Badger football has taken us on a roller coaster ride this season. The arrival of Russell Wilson immediately brought with it the expectation not simply of a return trip to the Rose Bowl, but rather a first-time trip to the BCS Championship game. Even the most impartial of media types were talking as if the Big Ten title game was a foregone conclusion.
Well, two hail marys later these pundits are having to eat their words (myself included, although I did feel OSU would take down the Badgers after what happened in Madison last season). Wisconsin fans everywhere are having to be pulled off the ledge, dreading the thought of seeing their beloved Badgers close out the season on December 28th with Champs Sports Bowl patches on their jerseys.
Heck, remember the laughter that erupted when it was announced after the win over Indiana that the Badgers were now bowl eligible?
As if that mattered. Well, apparently it did.
Anyway, for those of you looking to get away from the disappointment that has occurred on the gridiron, Bo Ryan's squad can pretty confidently offer you a set of reasonable and excitement-worthy expectations that will almost surely be met come season's end.
National championship? Well, basketball is a whole different animal and a national title is a crapshoot even for the best teams in the nation. But Ryan has proven that the Badgers will have a shot each and every season, having qualified for the NCAA Tournament every year during his tenure in Madison.
Conference Championship? Again, they will definitely be in the hunt. With Ohio State returning sophomore forward Jared Sullinger and fellow sophomore Aaron Craft manning the point, the Buckeyes will enter the 2011-2012 season as the clear favorites to take home the Big Ten crown.
But you can be sure Ryan's crew will give the Buckeyes a run for their money. The Badgers knocked off a then-undefeated Buckeye team at the Kohl Center last season and will certainly have a shot to do the same come February 4th.
Ryan has never finished outside of the top 4 in the Big Ten. Ever. Not even Tom Izzo or Bob Knight, legends in the game, can claim that accomplishment. As long as Bo Ryan is manning the sidelines for the Badgers, you can be sure that UW will have a hand in the title race in the Big Ten.
This season, the Badgers also have a number of intriguing non-conference matchups. After last season's dismal home non-conference slate, this season includes trips to Madison by Marquette, UNLV, and always-dangerous Wofford, with the Badgers set to take a trip to Chapel Hill to face #1 UNC in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
So if you are beginning to tire of the angst brought on by the disappointment of the Badger football season, shift your focus over to the Kohl Center where a team ready to contend for a conference and maybe even a national title is just about ready to begin its season.
Monday, October 31, 2011
New Look Badgers Debut in Red-White Scrimmage
Having lost an entire front court to graduation, UW fans expected change heading into the 2011-2012 men’s basketball season, but had no clue what that change would be. Sunday Badger nation got their first look at the new product, as Wisconsin debuted a team with much more emphasis on depth and physicality than on star players and big time scorers.
Perhaps the biggest story to come out of the Red Team’s 72-56 victory was the leading scorer, a point guard not named Jordan Taylor but rather Ben Brust, the sophomore who spent last season as the point guard for UW’s scout team.
“His decision making as a point guard wasn’t as good as it is now…” UW head coach Bo Ryan said after the game. “He’s quick, we always knew that. He’s even quicker now.”
The Hawthorn Woods, Illinois native finished Sunday’s scrimmage with a game-high 22 points while also adding four assists and three rebounds in the Red team victory.
“Its nothing that we haven’t seen before,” Taylor said of Brust’s scoring. “Its just something new to the fans. Its no surprise to us.”
With the guard positions taken by Taylor and fellow sophomore Josh Gasser, Brust is looking to take hold of that third guard spot, a role the Badgers need to fill in order to have the kind of depth necessary to endure the brutal Big Ten season.
“I want that,” Brust said of taking on the third guard role. “I want to be out with the guys helping the team and winning games.”
Taylor showed flashes of last year’s brilliance, but was clearly suffering from some rust after having surgery in the off-season, finishing the game with 16 points to lead the White side.
With both returning starters filling the guard spots, much of the attention heading into Sunday’s scrimmage centered around the new-look front court, comprised largely of players with plenty of experience in a Badger uniform, but little experience in a starting role.
Juniors Mike Bruesewitz and Jared Berggren certainly showed their capability of scoring, each posting 18 points for the red side, many of those coming on the interior. Junior Ryan Evans also got into the scoring act, putting up a double-digit effort for the White squad and creating several open looks from mid range, something he has thrived on thus far in his Badger career.
If Badger fans are looking for one player to replace the scoring of Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil, they will never find one. But with the depth this year’s team seems to have, it doesn’t appear that the scoring will be lost.
In addition to additional depth, especially in the frontcourt, the Badgers will likely be a more dynamic team on the offensive end, a welcome sight for fans who are beginning to tire of the slow paced Wisconsin offense of recent years.
The Badgers now set their sights on the beginning of the season, with an exhibition game against UW-Stevens Point coming up on Saturday night.
Badger nation’s BCS hopes may have been dashed, but there is plenty of reason to get excited about UW basketball.
Perhaps the biggest story to come out of the Red Team’s 72-56 victory was the leading scorer, a point guard not named Jordan Taylor but rather Ben Brust, the sophomore who spent last season as the point guard for UW’s scout team.
“His decision making as a point guard wasn’t as good as it is now…” UW head coach Bo Ryan said after the game. “He’s quick, we always knew that. He’s even quicker now.”
The Hawthorn Woods, Illinois native finished Sunday’s scrimmage with a game-high 22 points while also adding four assists and three rebounds in the Red team victory.
“Its nothing that we haven’t seen before,” Taylor said of Brust’s scoring. “Its just something new to the fans. Its no surprise to us.”
With the guard positions taken by Taylor and fellow sophomore Josh Gasser, Brust is looking to take hold of that third guard spot, a role the Badgers need to fill in order to have the kind of depth necessary to endure the brutal Big Ten season.
“I want that,” Brust said of taking on the third guard role. “I want to be out with the guys helping the team and winning games.”
Taylor showed flashes of last year’s brilliance, but was clearly suffering from some rust after having surgery in the off-season, finishing the game with 16 points to lead the White side.
With both returning starters filling the guard spots, much of the attention heading into Sunday’s scrimmage centered around the new-look front court, comprised largely of players with plenty of experience in a Badger uniform, but little experience in a starting role.
Juniors Mike Bruesewitz and Jared Berggren certainly showed their capability of scoring, each posting 18 points for the red side, many of those coming on the interior. Junior Ryan Evans also got into the scoring act, putting up a double-digit effort for the White squad and creating several open looks from mid range, something he has thrived on thus far in his Badger career.
If Badger fans are looking for one player to replace the scoring of Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil, they will never find one. But with the depth this year’s team seems to have, it doesn’t appear that the scoring will be lost.
In addition to additional depth, especially in the frontcourt, the Badgers will likely be a more dynamic team on the offensive end, a welcome sight for fans who are beginning to tire of the slow paced Wisconsin offense of recent years.
The Badgers now set their sights on the beginning of the season, with an exhibition game against UW-Stevens Point coming up on Saturday night.
Badger nation’s BCS hopes may have been dashed, but there is plenty of reason to get excited about UW basketball.
Badger Basketball More Experienced Than They Look
Wisconsin Basketball: Same Team, Different Year.
That statement seems to ring true nearly every year that UW head coach Bo Ryan’s team hits the floor. However, this season the Badgers must replace two all-Big Ten performers in the frontcourt in Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil, who together were responsible for over 41% of last year’s scoring.
But although Wisconsin only returns two starters from last year’s Sweet 16 team, the Badgers are not as young as many have made them out to be.
“We’re pretty experienced,” senior guard Rob Wilson said at the team’s media day on Monday. “A lot of guys played in the games somewhere down in their careers. Besides the freshman being the youngsters, we have a lot of guys who’ve gotten playing time.”
UW returns both starters in the backcourt, with Wilson and Ben Brust also coming into the year with game experience at the guard positions. Senior guard Jordan Taylor will enter the season as a candidate for national player of the year and sophomore Josh Gasser comes off of a freshman season that saw him average nearly six points and four rebounds per game over the course of 34 games, tying the UW record for games played by a freshman.
“{We have} really high expectations this year…” Taylor said. “We have a lot of experience in the backcourt and everybody’s been working hard.”
With the backcourt for the most part settled, the focus turns toward a frontcourt that will feature three new starters. Despite the turnover, the Badgers have a trio of juniors with plenty of big-time game experience in Mike Bruesewitz, Jared Berggren, and Ryan Evans. Together, the three started 14 games last season and combined for nearly 10 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, numbers that they feel will continue to trend upward as this season rolls on.
“I guess it’s the Wisconsin way, upperclassmen lead the way…” Bruesewitz said. “When its your turn to step up, you’ve got to embrace that role.”
In addition to the names Badger fans are familiar with, UW adds to its arsenal redshirt freshman Evan Anderson. The 6 foot-10 inch Stanley, Wisconsin native has already impressed his teammates in early practices and will bring a new dimension of strength to the Badger front line.
“That’s what I hope to do this year, just to be a strong guy in the middle,” Anderson said. “And not let guys like {Ohio State sophomore forward} Jared Sullinger and some of those other guys get so many easy baskets.”
Anderson and the rest of the big men are hoping to improve on an interior defense that at times was a glaring weakness on an otherwise impressive defensive effort by the Badgers over the course of last season.
Although Wisconsin was 4th among all Division 1 teams in scoring defense, giving up just 58.6 points per game, they struggled to contain big men including Butler senior Matt Howard, whose twenty point effort in the NCAA Sweet 16 doused the Badgers’ hopes of a run at the Final Four.
In addition, this new front court brings a far greater interior presence on the offensive end than the Nankivil-Leuer tandem did last season.
“Jon and Keaton are such good shooters from the perimeter that we needed to get the ball on the outside. Its a tough matchup for a lot of bigs to cover them on the perimeter” Gasser said Monday. “This year, with Jared Berggren, he’s a good post scorer. And then Evan Anderson, he’s such a brute down low. Its pretty hard to stop him one-on-one.”
While UW is now more than a week into their preseason practice schedule, game action still lies nearly two weeks away with the regular season one more week down the road. In the meantime, the Badgers continue to slowly make progress, progress they hope will put them in a position to once again contend for a Big Ten title.
That statement seems to ring true nearly every year that UW head coach Bo Ryan’s team hits the floor. However, this season the Badgers must replace two all-Big Ten performers in the frontcourt in Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil, who together were responsible for over 41% of last year’s scoring.
But although Wisconsin only returns two starters from last year’s Sweet 16 team, the Badgers are not as young as many have made them out to be.
“We’re pretty experienced,” senior guard Rob Wilson said at the team’s media day on Monday. “A lot of guys played in the games somewhere down in their careers. Besides the freshman being the youngsters, we have a lot of guys who’ve gotten playing time.”
UW returns both starters in the backcourt, with Wilson and Ben Brust also coming into the year with game experience at the guard positions. Senior guard Jordan Taylor will enter the season as a candidate for national player of the year and sophomore Josh Gasser comes off of a freshman season that saw him average nearly six points and four rebounds per game over the course of 34 games, tying the UW record for games played by a freshman.
“{We have} really high expectations this year…” Taylor said. “We have a lot of experience in the backcourt and everybody’s been working hard.”
With the backcourt for the most part settled, the focus turns toward a frontcourt that will feature three new starters. Despite the turnover, the Badgers have a trio of juniors with plenty of big-time game experience in Mike Bruesewitz, Jared Berggren, and Ryan Evans. Together, the three started 14 games last season and combined for nearly 10 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, numbers that they feel will continue to trend upward as this season rolls on.
“I guess it’s the Wisconsin way, upperclassmen lead the way…” Bruesewitz said. “When its your turn to step up, you’ve got to embrace that role.”
In addition to the names Badger fans are familiar with, UW adds to its arsenal redshirt freshman Evan Anderson. The 6 foot-10 inch Stanley, Wisconsin native has already impressed his teammates in early practices and will bring a new dimension of strength to the Badger front line.
“That’s what I hope to do this year, just to be a strong guy in the middle,” Anderson said. “And not let guys like {Ohio State sophomore forward} Jared Sullinger and some of those other guys get so many easy baskets.”
Anderson and the rest of the big men are hoping to improve on an interior defense that at times was a glaring weakness on an otherwise impressive defensive effort by the Badgers over the course of last season.
Although Wisconsin was 4th among all Division 1 teams in scoring defense, giving up just 58.6 points per game, they struggled to contain big men including Butler senior Matt Howard, whose twenty point effort in the NCAA Sweet 16 doused the Badgers’ hopes of a run at the Final Four.
In addition, this new front court brings a far greater interior presence on the offensive end than the Nankivil-Leuer tandem did last season.
“Jon and Keaton are such good shooters from the perimeter that we needed to get the ball on the outside. Its a tough matchup for a lot of bigs to cover them on the perimeter” Gasser said Monday. “This year, with Jared Berggren, he’s a good post scorer. And then Evan Anderson, he’s such a brute down low. Its pretty hard to stop him one-on-one.”
While UW is now more than a week into their preseason practice schedule, game action still lies nearly two weeks away with the regular season one more week down the road. In the meantime, the Badgers continue to slowly make progress, progress they hope will put them in a position to once again contend for a Big Ten title.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Boredom Misapplied
If you haven’t heard already, Butler set a new National Championship Game record by shooting just 18.8 percent from the field on Monday night. That’s right, Butler made just 12 of their 64 shots, including just 3 of 31 (9.7 percent!) from two-point range.
You would expect, after that performance, that all of those critics of Wisconsin who used a poor shooting night as proof of fluky success to come out of the woodwork and shout to the heavens that Butler simply didn’t belong, that their (2nd straight) Final Four run was the product of lucky shots and fortunate bounces rather than simply out of grit, determination, and solid basketball.
I spent all night looking for these critics and yet they were nowhere to be found.
Yes, the same writers who bashed the Badgers after a 36-33 loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament and then again after a poor shooting night in the Sweet 16 loss to Butler were not ripping on the Bulldogs for being a party crasher, destined to fall once their good fortune passed. Instead, they were crying the tears, calling out the excuses, and playing the “what if” game in order to somehow use a similar poor shooting night as evidence that Butler not only belonged, but was in fact the better team.
Seriously, why the double standard?
As soon as Wisconsin was eliminated from the tournament by this same Butler team, more than a few “national college basketball writers” used a 30.2 percent effort from the field as foolproof evidence of the Badgers’ destiny for failure.
UW was too dependent on the three-pointer, too dependent on their stars, and unable to win away from home where they tended to struggle from the field.
Never mind the fact this same Badger team squeaked out a victory against a hot Iowa team in Iowa City despite shooting 18 percent in the first half and 35 percent overall.
Never mind the fact this same Badger team beat Michigan while being out-shot by nearly 13 percent.
Never mind the fact the Badgers had shot nearly 46 percent during the first two rounds of the tournament, playing 1,663 miles away from the Kohl Center in Tucson, Arizona.
Just a bad shooting night? No, for the Badgers it had to be something that was destined to happen.
As for Butler: What a shame.
What is it about this Badger program that has media types getting on their every slip?
As much as I would like to have a better explanation, the best I can think of is that Wisconsin basketball is boring.
Not boring in the sense that these “college basketball writers” have been talking about. No, the Badgers are just fundamentally sound and their lack of mistakes gives off the impression of a boring offense. Actually watch a few games and this notion of “Wisconsin basketball” being some sort of boring, stall-oriented system will wash away.
But Wisconsin basketball is boring for these writers. It is boring because there is nothing to write about. No NCAA investigation, no players being suspended, no coaching controversy, no star taking up all the attention, nothing to give a national writer anything resembling a good story.
So in an attempt to meet their quotas, this group of media types has to reapply the word boredom, a word that certain applies to their own perceptions of the Wisconsin program as it pertains to the ease of their own jobs.
The off-the-court tranquility is translated into a “boring offense”, its existence dependent on the shaky existence of a lucky shooting run. Once the bounces stopped going UW’s way, they were destined to lose.
Now don’t get me wrong, Wisconsin and Butler both finished off their seasons with poor performances. Wisconsin’s mistakes were plentiful in New Orleans, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t belong nor does it mean they never had a shot at the Final Four. Certainly it doesn’t mean that the program should completely re-haul its offensive and defensive philosophies simply because the shots weren’t falling one night.
The same goes for Butler. They are no longer Cinderella they have proven they belong. Butler is no longer one of the best mid-major programs, they are one of the best programs, period. Just because the shots weren’t falling on Monday night doesn’t mean they didn’t earn their spot in the final.
Wisconsin’s 13 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances speak for themselves, as do Butler’s back-to-back title games.
Each had a bad night at a bad time. That’s all there is to write about.
You would expect, after that performance, that all of those critics of Wisconsin who used a poor shooting night as proof of fluky success to come out of the woodwork and shout to the heavens that Butler simply didn’t belong, that their (2nd straight) Final Four run was the product of lucky shots and fortunate bounces rather than simply out of grit, determination, and solid basketball.
I spent all night looking for these critics and yet they were nowhere to be found.
Yes, the same writers who bashed the Badgers after a 36-33 loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament and then again after a poor shooting night in the Sweet 16 loss to Butler were not ripping on the Bulldogs for being a party crasher, destined to fall once their good fortune passed. Instead, they were crying the tears, calling out the excuses, and playing the “what if” game in order to somehow use a similar poor shooting night as evidence that Butler not only belonged, but was in fact the better team.
Seriously, why the double standard?
As soon as Wisconsin was eliminated from the tournament by this same Butler team, more than a few “national college basketball writers” used a 30.2 percent effort from the field as foolproof evidence of the Badgers’ destiny for failure.
UW was too dependent on the three-pointer, too dependent on their stars, and unable to win away from home where they tended to struggle from the field.
Never mind the fact this same Badger team squeaked out a victory against a hot Iowa team in Iowa City despite shooting 18 percent in the first half and 35 percent overall.
Never mind the fact this same Badger team beat Michigan while being out-shot by nearly 13 percent.
Never mind the fact the Badgers had shot nearly 46 percent during the first two rounds of the tournament, playing 1,663 miles away from the Kohl Center in Tucson, Arizona.
Just a bad shooting night? No, for the Badgers it had to be something that was destined to happen.
As for Butler: What a shame.
What is it about this Badger program that has media types getting on their every slip?
As much as I would like to have a better explanation, the best I can think of is that Wisconsin basketball is boring.
Not boring in the sense that these “college basketball writers” have been talking about. No, the Badgers are just fundamentally sound and their lack of mistakes gives off the impression of a boring offense. Actually watch a few games and this notion of “Wisconsin basketball” being some sort of boring, stall-oriented system will wash away.
But Wisconsin basketball is boring for these writers. It is boring because there is nothing to write about. No NCAA investigation, no players being suspended, no coaching controversy, no star taking up all the attention, nothing to give a national writer anything resembling a good story.
So in an attempt to meet their quotas, this group of media types has to reapply the word boredom, a word that certain applies to their own perceptions of the Wisconsin program as it pertains to the ease of their own jobs.
The off-the-court tranquility is translated into a “boring offense”, its existence dependent on the shaky existence of a lucky shooting run. Once the bounces stopped going UW’s way, they were destined to lose.
Now don’t get me wrong, Wisconsin and Butler both finished off their seasons with poor performances. Wisconsin’s mistakes were plentiful in New Orleans, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t belong nor does it mean they never had a shot at the Final Four. Certainly it doesn’t mean that the program should completely re-haul its offensive and defensive philosophies simply because the shots weren’t falling one night.
The same goes for Butler. They are no longer Cinderella they have proven they belong. Butler is no longer one of the best mid-major programs, they are one of the best programs, period. Just because the shots weren’t falling on Monday night doesn’t mean they didn’t earn their spot in the final.
Wisconsin’s 13 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances speak for themselves, as do Butler’s back-to-back title games.
Each had a bad night at a bad time. That’s all there is to write about.
A Championship Tainted
Ok, so it is probably fitting that in a year that saw Auburn go forward from damaging allegations to win the BCS title, Connecticut manages to win the NCAA Men’s title despite facing probation and a 3-game Big East suspension for coach Jim Calhoun.
Ironic? Yes. Acceptable? Absolutely not.
Watching Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith hand over the Championship trophy to Calhoun on Monday night was one of the most disgusting images the college sports fan in me has ever seen. Sure, the presumption of innocence has to be observed and Calhoun has been handed his due punishment, but think about how much harm that scene does to the image of collegiate athletics.
That scene alone washes away any hope of saving college football and basketball from the evils of complete commercialization. The bottom line is clear: Money matters far more than integrity.
I know this is a post-game emotional outburst and perhaps some of you would even dispute my assumption that Butler is indeed squeaky clean, but I still cannot stomach the thought of a coach with a looming suspension and a team on NCAA probation taking home a title that I thought to be the last bastion of hope for the little guy.
The final four was all about contrast. It was the little guys, VCU and Butler, versus not just powerhouses, but controversial powerhouses in UCONN and Kentucky. Thankfully Kentucky’s loss in the semifinal round saved us from another surefire vacation (John Calipari has coached in 2 Final Fours, but he has never coached a Final Four team. No, I did not misspeak).
But with UCONN winning the title, we now have the potential to see a BCS and NCAA basketball title vacated from the same season.
Seriously, what kind of message does all of this controversial success send?
The BCS is obviously a whole different animal. TCU has its felons, Oregon pays recruits, and Auburn, well we know that they won the Cam Newton bidding war before the went on to take the BCS as well. And Ohio State? Well that episode just takes dishonesty to a whole new level.
But this season basketball joined the party. Tennessee was called out for illegal contact and then ex-coach Bruce Pearl committed another minor violation just days after tearfully apologizing for the major violations. And UCONN, yes that UCONN, was slapped with NCAA probation and a 3 game conference suspension for 2012 was given to coach Calhoun.
To see Connecticut’s tumultuous season come to a championship end is not inspirational, it is disgusting.
Butler needed to win this game to save collegiate athletics. Butler, much like Wisconsin, is known for doing things the right way, for recruiting the right players not necessarily the best players, for recruiting student-athletes and not just athletes who happen to show up at a few classes. They embody the true spirit of what the NCAA should be about, a far cry from the stuff going on at these powerhouse programs that are racking up titles to go along with their notices of allegations.
Butler not only gave hope to the little guy, they gave hope to the 98% of programs out there that play by the rules 100% of the time.
Ironic? Yes. Acceptable? Absolutely not.
Watching Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith hand over the Championship trophy to Calhoun on Monday night was one of the most disgusting images the college sports fan in me has ever seen. Sure, the presumption of innocence has to be observed and Calhoun has been handed his due punishment, but think about how much harm that scene does to the image of collegiate athletics.
That scene alone washes away any hope of saving college football and basketball from the evils of complete commercialization. The bottom line is clear: Money matters far more than integrity.
I know this is a post-game emotional outburst and perhaps some of you would even dispute my assumption that Butler is indeed squeaky clean, but I still cannot stomach the thought of a coach with a looming suspension and a team on NCAA probation taking home a title that I thought to be the last bastion of hope for the little guy.
The final four was all about contrast. It was the little guys, VCU and Butler, versus not just powerhouses, but controversial powerhouses in UCONN and Kentucky. Thankfully Kentucky’s loss in the semifinal round saved us from another surefire vacation (John Calipari has coached in 2 Final Fours, but he has never coached a Final Four team. No, I did not misspeak).
But with UCONN winning the title, we now have the potential to see a BCS and NCAA basketball title vacated from the same season.
Seriously, what kind of message does all of this controversial success send?
The BCS is obviously a whole different animal. TCU has its felons, Oregon pays recruits, and Auburn, well we know that they won the Cam Newton bidding war before the went on to take the BCS as well. And Ohio State? Well that episode just takes dishonesty to a whole new level.
But this season basketball joined the party. Tennessee was called out for illegal contact and then ex-coach Bruce Pearl committed another minor violation just days after tearfully apologizing for the major violations. And UCONN, yes that UCONN, was slapped with NCAA probation and a 3 game conference suspension for 2012 was given to coach Calhoun.
To see Connecticut’s tumultuous season come to a championship end is not inspirational, it is disgusting.
Butler needed to win this game to save collegiate athletics. Butler, much like Wisconsin, is known for doing things the right way, for recruiting the right players not necessarily the best players, for recruiting student-athletes and not just athletes who happen to show up at a few classes. They embody the true spirit of what the NCAA should be about, a far cry from the stuff going on at these powerhouse programs that are racking up titles to go along with their notices of allegations.
Butler not only gave hope to the little guy, they gave hope to the 98% of programs out there that play by the rules 100% of the time.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Taylor, Leuer Named to All-American Teams
While Thursday night’s loss may have ended the Badgers’ season, the accolades keep flowing in for a team that won 25 games in 2010-2011, the third-most in program history. Monday it was about the individual accomplishments as junior guard Jordan Taylor (2nd team) and senior forward Jon Leuer (honorable mention) were both named All-Americans by the Associated press.
Taylor, who becomes just the 4th UW player to earn first or second team honors, finished the season with 18.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game. Most importantly, the junior point guard led the nation with a 3.83 assist-to-turnover ratio, the best in program history and a big factor in Wisconsin being the nation’s second-most efficient offense at nearly 1.16 points per possession.
A consensus first team All-Big Ten selection and a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation’s top point guard, Taylor made his mark this year and figures to be a preseason Big Ten player of the year frontrunner come next fall.
Leuer, a member of the USA Select Team during the summer of 2010, came off of an injury-plagued junior year and more than justified his place among the Big Ten’s best. Scoring in double digits in each of UW’s first 33 games, Leuer led the Badgers with 18.3 points per game, adding in 7.2 rebounds while posting a team-high 6 double-doubles. He, along with fellow senior Keaton Nankivil, was along one of only three players in the Big Ten to knock down 20 3-pointers while putting up 20 blocks. Leuer crossed the 1,000 point mark in early in the season, finishing his career with 1,376 points, 12th in school history.
In addition, Leuer’s 621 points are the third-highest single-season total in program history.
“I’m proud of Jordan and Jon, as well as the University of Wisconsin, for this recognition,” UW head coach Bo Ryan said. “To have two guys from the same team earn this kind of honor is pretty special. Both players had tremendous seasons and were major contributors to a team that went from unranked to top 10 and won 25 games.”
Leuer was probably a preseason candidate for national acclaim, but the rise of Jordan Taylor among the nation’s elite was not in the forecast, at least outside the inner circles of Wisconsin basketball.
After spending two years in the shadow of guard Trevon Hughes, Taylor broke out of his shell in 2010-2011, emerging onto the national spotlight with 21 second-half points in a come-from-behind win over then-undefeated Ohio State. He then followed that performance up just two weeks later with a 39-point night in Bloomington, willing the Badgers to a conference road win.
“This is quite an honor to be voted as one of the top players in the country,” Taylor said. “I’m humbled by the recognition, but like all individual awards, this is a reflection of the entire team.”
With all that the Badgers were able to accomplish this season, these honors are a fitting way to cap it off. The names on the list might read Taylor and Leuer, but these honors were truly the result of a team effort.
Taylor, who becomes just the 4th UW player to earn first or second team honors, finished the season with 18.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game. Most importantly, the junior point guard led the nation with a 3.83 assist-to-turnover ratio, the best in program history and a big factor in Wisconsin being the nation’s second-most efficient offense at nearly 1.16 points per possession.
A consensus first team All-Big Ten selection and a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation’s top point guard, Taylor made his mark this year and figures to be a preseason Big Ten player of the year frontrunner come next fall.
Leuer, a member of the USA Select Team during the summer of 2010, came off of an injury-plagued junior year and more than justified his place among the Big Ten’s best. Scoring in double digits in each of UW’s first 33 games, Leuer led the Badgers with 18.3 points per game, adding in 7.2 rebounds while posting a team-high 6 double-doubles. He, along with fellow senior Keaton Nankivil, was along one of only three players in the Big Ten to knock down 20 3-pointers while putting up 20 blocks. Leuer crossed the 1,000 point mark in early in the season, finishing his career with 1,376 points, 12th in school history.
In addition, Leuer’s 621 points are the third-highest single-season total in program history.
“I’m proud of Jordan and Jon, as well as the University of Wisconsin, for this recognition,” UW head coach Bo Ryan said. “To have two guys from the same team earn this kind of honor is pretty special. Both players had tremendous seasons and were major contributors to a team that went from unranked to top 10 and won 25 games.”
Leuer was probably a preseason candidate for national acclaim, but the rise of Jordan Taylor among the nation’s elite was not in the forecast, at least outside the inner circles of Wisconsin basketball.
After spending two years in the shadow of guard Trevon Hughes, Taylor broke out of his shell in 2010-2011, emerging onto the national spotlight with 21 second-half points in a come-from-behind win over then-undefeated Ohio State. He then followed that performance up just two weeks later with a 39-point night in Bloomington, willing the Badgers to a conference road win.
“This is quite an honor to be voted as one of the top players in the country,” Taylor said. “I’m humbled by the recognition, but like all individual awards, this is a reflection of the entire team.”
With all that the Badgers were able to accomplish this season, these honors are a fitting way to cap it off. The names on the list might read Taylor and Leuer, but these honors were truly the result of a team effort.
Taylor, Leuer Earn All-American Honors
UwBadgers.com-
MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin junior guard Jordan Taylor was named a second-team All-American, while senior forward Jon Leuer earned honorable mention, the Associated Press announced Monday. Taylor is the fourth Wisconsin player to earn first or second-team All-America honors since the AP began selecting All-Americans in 1948.
“This is quite an honor to be voted as one of the top players in the country,” Taylor said. “I’m humbled by the recognition, but like all individual awards, this is a reflection of the entire team. My coaches and teammates always put me in a position to be successful and I am grateful to all of them.”
Taylor joins Alando Tucker (first-team selection in 2007), Don Rehfeldt (first-team in 1950) and Devin Harris (second-team in 2004) as the only Badgers to earn first or second-team All-America honors.
The AP first team was comprised of BYU senior Jimmer Fredette, Purdue senior JaJuan Johnson Duke senior Nolan Smith, Ohio State freshman Jared Sullinger and UConn junior Kemba Walker. Taylor was joined on the AP second team by Kansas's Marcus Morris, Arizona's Derrick Williams, Notre Dame's Ben Hansbrough and San Diego State's Kawhi Leonard.
“I’m proud of Jordan and Jon, as well as the University of Wisconsin, for this recognition,” UW head coach Bo Ryan said. “To have two guys from the same team earn this kind of honor is pretty special. Both players had tremendous seasons and were major contributors to a team that went from unranked to top 10 and won 25 games.
“Jon lived up to his preseason billing as one of the top players and Jordan Taylor played his way into that same discussion among the nation’s best.”
Taylor averaged 18.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists in leading the Badgers to 25 wins, the third-highest single-season total in school history. A consensus first-team All-Big Ten pick and Cousy Award finalist, Taylor led the nation with a 3.83 assist-to-turnover ratio.
A fellow first-team All-Big Ten selection, Leuer led the Badgers with 18.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game this season. With 1,376 career points, Leuer finished 12th in school history, while his 621 points in 2010-11 ranked as the third-highest single-season total in UW history.
Wisconsin’s AP All-Americans (since 1948)
1950 Don Rehfeldt (first team)
1984 Cory Blackwell (hon. mention)
1988 Danny Jones (hon. mention)
1989 Danny Jones (hon. mention)
1993 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1994 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1995 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1999 Sean Mason (hon. mention)
2004 Devin Harris (second team)
2007 Alando Tucker (first team)
2011 Jon Leuer (hon. mention)
2011 Jordan Taylor (second team)
MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin junior guard Jordan Taylor was named a second-team All-American, while senior forward Jon Leuer earned honorable mention, the Associated Press announced Monday. Taylor is the fourth Wisconsin player to earn first or second-team All-America honors since the AP began selecting All-Americans in 1948.
“This is quite an honor to be voted as one of the top players in the country,” Taylor said. “I’m humbled by the recognition, but like all individual awards, this is a reflection of the entire team. My coaches and teammates always put me in a position to be successful and I am grateful to all of them.”
Taylor joins Alando Tucker (first-team selection in 2007), Don Rehfeldt (first-team in 1950) and Devin Harris (second-team in 2004) as the only Badgers to earn first or second-team All-America honors.
The AP first team was comprised of BYU senior Jimmer Fredette, Purdue senior JaJuan Johnson Duke senior Nolan Smith, Ohio State freshman Jared Sullinger and UConn junior Kemba Walker. Taylor was joined on the AP second team by Kansas's Marcus Morris, Arizona's Derrick Williams, Notre Dame's Ben Hansbrough and San Diego State's Kawhi Leonard.
“I’m proud of Jordan and Jon, as well as the University of Wisconsin, for this recognition,” UW head coach Bo Ryan said. “To have two guys from the same team earn this kind of honor is pretty special. Both players had tremendous seasons and were major contributors to a team that went from unranked to top 10 and won 25 games.
“Jon lived up to his preseason billing as one of the top players and Jordan Taylor played his way into that same discussion among the nation’s best.”
Taylor averaged 18.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists in leading the Badgers to 25 wins, the third-highest single-season total in school history. A consensus first-team All-Big Ten pick and Cousy Award finalist, Taylor led the nation with a 3.83 assist-to-turnover ratio.
A fellow first-team All-Big Ten selection, Leuer led the Badgers with 18.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game this season. With 1,376 career points, Leuer finished 12th in school history, while his 621 points in 2010-11 ranked as the third-highest single-season total in UW history.
Wisconsin’s AP All-Americans (since 1948)
1950 Don Rehfeldt (first team)
1984 Cory Blackwell (hon. mention)
1988 Danny Jones (hon. mention)
1989 Danny Jones (hon. mention)
1993 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1994 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1995 Michael Finley (hon. mention)
1999 Sean Mason (hon. mention)
2004 Devin Harris (second team)
2007 Alando Tucker (first team)
2011 Jon Leuer (hon. mention)
2011 Jordan Taylor (second team)
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