After a low-scoring win over Marquette in Milwaukee last Saturday, the No. 5 Wisconsin basketball team will travel back to Milwaukee to take on another in-state rival, UW-Milwaukee, on Wednesday night.
The Badgers (8-1) struggled offensively in their 49-38 win over the Golden Eagles, shooting only 32.7 percent for the game and 26.7 percent from three-point range. However, UW held Marquette to just 28.9 percent shooting over the course of the game while turning the Golden Eagles’ 10 turnovers into 16 points.
But despite the grind-it-out win over an in-state rival, UW head coach Bo Ryan wasn’t pleased with the Badgers’ 11 turnovers Saturday.
“Even though 10 or 11 turnovers, people would kill to have that number, but to me, I don’t like it,” Ryan said. “I like five, six, seven [turnovers]. Those are opportunities where we don’t get a shot at the basket. It was self-inflicted.”
Senior forward Frank Kaminsky led the Badgers with 15 points while senior guard chipped Josh Gasser in 12 points on four three-pointers. Saturday’s game was the second straight game where UW failed to have more than two players score in double figures.
Preseason all-Big Ten selection Sam Dekker, who is dealing with a lingering ankle injury that he suffered before the team’s first exhibition game, played just 22 minutes and went 1-for-5 from the field and scored only two points. Prior to the Marquette game, Dekker was bothered again by the ankle injury and went just 2-for-5 against Duke last Wednesday while scoring five points.
However, it appears Dekker is getting back to full strength as he did not miss either Monday’s or Tuesday’s practice. He is expected to play Wednesday against Milwaukee.
UW-Milwaukee (4-5) has already lost three games to power conference opponents Auburn, Oklahoma State and DePaul. Their most recent game came Monday against DePaul when they lost 61-83.
The Panthers are led by senior guard Steve McWhorter who leads the team in points per game (16.2), assists per game (3.4) and is second on the team in rebounds, hauling in 5.8 per game. No other player for Milwaukee averages double figure points.
Milwaukee is not only a familiar foe for the Badgers — the two teams will meet for the 32nd time Wednesday with UW winning the last 21 meetings — but one that advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season after winning the Horizon League Tournament as a five seed. The Panthers are coached by Rob Jeter, who has a long history with Ryan.
Jeter played under Ryan — who also was a head coach at UW-Milwaukee — at UW-Platteville from 1987-1991, winning a national championship in 1991. Jeter was then an assistant coach with Ryan at Platteville, UW-Milwaukee and Wisconsin from 1994-2005.
Ryan said he was impressed by the Panther’s unlikely run to the NCAA Tournament last season. He considered it one of the best coaching jobs Jeter has ever done.
“The way [Milwaukee] pulled off and came around last year and won that conference tournament and got into the NCAA Tournament showed me a lot,” Ryan said. “I knew [Jeter] had some things in him. But last year’s run was probably his best ever, considering what he was working with.”
Wisconsin and Milwaukee will tip-off at 8 p.m. Wednesday night. The game will be televised on ESPN2.
