Forgive the average fan of Wisconsin men’s basketball if
they aren’t overly excited about the Badgers being one of only 16 teams still
alive for a national title. After all, Sweet 16 appearances are nothing new in
Madison.
With this year’s appearance, UW has now advanced to the 2nd
weekend of the NCAA Tournament in two consecutive years and in three of the
last five. Since Bo Ryan took the helm in 2002, the Badgers have been to the
Sweet 16 five times. Only Duke, Kansas, Michigan State, and North Carolina have
more appearances during that span.
Yet the average college basketball fan and even the
occasional “expert” still seem rank the Wisconsin program a solid step below
these behemoths of the game. Perhaps this is rightly so. While the Badgers have
been a fixture in the Sweet 16, they have failed to get over the hump, losing
in the regional semifinal four of those five years and in the regional final in
2005.
“To become a powerhouse program you have to be able to win
and we have won…” Wisconsin senior guard Jordan Taylor said. “But definitely we
have to start taking advantage of opportunities like this.”
Thursday night, Taylor and the Badgers will have their
moment of opportunity as they face top-seeded Syracuse (33-2) in the East
Regional Semifinals in Boston.
Although the Orange are without sophomore center Fab Melo,
out for the tournament with “eligibility issues”, they remain perhaps the most
athletic team in the nation. Playing out of a patented zone that is just as
much a part of their offense as it is their defense, the Orange play a style of
basketball that is in direct contrast to that of the Badgers.
“I definitely think there will be a learning curve,” UW
sophomore guard Ben Brust said of preparing for Syracuse. “But I think we’ve
played a lot of different teams this year…so we just have to take everything
we’ve learned throughout the year and just apply it to what they’re doing.”
One advantage the Badgers will have is that they are just
about the best in the country at taking care of the ball. While Wisconsin is
the 2nd best in the nation, turning the ball over just nine times
per game, the Orange are in the top 20 when it comes to forcing turnovers,
creating 16.4 per game thus far this season. In two NCAA Tournament games this
year, Syracuse has cashed in to the tune of 19.5 points off turnovers per game.
“They force people where they want them to go and I think
when you back down from that and just go back into a shell, I think that’s when
they impose their will on teams,” Taylor said. “I think we just have to stay
aggressive and try to just keep attacking them and go into the teeth of that
zone. It’s the Sweet 16. Its definitely not for the faint-hearted.”
But the necessary tradeoff for any zone comes on the glass
and Syracuse is as susceptible to giving up offensive rebounds as just about
any team in the country. Even in the Big East, a conference not exactly known
for physical play underneath the basket, the Orange gave up nearly 15 offensive
rebounds per game. While they won their 3rd round matchup with
Kansas State, Syracuse gave up a staggering 20 second-chance points to the
Wildcats, who were only able to score 59 points in total.
“Part of the reason why they give up so many offensive
rebounds is the reason why the defense is so good. Its so active and they are
flying around that at times they get themselves out of position,” UW assistant
coach Gary Close said. “I think it’s going to be important for us to get offensive
rebounds because they are so good at shutting down the first shot.”
Having come full circle from January 9th, when
they stood at just 1-3 in Big Ten play, the Badgers are now just two games away
from a Final Four appearance that would be their first since 2000.
“We’ve come this far,” sophomore guard Josh Gasser said. “Might
as well finish this thing off.”
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