five Quad 1 opportunities. The team struggled defensively, but also had some ugly shooting days, raising questions about whether this team could put it all together.
Well, that has come in January, as the Badgers have won four straight since losing to Purdue. That includes a huge road win over the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines, as well as wins over UCLA, Minnesota, and Rutgers. Now, Wisconsin is back in Bracketology predictions, and its season outlook is much different from what it was 45 days ago.
A part of the high expectations heading into the season was based on the team’s roster, but also because of the success the staff had last season. That roster was another one filled with newcomers, as Wisconsin lost seven players to the transfer portal and Tyler Wahl to graduation. But, while the Badgers had such a hot start last year, it took longer for them to reach a groove this year.
What was the difference?
“I don’t know if there was [the same adjustment as last year],” Gard said about the difference of rosters in regards to newcomers. “I mean, I think the other thing you’ve got to keep in mind, it’s not just two players [that were coming in]. The whole roster is basically new, other than Nolan and JB (John Blackwell) and Jack [Janicki]. So last year, JT (John Tonje) was coming into a set roster that had been together for two to five years, so I think that always makes the transition for the newcomer easier.
“And I said that last year. I thought our older guys, [Max] Klesmit, [Steven] Crowl, [Carter] Gilmore, I mean, you name it. [Markus] Ilver, [Chris] Hodges made it easier for Tonje, made the on-ramp shorter because there was so much. There’s so much already established here, so not only do this year we have to establish new roles, but we got seven or eight new [players] that are new to the program. So completely different in terms of how the makeup of a team comes together, because last year’s, like I said, had a lot in place already. So it made it easier for JT to come in and get up to speed faster.”
A part of that adjustment has been the star guards playing with each other, as John Blackwell and Nick Boyd have been learning how to balance each other’s play styles. It’s a different role for Blackwell, who was thrust into the point guard role last year, and is now in more of a hybrid role playing alongside a unique point guard like Boyd.
“I think he’s handled it well,” Greg Gard said of Blackwell adjusting to playing with Boyd. “It definitely was an adjustment period. I think we’re past that. I think we’re over that hump. Anytime you have new players on the roster, there’s going to be an adjustment period, and roles change, and people slide up in the rotation, so to speak, and the responsibilities.
“But I think they both have had to adjust, and I think they both have done a good job of understanding how important the other is, and both keeping their aggressiveness and functioning together. 45 days ago, I would have said we’re not in sync with each other. Now, I think I’ve seen a lot of really good play on the floor from both of them.”
We’ve seen both guards really take off with big games together over the last few weeks, and the Badgers are now looking a lot better as a team. There’s still quite a bit to work on, which head coach Greg Gard has constantly reminded, but Wisconsin is trending upwards heading into the second half of its Big Ten slate.
