Although the NCAA Tournament doesn’t start for another week, the real March Madness begins this weekend as the Badgers take on the Ohio State Buckeyes Friday in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.
The Badgers enter the tournament as the defending champions. Last year, they were able to defeat Michigan, Michigan State and Illinois en route to the 2008 title. This year, however, their success seems to have been forgotten due to their 19-11 record, which includes a six-game losing streak.
“It seems to me like everybody forgot about that,” Wisconsin forward Marcus Landry said. “The way we have been playing, I truly believe a lot people forgot about that, that Wisconsin won the Big Ten championship. But, we have to go in there with that mentality and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got it done before, we are going to get it done again.’ And even though we didn’t win the conference this year, there is still a chance to win the [tournament] championship.”
This year, Wisconsin enters the tournament as the fourth seed and received a first-round bye. Their first game against the Buckeyes in the tournament’s second round will be just the second game the Badgers play against Ohio State this year.
In the teams’ first meeting, the Badgers were able to defeat the Buckeyes 55-50 at the Kohl Center. It ended up being a physical match between Landry and the Ohio State’s big men Dallas Lauderdale and B.J. Mullens.
“They always have a guy in the middle and they have a tough team,” Landry said. “So, no blood, no foul.”
Also against the Buckeyes, despite giving up 23 points to Evan Turner, the Badgers were able to keep Jon Diebler, who is third in the conference in three-point field goal percentage and second in three-point baskets made, to just two points thanks to UW guard Jason Bohannon.
“I was just trying to get in his face and not let him get a clean shot off,” Bohannon said. “You know, he got a couple shots, but I’m just trying to make him not feel comfortable out there. You know, that’s the big thing. Anytime they are a shooter and you can make them uncomfortable, it’s going to be a tough night for them.”
For both the Badgers and the Buckeyes, their play in their opening-round game and in the tournament could be a deciding factor not only in their seeding for the NCAA tournament but also if they make the Big Dance at all. But, Wisconsin assistant coach Gary Close said this is the time of year all the teams want to be making a push to make the tournament.
“I thought they played well when they played here and I would expect the exact same thing,” Close said of the Buckeyes. “They’re playing very good basketball right now and they are talented. I think every team wants to be playing well. This is the time of year you want to be playing well so you can go as far as you can go.”
With both the Badgers and the Buckeyes making the push to make the tournament, so are at least six other teams in the conference. While teams like No.1 seed Michigan State and No. 2 seed Illinois may have a lock on spots once the tournament starts in two weeks, teams like Michigan, Penn State and even Northwestern are going to try to make their case to the selection committee to be in the field of 65 come next weekend.
“Obviously, the tournament is wide open,” Close said. “The depth of the league has been talked about. Since I’ve been here, there are more teams that are capable of winning this tournament then there have ever been. It should make for a heck of a weekend.”
Even though there is the temptation to look to the national tournament, or even the next round of the Big Ten tournament, where Wisconsin may have the chance to redeem itself against Michigan State, the coaching staff and upperclassmen realize how important it is to remain focused on the first game.
“The only 40 minutes we have guaranteed are these 40,” Close said. “If we lose, we are done. Then, that tournament is done, so we have to wait around to see who we play next. So, let’s just focus on Ohio State and try to play the best game we have all year, then try to advance.”
