Here we are, in the second week of May. School is wrapping up, the NBA playoffs are in full swing, there was a hugely publicized title fight and a Triple Crown horse race this past weekend, my own Milwaukee Brewers currently sport the best record in baseball, and as I sit here typing, it is approximately 438 degrees in the Badger Herald office. So the only logical thing to write about is … college basketball?
Yup, although we may still be a full five months from the kicking off of the first Midnight Madness festivities, college basketball is still a hot topic, so to speak. Call it May Madness maybe.
Bo Ryan may not be holding practice in the Nicholas Johnson Pavilion, but the Wisconsin basketball program has been active nonetheless.
The recent announcement by Ohio prep star Charles Wilson that he intends to commit to Wisconsin during this fall's early signing period was a huge win for the Badger program.
Wilson may not have been a huge name in the national recruiting scene — yet — but the athletic swingman was quickly emerging as a big time prospect after a great showing at the King James Shooting Star Classic AAU tournament. Following the tournament, college basketball's elite were lined up to give Wilson their sales pitches, assuring his arrival on the national stage.
Despite the likes of Iowa, Virginia Tech, Xavier and two-time national champion Florida all reportedly offering him scholarships, after his showing, Wilson chose Wisconsin.
In one respect, Wilson's commitment is nothing more than a rising recruit committing to the class of 2008 — a testament to Wisconsin assistant coach Greg Gard's ability to find talent before it blooms.
In another way, however, Wilson's commitment is much more meaningful. It shows that even in the face of a scholarship offer from one of the nation's pre-eminent programs, the UW program and its coaches held up.
Also, and in my opinion most importantly, Wisconsin went into a fellow Big Ten power's backyard and stole a rising talent out from under the noses of Thad Matta and Ohio State — a recruiting blow in a league where protecting one's own turf is essential.
With Tubby Smith taking over at Minnesota, recruiting in that state — a recent hotbed for UW recruiting — will likely become much more difficult, so it is essential for Ryan's staff to diversify its recruiting area. If UW is able to establish a road into Ohio talent, it could be a big blow in what could end up being a major rivalry in the Big Ten for the coming years.
Coming off a season in which the UW and OSU played two absolutely classic games, one of which was a historic one-on-one matchup, and were among the nation's elite all season, the two teams are in position to establish a long-term rivalry.
Between Matta's ability to lure top high school talent to Columbus and Ryan's proven system of churning out 20-win basketball teams, both squads will be at the top of the Big Ten for the foreseeable future.
Aside from both being power programs, the two teams are different in enough significant ways to make it a bona fide rivalry.
While Ryan and Matta are similar in their tenacious drive for victory, they are completely different in other respects. Matta is everything Ryan never was: a wildly popular young coach who got a chance at a major Division I program.
Besides his inability to keep his gum in his mouth and off of the floor (You think Bo would ever let his Quench gum hit the hardwood?), Matta also likes to play a more fast-paced game, while Bo likes to run his swing offense and patiently work for the best shot possible.
With the new NBA draft eligibility rules, Matta appears ready to implement a strategy of targeting high school All-Americans likely to stay only one productive year before bolting to the NBA, where Ryan goes after players who will grow and mature over three or four years in his system.
The first chapter in this diametric relationship was written last year, as their two matchups were painted as youthful talent versus experience. While both sides lost key players from last season — Greg Oden and Mike Conley Jr. for OSU, Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor for UW — Wisconsin and Ohio State, Ryan and Matta, should be a marquee matchup for years to come.
Ben is a sophomore majoring in political science. Even though it's summer, he's still thinking hoops. Talk sports or send him good YouTube clips this summer at [email protected]
