Poor Shooting Night Brings Badgers’ Hard Fought Battle With UNC To A Losing Finish

Its often said that there are no moral victories in the sports world but on Wednesday night in Chapel Hill, the Badgers got about as close as one could get to proving that theory wrong. Despite shooting well under 40% from the field, Wisconsin hung with #5 North Carolina in a hostile Smith Center environment, eventually coming out on the losing end, 60-57. The finale of this season’s ACC/Big Ten Challenge (won by the Big Ten for the 3rd straight year) was one of the best games the challenge has seen in some time. “It was hard for us to get a good look. We were trying to make it hard for them to get good looks,” UW head coach Bo Ryan said. “That was as hard fought a game as I’ve ever been involved in as a coach.” Wisconsin (6-1, 0-0) held North Carolina (6-1, 0-0) in check for most of the game, completely stifling a vaunted North Carolina fast break that only managed two points the entire contest. “You don’t do that to Carolina…” Ryan said. “I thought our guys did a great job of getting back on defense.” “Fantastic college basketball game,” UNC head coach Roy Williams said. “Not the prettiest game at all, ever. Sometimes you need to win like that. Like I told Bo {Ryan} ‘Im glad we don’t play you anymore’.” The Badgers led 36-31 with 12 minutes left and had two possessions to completely silence an already quiet Smith Center crowd. But after failing to capitalize on the opportunity, Tar Heel sophomore forward Harrison Barnes nailed a contested jumper for 3 of his game-high 20 points to put Carolina right back in business. Then UNC headed to the line to throw down the hammer. Senior forward Tyler Zeller hit two free throws to tie the game at 38 with just under 10 minutes to play and sophomore forward Reggie Bullock followed from two of his own from the charity stripe to give the Heels a 40-38 lead, one that they would never look back from. The 18-5 UNC run erased what looked to be a solid Badger lead and put UW in a hole they simply couldn’t recover from. “Shots just weren’t going down…” senior guard Jordan Taylor said. “Some of them were good looks, but you just have to knock them down.” “We’ve had those runs as well,” Ryan added. “They happen in basketball.” Looking back, it is pretty amazing that UW hung as close to Carolina as they did while shooting just 36% from the field and just 8 of 28 from beyond the arc. Add in the fact that UNC went 19 of 24 to UW’s 3 of 6 from the line and you have just about as good a case as any for this being a true moral victory. “We expected to come in and win this…” Taylor said. “Anybody who comes into Carolina, it’s the superbowl for everybody. We wanted to win this game.” Junior forward Jared Berggren, facing perhaps the most talented front line in the nation, had a breakout performance. Although he fouled out in the final minute, Berggren finished with 18 points and 5 rebounds, adding 3 steals on the interior as well. “He’s getting better. He’s a good player and he works hard,” Ryan said of Berggren. “He’s starting to come into his own, its good to see.” The Badgers now head back to Madison to face intra-state rival Marquette, another team with an unblemished record. Although UW certainly wanted this one, home dates with Marquette and UNLV coming up the next two Saturdays give the Badgers a chance to get right back on track. “No coach can stand here and answer a question about what guys learned when it just happened,” Ryan said. “You find out the next game and the next game and the next game.”

UNC 25, UW 24 Half

Despite their worst shooting performance of the year and several periods of shaky defense, the Badgers are right where they want to be at the half. UNC has had the lead much of the game but after a Harrison Barnes jump shot bumped that lead to 9, Wisconsin closed on a 14-6 run over the final 11:03 of the half to head into the break within 1. The Badgers havent been able to make anything despite getting many open looks. At halftime, UW is just 10/32 from the field, shooting just 20% from beyond the 3-point arc. On the other hand, UNC is shooting nearly 48% from the field, capitalizing on their length to get easy looks down low. But the Badger defense has kept them in this game. UW has already forced eight Carolina turnovers, capitalizing on those turnovers to the tune of eight points. Wisconsin is unsurprisingly led by senior guard Jordan Taylor with 9 points at the break, with Carolina's Dexter Strickland pacing the Tar Heels with seven. Strickland's 3rd foul, coming on a charging call, could no doubt be a big moment at this game hits the back stretch. For the Badgers, junior forward Mike Bruesewitz has not seen much time, picking up his 2nd foul just under 8 minutes into the game. Bruesewitz should be back on the floor for the start of the half and his contributions will be a have to be big factor if the Badgers want to turn this one around. Second half set to start and its definitely a ballgame.

Its Almost Here

Tip off is just about an hour and a half away in Chapel Hill. There is certainly a buzz around campus, but what is definitely apparent is that people here are accustomed to games like this. A matchup between two top-10 teams is a rarity for Badger fans, but Tar Heel nation expects its team to be in these type of games year in and year out. So even though the #5 and #7 teams in the country are about to square off, it really is just another game at the Dean Dome. One of the things to watch tonight is the health of UNC sophomore forward Harrison Barnes. The reigning ACC rookie of the year is leading the Tar Heels in scoring through the first six games but has been nursing an ankle injury sustained in UNC's 90-80 loss to UNLV on Saturday night. Barnes will play, but his ability to contribute against a tough defensive minded team like UW might be limited, especially when you consider UNC's preference for running the floor. For Wisconsin, it really will be a question of whether this team is for real. Having been challenged very little through six games, we really dont know what to think of this Badger team that hasnt played a game in which the final margin was less than 17. One thing we do know is that senior point guard Jordan Taylor will be ready. The preseason first-team All-America selection has been solid in the early going, preferring to captain the floor and dish the ball off rather than to take control of putting the ball in the basket. Many think that Taylor will need to change this if the Badgers want to shock the Heels, but that might not really be the case. Scoring obviously doesnt hurt, but Taylor's role tonight will be to once again captain the floor and keep the troops in the moment. Taylor has the most experience of anyone on the Badger roster and played a big part in the UW win over Duke just two years ago. Taylor's poise will be the key, much more so than his ability to put up points. Either way, all eyes will be on the Smith Center as the 9:30 tip nears. Should the Badgers somehow pull off an upset win, get ready for a whole lot more national attention placed on the Kohl Center this winter.