The Badger men’s basketball team may have received the much needed momentum Wednesday night to help keep them in the top half of the conference as the regular season begins to wind down. With only five conference games remaining on the schedule, the upset over Ohio State at the Kohl Center snapped a two-game Big Ten losing streak.
The victory helped move Wisconsin (13-11, 6-5 Big Ten) closer to third place behind Minnesota. The Buckeyes remained in first place but now share that position with Indiana; both teams are at 8-2 in conference action.
UW senior forward Charlie Wills knew after the Ohio State game that the victory was more than an upset; it was just what the team needed to turn things around.
“It was a crucial win, and we needed a win,” said Wills. “We needed to get ourselves back on the upswing, and hopefully [that] game gets us on that path.”
Wisconsin will find out exactly how much the victory helped the Badgers’ cause when the team faces off Saturday with Northwestern at the Kohl Center for the second time this season. The Wildcats (13-8, 4-5 Big Ten) defeated UW two weeks ago in Evanston 69-60.
While Wisconsin held the lead in that game for much of the first half, Northwestern finally found its shot, took a three-point advantage at halftime and never looked back.
Despite UW sophomore Freddie Owens’ 20-points, including 16 straight points that pulled the Badgers within two, the Badgers were unable to find their shots in the final five minutes and all but lost it at the line. The Badgers went 5-10 from the line in the second half and only 1-4 in the first.
The workhorse for the Wildcats is junior Winston Blake. The 6-5 forward scorched Wisconsin the last time around with a career-high 23 points in his 39 minutes played. On the season, Blake is leading the team with 14.2 ppg in 36.6 minutes.
While Blake has made a name for himself on the court, the one player that has defined Northwestern basketball over the past couple of seasons is senior forward Tavaras Hardy. At 6-foot-8, Hardy averages 12.6 points per game and leads the team with 6.6 rebounds per game. Hardy was the only other Wildcat player in double-digits against UW a couple weeks ago, he scored 15 points and brought down four rebounds.
While Owens paced Wisconsin at Evanston, lately Wills has been taking control for the Badgers. Against Northwestern, Wills only managed seven points, but since then he has averaged 18.5 points, including a 21-point effort against Ohio State.
While Wills has increased his productivity, freshman Devin Harris seems to have fallen through the trenches. While the 6-foot-3 guard clinched the victory over OSU with his clutch free-throw shooting in overtime, he has been getting into early foul trouble that has limited his scoring opportunities and chances. Despite the drop-off in the past couple of games, Harris is still second on the team with 11.7 ppg and leads the team with 30 steals on the season.
Another freshman making waves is forward Mike Wilkinson. He is right behind Harris with 9.9 ppg and leads the team with 6.1 boards per contest.
After Harris’ key free-throw shooting and with Wilkinson’s 19 points, including 13 from the line, against Ohio State, co-captain Wills noted that the Badgers’ play has increased the confidence level of the team.
“It’s very big when you are going to [Harris and Wilkinson] in the game and they are making those kinds of plays,” said Wills. “It can only make confidence for them and the team, knowing that we can rely on them when it comes crunch time.”
While the topic has not been discussed much yet, with five games left in the regular season, the Big Ten and ultimately the NCAA tournament are just around the corner. The Badgers barely-even record has them resting on the bubble for the Big Dance.
However, the standing in the conference leaves them with a good chance of a first-round bye in the conference tourney. The top five seeds receive an automatic bid to the quarterfinals, while the other six teams have to play-in.
The Badgers know this is crunch time and hope Northwestern is just another stepping stone in the path they have chosen to take.
