After a 10-day layoff for final exams, Wisconsin men’s
basketball got back in the swing of things early on as they rolled to a 74-53
win over Milwaukee. Once again trailing at the first media timeout, the Badgers
(8-4) responded with scores on each of their next 8 possessions, sparking a
33-8 run to close out the first half with a 41-18 lead.
Senior Ryan Evans led the way for UW in what was a very
balanced effort against the struggling Panthers (3-10) as all five starters
finished with at least 5 points. After an inconsistent first 11 games, Evans
made 3-of-4 free throws and finished the game with 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 4
assists to lead the way in all three categories for UW.
Sophomore Traevon Jackson also had a career night offensively,
finishing with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Though the Ohio native continued
to struggle at times handling the ball, his performance on both ends of the
floor showed marked improvement from previous games against Green Bay and
Marquette. Fellow guard George Marshall posted a +25 first half and finished
the game with 6 points on 2-of-4 shooting. The combination of positive
performances from these two guards was clearly the brightest spot in a game
full of UW highlights.
The Panthers once again struggled to put the ball in the
basket, a theme in what has been an utterly disappointing season. UWM only
managed to shoot a tick above 30% from the floor in the first half and failed
to reach the 60-point mark despite getting comfortable offensively in the 2nd
half.
While the outcome was never put in doubt, the Badgers cannot
be happy with their sloppy play in the second half. After pushing the lead to
27, UW allowed Milwaukee to pull within 17 on the strength of a 12-2 run made
possible by poor shot selection and a few carless turnovers on the part of
Wisconsin.
Sloppiness aside, Wisconsin finally hit free throws on a
consistent basis. Coming into the game at just 63% as a team, UW made 11-of-13
at the line on Saturday. Though not under a tremendous amount of pressure,
these were free throws Wisconsin wasn’t making in the early part of the season
and are free throws UW will have to make in order to compete in Big Ten play.
The Badgers now head home for a couple days to rest and
enjoy the Christmas holiday before getting back at it on Wednesday in
preparation for their final non-conference game Saturday against Stamford.
Conference play is now less than two weeks away and having left itself little
room for error, UW must take advantage of what little time they do have to get
ready for a crucial opening stretch.
No comments:
Post a Comment