As the Wisconsin men’s basketball team prepares to face off with St. John’s this Friday in the first round of the NCAA tournament, one thing is understood: You play until you lose — one loss and you can pack your bags. That mentality alone has sparked teams of all levels to suddenly come together and play nothing like their regular season performances.
If the Badgers would like to stay out of Madison for as long as possible and experience as much of the East Coast as it can, it will have a tough road ahead of it. For the second time in three years, the Badgers will enter the tournament with a No. 8 seed. The last time was two years ago when they went to the Final Four.
If UW is looking to make a storied run like the 2000 squad, the path will be much harder. First is the opening-round game against No. 9 St. John’s. The Red Storm has been inconsistent throughout the season. Whether it is beating Notre Dame and then losing by 20 points a week later or falling at the hands of Duke by 42 points near the end of the season, SJU streaked to 20 wins this season.
Even with the inconsistency, Wisconsin and SJU took similar routes in receiving bids to the Big Dance. The Badgers needed six consecutive conference victories to claim a share of the Big Ten title while St. John’s pulled off six victories in its final nine games to finish the regular season 9-7 in Big East play.
That is where the similarities end.
Wisconsin’s swing offense has created a balanced scoring attack, while SJU’s has been one-dimensional. Its game plan has centered around guard Marcus Hatten, who has led St. John’s in scoring 23 of its 31 games.
If the Badgers get by St. John’s in what could be a close, low-scoring game, they would more than likely face off against top-seeded Maryland. The Terps, No. 4 in the country, will be playing extremely close to their home of College Park, MD. The short trip to DC will see them facing off against Siena in the first round, a team that needed to play-in to the field of 64.
Maryland’s depth, speed, strength of schedule and proximity to home will make it the clear-cut favorite. Whether it is ACC player of the year Juan Dixon’s shooting, guard Steve Blake’s ball control and decision making or the four major front-court players of Lonny Baxter, Tahj Holden, Chris Wilcox and Ryan Randle, the Terps are the team to beat in the East.
If the Badgers manage to beat St. John’s and Maryland, who they will face in Sweet 16 is up in the air. While most of the attention has been focused on the toughness of the West Region, the East has a number of teams that are viable for making a late-tourney run. The third round could feature the likes of No. 5 Marquette, whom Wisconsin beat once this year, or No. 4 Kentucky, coached by Tubby Smith, a coach who knows the workings of postseason play inside out.
The other side of the bracket is where it gets even more interesting. First is No. 6 Texas Tech, coached by the infamous Bob Knight. The Red Raiders begin action, though, against No. 11 Southern Illinois, a team that has “sleeper” written all over it.
Probably the best first-round matchup is between No. 7 NC State and No. 10 Michigan State. The Wolfpack is coming off an ACC tourney win over Maryland followed by a 30-point loss to Duke. The Spartans have made it to three consecutive Final Fours, and although it is not the same team as in years past, if Marcus Taylor and Adam Ballinger are playing to their full capabilities, the Spartans could very well pull off a few upsets.
The NCS/MSU winner will face off against either No. 2 U-Conn or No. 15 Hampton. Hampton is best remembered for its first-round upset over Iowa State last year. While that victory still rings joyously in the ears of the Pirates and their faithful, it brings nothing but fear to U-Conn. However, the Huskies are the Big East champs and should send Hampton’s enthusiastic cheerleaders and entertaining mascot home packing.
Looking too far ahead for Wisconsin is hard, especially with an even first-round matchup and ultimately, Maryland. The Terps have the weapons and last year’s Final Four appearance to push them a step further this year.
Maybe, the number 8 will once again work in Wisconsin’s favor.
“We made a pretty good run when we were 8 seeds before,” UW assistant coach Tony Bennett said. “Maybe it’s our lucky number.”
