SB Nation - Jon Leuer

Wisconsin maintains urgency, steamrolls over Cal Poly

Jbharris87 — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 04:49:47 -0000

5 days ago: Cal Poly's Will Donahue (44) and Wisconsin's Keaton Nankivil (52) and Trevon Hugh go after a rebound during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)

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MADISON, Wis. -- Shawn Lewis scored the first points of the game.

That was about the lone highlight for Cal Poly, as the Badgers more than doubled up on the Mustangs, 90-42, at the Kohl Center.

Cal Poly came into Madison having won its last three games, but played in South Dakota less than 24 hours before this one. Head coach Joe Callero admitted fatigue was an issue, but said even an "A effort" would have only narrowed the margin of defeat.

Trevon Hughes scored his 1,000th career point, becoming just the 34th Badger to reach that mark. Hughes had 20 points on the night. Jon Leuer, Keaton Nankivil and Jason Bohannon joined him in double figures in points.

Every Badger on the roster saw playing time, including J.D. Wise for the first time. A dunk by JP Gavinski in the waning minutes fired up the remaining fans.

Jordan Taylor played 24 minutes and had seven assists with no turnovers.

Wisconsin put up offensive numbers not seen in some time. The Badgers scored their most points since December 27, 2006, against Gardner-Webb, their most in a half since that same game, and recorded their largest margin of victory in over two years. They made 13 three-pointers.

This year's team has shown no letdown following big games, blowing out Grambling State after a monumental win over Duke and, now, crushing Cal Poly after an important victory over Marquette.

The numbers tell the story of just how dominant Wisconsin was over an undermanned Big West opponent. With two more home games left against non-BCS foes, the Badgers' odds of heading into the Big Ten season with ten wins look solid.

-Jake Harris

Badgers earn bragging rights in win over Marquette

Jbharris87 — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 03:14:01 -0000

More photos » by Andy Manis - AP

Jason Bohannon blocks a shot from behind during Wisconsin's 72-63 victory over Marquette Saturday at the Kohl Center. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)

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MADISON, Wis. -- After a stunning overtime loss to UW-Green Bay Wednesday night, the Wisconsin men's basketball team suddenly found itself in danger of dropping two straight games to in-state rivals.

The upset loss three days ago appeared to have no ill effect on the collective psyche of the Badgers, however, as they raced to a 17-point first-half lead and held on to preserve a 72-63 victory over Marquette at the Kohl Center.

Junior forward Jon Leuer said the loss to a smaller system school motivated the team as it prepared for the Golden Eagles.

"That one definitely stung a bit," Leuer said. "We wanted to get that taste out of our mouths. We were just looking forward to getting back on the court."

The Badgers got off to a hot start, shooting 58 percent from the field in the first half. They led by nine at the break and then kept pace with Marquette throughout the second period to win by the same margin.

Golden Eagles head coach Buzz Williams said he believes his team's approach during the first few minutes sealed its fate.

"We didn't handle the excitement in the right way initially," Williams said. "You can't play from behind against a great team."

Wisconsin senior point guard Trevon Hughes said his team's attitude heading into the game was not at all similar to the overconfidence with which it approached Green Bay.

"We had a lot more energy today," Hughes said. "We knew we had to win this game."

Leuer was nothing short of dominant against an undersized Marquette roster. He finished with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting, with 12 rebounds and three blocked shots. He only saw the bench for two minutes.

Leuer said using his size advantage was part of the script.

"We definitely knew that we wanted to get the ball inside," Leuer said. "The guards did a great job of getting us the ball down low."

Head coach Bo Ryan credited Leuer's improvement as a player with his increased role in point production.

"He worked hard to get open in the post, he cut hard, and he is stronger this year," Ryan said. "He's getting in position a little better and he gets rewarded because his teammates know that he can do something with [the ball] when he gets it."

As for Leuer's teammates, Wisconsin's guards were again effective, as they have been most of this season. Ryan employed a three-guard lineup at times, which has been a common occurrence this year. Jordan Taylor came off the bench and was on the floor simultaneously with Hughes and Jason Bohannon for several stretches.

The results were positive. Hughes and Taylor scored 13 points apiece and combined for five assists. Hughes continued to drive to the basket and get to the charity stripe, where he attempted 12 free throws.

Ryan was particularly impressed with Taylor, which has been demonstrated by the sophomore's significant playing time in big games this season, and the young guard never turned the ball over Saturday.

"He's as tough-minded as any player I've ever coached," Ryan said. "He doesn't waver. He knows what needs to get done. He's going to take care of the ball."

The performances of Leuer and of the three guards were all part of a solid offensive day for the Badgers, who turned the ball over just seven times. Wisconsin has now scored at least 70 points in each of its last five games. Three of those games were wins over Maryland, Duke and, now, Marquette. That is an encouraging trend, considering many wondered where the Badgers' scoring would come from this season. They have answered their critics thus far, averaging 71.7 points per game.

Forward Lazar Hayward led the scoring for Marquette, with 21 inefficient points on 8-of-21 shooting. Hayward scored 15 of those points in the second half and also led the team with 12 rebounds. He never sat and was one of only two Golden Eagles in double figures.

Wisconsin got Marquette in foul trouble early. Jimmy Butler and Darius Johnson-Odom both fouled out in the waning minutes of the game, while Maurice Acker committed four infractions and three other Golden Eagles played with three fouls each. The Badgers made more free throws (23-of-33) than Marquette attempted (21).

"You can't let a team attempt 33 free throws," Williams said. "I don't know if you can win on the road or at home, regardless of the opponent, doing that."

Hughes said the disparity in foul shooting is something Wisconsin needs to see more of as the season progresses.

"That's Wisconsin basketball, trying to make more free throws than opponents attempt," Hughes said.

The Golden Eagles shot 41 percent from the field and put up 32 points in each half. They were never able to take the lead, much less make any kind of game-changing run, despite cutting into the Badgers' edge several times. It wasn't enough to overcome the early hole they had dug for themselves. The opening minutes featured poor shot selection by Marquette, and the Badgers pulled down 20 defensive rebounds, many of them easy collections of Golden Eagle bricks.

"We got them to take some tough shots," Leuer said. "Any time you're doing that, you give yourself a good chance to be successful."

This was the first of five straight home games for Wisconsin, which hopes to head into Big Ten play on New Year's Eve with ten wins, including top-of-the-resume victories over Arizona, Maryland, Duke and Marquette.

With the way this team has played against top competition in the early going, there is every reason to believe it will dispatch Cal Poly with considerable more ease than the football team did on the gridiron last year, when the Mustangs come to the Kohl Center Wednesday night.

-Jake Harris

Yes, that is really the final score; Green Bay tops UW 88-84

Adam Hoge — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 07:48:13 -0000

More photos » by Mike Roemer - AP

12 days ago: Wisconsin-Green Bay players and fans celebrate their overtime win over Wisconsin in an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec . 9, 2009, in Green Bay, Wis. Green Bay won 88-84. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

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I just had a buddy of mine in Chicago text me, "Was that the real Wisconsin score I just saw??"

Yes. Yes it was. At least that's what they are telling us. Green Bay won its first game in 16 tries over the Badgers with an 88-84 win Wednesday night at the Resch Center.

This won't be your typical recap/reaction from us here at Bucky's 5th Quarter. Because of the snow storm and some other reasons beyond our control, we did not have anyone in Green Bay covering the game for us Wednesday and since it wasn't on TV, it would be unprofessional of me to really give an opinion on any specifics that transpired.

It's kind of like that saying about the tree falling in the forest. If we weren't there and the game wasn't on television, did it really happen? Unfortunately, I think it did, but this might be the first time in two years that I feel like I need to read a newspaper in the morning.

In a moment I'll pass along some links from other reporters who were actually at the game, because we have a better chance of solving a Rubik's Cube tonight than figuring out what the hell happened in Green Bay.

You're telling me Trevon Hughes scored 27 points, while Jon Leuer added 26 points and 12 rebounds and the Badgers lost? You're telling me a team that hasn't allowed 70 or more points in any game this season despite playing Arizona, Gonzaga, Maryland and Duke allowed 88 to Green Bay? I know it went to overtime -- I'm sorry, I heard it went to overtime -- but still, 88 points?

My only guess is that the real Badgers got lost in the snow storm somewhere. Folks in Waupun, Wis., if you see any tall people wearing full red jumpsuits who look lost, please return them to the Kohl Center, 601 W. Dayton St., Madison, WI 53715. Thank you.

OK, let's see if we can make some sense of all this:

My guy Rob Schultz from Madison.com has his recap here and includes some key numbers I was very curious about after the game. He mentions that Green Bay's 88 points are the most UW has given up since Arizona scored 94 in that ugly NCAA first round game in 2006. Green Bay is also only the second team to score more than 80 points against Wisconsin since the 2006-07 season.

Now you know why random people from Chicago were texting me to see if that was really the final score.

Schultz also reminds us that Green Bay improved to 1-15 all-time against Wisconsin and mentions that the Phoenix's leading scorer, Rahmon Fletcher (17.2 ppg) did not play in overtime "after banging knees with UW senior point guard Trevon Hughes on a drive." He says player of the game honors go to Bryquis Perine who scored a career-high 22 points for the Phoenix.

Meanwhile, Jeff Potrykus from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says UW got what it deserved. He also says Green Bay deserves kudos for winning the game.

If you are wondering what Bo Ryan has to say then you can check out some of his post-game quotes here.

Finally, the Green Bay coverage reminds us that this was the game of the season for the Phoenix. Much like the Badgers had been looking forward to Duke all summer long, this was Green Bay's biggest home game in years and they were ready. Give them credit.

For Badger fans, this is nothing new. Bo Ryan's teams typically lose one baffling game each season. The last two seasons have lacked a bad non-conference loss, but most fans remember tough losses to Pepperdine, North Dakota State and Missouri State in a recent three year stretch. The good news? All three of those teams reached the NCAA Tournament, one of them made the Elite Eight and another went on a 17-game winning streak after the "bad loss" and ended up being ranked the AP's No. 1 team at one point in the season.

I've already had people ask me if this "negates" the Duke win. No it doesn't. This team is much better off having beat Duke and lost to Green Bay than the other way around.

But I'm still not convinced this game really happened.

Heck, the beat writers aren't even sure where the game was played! Rob Schultz says the game was played in Ashwaubenon, while Potrykus claims it was really in Green Bay.

And what is more frustrating than trying to figure out this game? How I always want to put the "e" before the "o" in the word "Phoenix."

Maybe that should be the players punishment for allowing 88 points Wednesday night. They should each have to write the word "Phoenix" on the chalkboard 100 times.

Nah. They should probably just worry about Marquette. A good win against the Eagles Saturday and most people will probably forget this loss ever happened. Did it?

It's Not Plagiarism If You Link To It Will Totally Shoot Its Way To Glendale If It Has To

RossWB — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:00:36 -0000

INPIYL2I is the BHGP daily roundup of news, gossip, and good stuff from Blogfrica. Send your tips to hawkeyestatebhgp@gmail.com.

"Just give us the Fiesta Bowl and no one has to get hurt."

We Didn't Eat All That Ro-Tel For Nothing, Dammit.
Kirk Ferentz and Gary Barta held a press conference yesterday to kill a few birds with one stone: recap the season, update injuries, address those persistent Notre Dame rumors, and do a little politicking for the BCS. The good captain will never be mistaken for Mack Brown on the handshakes-and-baby-kissing circuit, but he laid out a case for Iowa anyway.

As far as our football team, I'm not here to pit us against anyone else, but I think a couple things really stand out. If you look at our team, the way they've competed on the field, the head to head results that we've had, we did beat six Bowl eligible teams. Two of them were non conference games. So we're proud of that certainly. And I thought our guys did a great job taking a very challenging road schedule, and they embraced that with four victories and an overtime defeat at a very, very tough opponent's home field.

And if JoePa decides to play the "living legend" trump card, well, Ferentz has a plan for that too:

The best way we can counter that, maybe we can coax Coach Gable into coming with us if we play in a Bowl. He is a living legend, too. Put his record up against anybody in any sport, I can't imagine anybody is better. Maybe we can convince him to go with us, and we'll throw in Coach Fry, too, maybe he'll jump in there and try to balance it out a little bit, because we've got a lot to overcome in that regard.

WOO! SUCK ON THAT, PATERNO! GABLE WILL TIE YOU INTO A PRETZEL, OLD MAN! Ahem.

And as far as those ND rumors...

I'll give you the same answer I've been giving people and we give recruits all the time. I've been sitting here for 11 years now, and the people that throw it out in recruiting, my typical response would be to just ask our prospects or any prospects, to ask that question right back to the team that's throwing it out there. ... I can just tell you what I've been telling people for a long time; I like it at Iowa. I've had paychecks from three different places now since 1981. My first full time job was here. I'm not a vagabond coach, and I like it where I'm at. I've enjoyed every day not every day, but most days, and you know, I don't see things changing here.

That's about as definitive as you're going to get out of Ferentz, frankly. For the expanded version, check out Morehouse's piece on the matter.

Other notes:

As far as injuries go, it sounds like everyone who got dinged up during the season should be fine for the bowl game, wherever it is. Stanzi and A-Rob are expected to be back to full practice by this weekend and Hunter and Tarpinian should be ready to go as well. Dace might be out a little bit longer, but they're still optimistic that he'll be able to go for the bowl game.
He hasn't discussed NFL options with any of the much-rumored juniors (Spievey, Clayborn, Bulaga), but will this week. Likewise, he hasn't discussed the possibility of returning for a sixth year with Dace yet, but that's also on the books for this month.
KF is also partial to Clayborn's beastly blocked punt and touchdown return against Penn State as the top play of the year. Us too, coach.

He still can't believe Duke lost to a >shudder< Big Ten team. The horror... the horror...

For One Night At Least, We Are All Badger Fans.
Two pieces of history were made last night: the Big Ten actually won (by a score of 6-5) the accursed Big Ten-ACC Challenge in basketball, and mighty DOOK actually lost a game to a Big Ten team in said Challenge. Prior to last night's tussle in Madtown, the Dookies were 10-0 in Challenge games with an 11.7ppg margin of victory in those ten contests. The Badgers leapt out to a lead and held on behind a solid effort from behind the arc (40.0%), an absurdly low number of turnovers (4!), and strong efforts from Trvon Hughes (26 pts) and Jon Leuer (17 pts, 7 reb).

In addition to Wisco's upset win over the Blue Devils, Ohio State chipped in a blowout victory over Florida State (77-64, paced by Evan Turner's 25-13-6; if he isn't B10 POY, it'll be a farce) and Illinois proved that Clemson's EPIC CHOKEJOB prowesss is not limited to just football -- the Tigers blew a 23-point lead, got outscored 49-27 in the second half, and wound up losing, 76-74. The stench of failure is strong at that school; good luck in that ACC Championship Game on Saturday, gents. Meanwhile, Minnesota proved why you should never rely on them to win anything, ever, and Michigan lost to Boston College in the other Challenge action last night.

But if there's no curtain, where will Jamie Pollard go to cry his inconsolable tears?
Two years ago, when Iowa traveled to Ames to take on Iowa State in their annual hotly anticipated dual meet, former Iowa State head coach Cael Sanderson and Athletic Director par excellence Jamie Pollard devised the ingenious plan of lowering a bright red curtain in Hilton Coliseum and limiting attendance to 9,000 (over 5,000 below capacity without the curtain), ostensibly "for the atmosphere" and to preserve some sort of "home ~~court~~ mat" advantage... and of course to limit those heathen Iowa fans from attending. The decision was widely ridiculed for being both cowardly and fiscally stupid, considering the rabid turnouts the Iowa-Iowa State duals tend to engender (21 of the 25 largest dual meet crowds in NCAA history) and the fact that a sport like wrestling and an athletic department like Iowa State's can hardly afford to turn away money. Good news, then: current head coach Kevin Jackson thinks the curtain was stupid, too.

"We're trying to fill our arena, we're trying to put 15,000 in Hilton Coliseum," first-year Iowa State coach Kevin Jackson said. "I personally don't like the curtain being up and don't want to ever see it come back. ... I want to create the atmosphere we created when I was competing," he said. "We never thought about putting a curtain up."

You mean, the atmosphere of competing in front of a legitimately sold-out crowd is better than competing in front of a curtain-enforced sellout? Color us shocked. Don't forget: Florida versus Alabama isn't the only 1 versus 2 match-up in college sports this weekend -- the #1-ranked Iowa wrestling team heads to Ames to take on the #2-ranked Iowa State team on Sunday evening.

Various and sundry:

Morehouse looks at the likelihood of Iowa's various bowl destinations.
KF has been in a chatty mode since Thanksgiving ended; in addition to yesterday's presser, he also conducted a relatively insightful Q&A with Rivals' Tom Dienhart.
Isn't his mantle full by now? Ferentz picked up yet another Coach of the Year award yesterday.

Zags too much to handle for cold Badgers

Adam Hoge — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:47:40 -0000

More photos » by Eugene Tanner - AP

It was a long night for Trevon Hughes and the Badgers.(AP Photo/Eugene Tanner)

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Anu. That's "cold" in Hawaiian. And that's excactly what the Badgers were down the stretch in their 74-61 loss to Gonzaga Tuesday night in the semifinals of the EA Sports Maui Invitational.

Unfortunately for Wisconsin, the Bulldogs' starters were hot for most of the night and scored 67 of the team's 74 points, including a team-high 18 points from Matt Bouldin. Gonzaga consistently pushed UW out of their game and got easy fast break baskets -- a big reason why the Zags made 48 percent of its field goals.

But despite Gonzaga controlling the tempo for most of the night, the Badgers creeped back into the game late before falling into a late drought that proved to be the dagger.

After a Jon Leuer putback cut the Gonzaga lead to 60-54 with 7:54 left in the game, UW did not hit a field goal until they were down 17 with 1:34 left in the game. It was a stretch that featured poor shot selection and a 14-4 run by the Zags. UW missed seven shots in that time period -- including five threes.

Of course that wasn't the only stretch in which the Badgers went cold. That was just stretch that cost them a chance at a comeback. UW was playing from behind because of a six minute period in the first half in which it didn't hit a field goal and gave up a 13-5 run. A one-point deficit became a 32-23 Gonzaga lead in a hurry and left Wisconsin in catch-up mode the rest of the night.

There were a lot of things one could pick on Tuesday night but two common themes were poor shot selection and the failure to hit wide open shots.

Down seven with 1:45 left in the first half, UW had the ball but freshman Ryan Evans took a bad shot from the baseline and airballed it. Bouldin then hit a three just seconds later and UW trailed by 10 at the half. Evans didn't play much after that and failed to score a point.

Then to open the second half, Keaton Nankivil missed a wide open dunk that would have cut the lead to eight and sent an emphatic message to Gonzaga that UW wasn't going anywhere. Instead, Elias Harris threw down a dunk on the other end of the court and put the Zags up 12.

Over the next two minutes, Nankivil missed a wide open 15-footer and a wide open three. That's seven points left off the scoreboard.

Eventually Wisconsin worked itself back into the game by feeding the ball to Leuer in the point. The junior forward was hot, hitting 8-of-17 shots to finish with 18 points.

That's why it's hard to fathom why five of the seven shots UW missed in its crucial six minute second half drought were three point attempts. Instead of continuing to feed Leuer, the Badgers started shooting lower percentage shots and eventually Leuer moved out of the post.

Considering UW only hit 5-of-24 three-point attempts, it was a recipe for disaster. Jason Bohannon ended up hitting only 1-of-7 threes, while Tim Jarmusz went 0-for-2 from the behind the arc and Nankivil and Leuer each missed three 3-point attempts as well. UW is now shooting only 24 percent from behind the arc this season.

One bright spot was the play of sophomore guard Jordan Taylor who scored a career high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting.

Wisconsin will now face Maryland at 3:30 p.m. CT Wednesday in the third place game. The game can be seen on ESPN2.

Gonzaga dominates Wisconsin, advances to Maui finals

Zach B — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:43:16 -0000

More photos » by Eugene Tanner - AP

27 days ago: Gonzaga forward Elias Harris (20) attempts to drive past Wisconsin forward Jon Leuer (30) in the second half of a NCAA college basketball game Tuesday Nov. 24, 2009 at the Maui Invitational in Lahaina, Hawaii. Gonzaga defeats Wisconsin 74-61 and will play Cincinnati in the finals. (AP Photo/Eugene Tanner)

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We mentioned in our game preview that Gonzaga might really benefit from their tight contest with Colorado yesterday. After sleepwalking through the first twenty minutes of play a day ago, the Zags played a great second half to squash the Buffaloes upset bid. Tonight, the Zags were able to carry that momentum over and delivered a rousing performance in Maui against the Badgers of Wisconsin. The final tally had Gonzaga with a 13 point victory and it was one of those games where Wisconsin hung around for a while but there was never any doubt who the better team was. Four of the Bulldogs' five starters scored in double figures tonight and Demetri Goodson was just on the outside with nine points.

The first ten minutes of tonight's game gave off the impression that this game was going to be a back and forth battle as Wisconsin did a nice job dictating the tempo of the game and matching whatever Gonzaga threw at them. It was a remarkably crisp start to the game. Both teams were shooting the ball nicely and the Zags were doing everything right. They pounded the ball into the paint early and established Rob and Elias all night long. At the eleven minute mark, the "old guys" showed up for Gonzaga and delivered the first knockout punch of the night. From 11:07 to 6:20, the Zags went on a 13-1 run and expanded the lead from one point to 13 points. Eleven of those points were converted by the veteran back court as Matt Bouldin and Steven Gray each had excellent games. From that point on, you could really argue that the game was over. Against Big Ten teams, a double digit first half lead is basically a rout. Wisconsin was able to bring the deficit down to single digits at a few times but it never felt like the Bulldogs were in danger.

Wisconsin's best effort to close the gap came in the middle of the second half as they brought the lead down to six. The Badgers took advantage of Robert Sacre's foul issues and Kelly Olynyk's rough defensive night and gave Gonzaga a taste of their own medicine. Big man Jon Leuer, who I completely underestimated coming into this game, was outstanding and showed great touch around the basket. He scored six points during this particular Wisconsin run and also was great on the boards. Rob re-entered the game when the lead was down to six and proceeded to convert a fantastic post move and draw the foul. He hit the free throw and the lead was back up to nine and the game was, for all intents and purposes, was over.

There were a number of outstanding individual efforts in tonight's Gonzaga win over Wisconsin. Continue reading after the jump to see what jumped out to us...

Here are a few random observations regarding individual performances:

-- Steven Gray has become a complete player. When he commits to the drive, there are few defenders that can stop him. He was 0-3 from behind the arc but was 7-8 when driving. His composure on the court is night and day from last year in that he doesn't let negative moments affect his game. He might not ever be a double double machine but he fills up a stat sheet like none other. Tonight he was great on the boards, pulling down five and also had three assists. He's not forcing up shots on offense and seems to have come to the realization that his three-point shot, while an asset, is not the best facet of his game.

-- I still have to pinch myself a bit when I think about what Elias Harris brings to this team. I know there are a ton of great freshman out there when you think about John Wall, Lance Stephenson, Tiny Gallon etc etc but, to be honest, I'm at the point where I'd take Elias over all of them. I really underestimated Harris and his contributions. I have as much confidence in Elias with the ball as I do when Matt or Steven has it. His versatility continues to show as he hit a three-pointer tonight after thinking about it for a while. He finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds and only had one foul. His defense was stellar all evening and he definitely does not show any signs of having "freshman feet". It appears that Rob Sacre is going to battle foul issues all year so Elias is going to really have to commit himself to playing as smart as possible and not taking too many risks.

-- Speaking of Rob Sacre, I guess I'll forgive his foul trouble because he was amazingly efficient when he was in the game. On four shot attempts, Rob finished with 13 points. This is great news for a couple of reasons. First off, it means that he is hitting his shots, and secondly, it means he is getting to the charity stripe. Rob was 7-7 from the line this evening and also had six boards. When you consider that he only played half the game (literally), that's a pretty damn good stat line. With that being said, I'm sure Mark Few is telling him that he can't put his team at risk by getting in foul trouble. He means way too much to this team to be saddled with foul issues.

-- Great to see Bol Kong get into the game during some meaningful minutes. The Sudan native checked in about mid-way through the first half and played a nice game. He only totaled 10 minutes but was 2-3 from the floor and had a rebound. His defensive abilities are still lacking but I expect him to be heavily involved in the rotation by the start of WCC play.

-- Much like Steven Gray, Matt Bouldin just continues to plug away and put together another solid performance. Bouldin finished with 18 points of 5-13 shooting but contributed in a number of other ways. He grabbed five rebounds and passed out six assists this evening and was a constant force all night. It was great to see the designed half court plays to get Matt posted up. He truly shines when he can exploit smaller guards in the paint.

-- I rarely like to toot my own horn but I feel like I must point out the fact that EDZ and I are on fire with these game predictions. Against IPFW, EDZ missed his pregame prediction by one point and I followed him up with a similar effort. In the game preview, I said that the Zags would be tested early and pull away late for a 74-62 win. One damn point!!!

That's all for tonight! Next up is the Maui title game against the Bearcats of Cincinnati who have breezed through to the finals and have been just as impressive as the Bulldogs. They will present a whole different spread of issues for Mark Few's Zags as they are based around athletic play and an up tempo brand of basketball. It should be a terrific match up as Gonzaga looks to win their first ever Maui title.

The TDG Big Ten Basketball Preview

GopherNation — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:45:15 -0000

I have intentionally held off with a Big Ten basketball preview, waiting until we could see a few games and get a feeling for how teams are adjusting to the key gains and losses from a year ago. Gopher Nation has plenty to look forward to this season. As we all know everything is returning with some key additions added. An NCAA tournament bid and likely a win or two is expected. But what about the road before the NCAA Tournament. The long and difficult Big Ten season comes first and this team has a chance to really be a factor in the B10 title race. Let's take a brief look at each team in my expected order of finish.

1 - Purdue (NCAA) - Were it not for Purdue having injury issues a year ago they could very likely be defending a Big Ten title this year. Robbie Hummel was last year's preseason B10 POY and he should not be fully healthy to lead the rest of a very talented roster. The bulk of the talent lies in the junior class for the Boilermakers and this team is athletic and deep. Injuries and other uncontrollables aside, what may be the difference between a Big Ten title and a top 2 finish could come down to coaching. Matt Painter is an excellent coach but who knows if he'll be capable of steering his team accurately to win a Big Ten regular season title. Guys like Tom Izzo, Bo Ryan, Bruce Weber and Tubby Smith have the resume of winning multiple titles. I think after this year Matt Painter adds a Big Ten regular season title to his resume.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - E'Twaun Moore
SG - Chris Kramer
SF - Keaton Grant
PF - Robbie Hummel
C - JJ Dawson

2 - Michigan State (NCAA) - I know that Michigan State is the consensus title team and for very good reason. Tom Izzo is a great coach, his team is coming off a national runner-up season and he returns the vast majority of his roster. But my gut tells me they have a great season but one that ends the regular season looking up one spot in the B10 standings. It is really hard not to like Michigan State. They too are deep, very athletic, play great defense and as I mentioned they are very well coached. But I think the one key loss will be the loss that makes the difference. Goran Suton meant a lot to the Spartans a year ago and while this team still has very talented players like Kalin Lucas, Chris Allen and Durrell Summers (with guys like Raymar Morgan and Delvin Roe off the bench); Suton will be missed. Freshman Garrick Sherman may be very good but he's not the same thing. From year to year team's take on different personalities and even the loss of just one player can change the dynamic of a team. Michigan State will be great, they'll be extremely dangerous in the NCAA Tournament but I think they fall a game or two short of Purdue this year.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Kalin Lucas
G - Chris Allen
G - Durrel Summers
PF - Draymond Green
C - Garrick Sherman

3 - Ohio State (NCAA) - In this early season the Buckeyes have looked fairly strong. And leading their early season charge is the outstanding play of Evan Turner, who looks like the early favorite for Big Ten POY (very early, I know). Turner has notched a double-double in all four games averaging 21.7 ppg and 14.7 rpg. OSU has a lot of very nice pieces outside of Turner, which isn't surprising considering the recent string of very highly ranked recruiting classes in the Thad Matta era. OSU has some offensive weapons but they are lacking in a couple key areas. First of all they are not an overly deep team. Jon Diebler is a lights out shooter and Turner might be the best player in the conference but they can only carry them so far. Matta has been going with an eight man rotation so far this year with heavy minutes for the starting five. Secondly this team is not overly strong in the paint. Their perimeter is as good as anybody's in the conference but Kyle Madsen and Dallas Lauderdale will not strike fear into the hearts of the conference's coaches.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - William Buford
SG - Jon Diebler
SF - Evan Turner
PF - David Lighty
C - Kyle Madsen

4 - Minnesota (NCAA) - There was a time when my maroon goggles would have had me rank the Gophers one spot higher. The potential (probable?) losses of Royce White and Trevor Mbakwe greatly lessened my optimism. But then the impressive play of Rodney Williams to start the year has me thinking big things again, just not as grand as before. As we all know the Gophers are deep and defend very well. I think the improvement of the sophomores and the athleticism that Williams brings to the table makes this team dangerous. Over the course of a long season I don't think we have what it takes to finish in the top 2 but this team is good enough to beat anybody on their schedule.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Al Nolen
SG - Lawrence Westbrook
SF - Rodney Williams
PF - Damian Johnson
C - Ralph Sampson III

5 - Illinois (NCAA) - this might be the team I know the least about but I do know enough to know that this team is well balanced and has the roster make-up that is well suited for Bruce Weber. Demitri McCarney, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale are known quantities around the Big Ten. These guys averaged a combined 33 points, 14.7 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game last year. They compliment each other well and this year they add a couple dynamic freshmen to the backcourt in DJ Richardson and Brandon Paul. In the early goings these kids have 11.3 and 16.7 respectively, although they have yet to play any team of substance. Overall this will be a very good team that will only get better as the season goes along.

Likely Starting lineup
G - Brandon Paul
G - DJ Richardson
G - Demitri McCamey
PF - Mike Davis
C - Mike Tisdale

6 - Michigan (NCAA) - Manny Harris is such a great player who can win a game on his own and probably has the best pro potential in the conference. A lot of people would put the Wolverines as high as third on their prediction list based mostly on the talent of Harris and DeShawn Sims. But I'm not 100% sold on the rest of the team. John Beilein is a great coach and in year three he should really have his guys and his system working well. But once again I'm not sold on the rest of the roster and in this year's Big Ten a guy like Manny Harris will win you a few but on the nights when teams slow him down Michigan will be rather vulnerable. Decent depth, great scoring and not great interior size. A sixth place finish may seem very low but the difference between the 4th through 7th place teams could really only be a couple games.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Darius Morris
G - Manny Harris
G - Laval Lucas-Perry
F - Zack Novak
F - DeShawn Sims

7 - Wisconsin (NCAA) - Rule #1 in Big Ten basketball, never underestimate Bo Ryan and the Badgers. This isn't a great Badger team but there is some talent here with Trevon Hughes, Jason Bohannon and even Jon Leuer is having a pretty good season thus far. It may be easy for Gopher fans to overlook Wisconsin since we did sweep them last year (that was fun to write), but this team is capable of not only beating the Gophers but finishing at least a few spots higher than this. Maybe this is wishful thinking or maybe I'm not sold that the talent is there, not even for Bo Ryan.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Trevon Hughes
SG - Jason Bohannon
SF - Tim Jarmusz
PF - Jon Leuer
C - Keaton Nankivil

8 - Penn State (NIT) - The Talor Battle show will be a lot of fun to watch in Happy Valley. Penn State is perfectly demonstrates why I wanted to wait a couple weeks before I started my B10 preview. I once would have put PSU a spot or two higher, but after losses to UNC-Wilmington, Tulane and a 2-pnt win over Davidson (Steph Curry is no longer there folks) I am thinking that 7th might be too high. This team will go as far as Taylor Battle will lead them but the development of freshman Tim Frazier at PG and how well their interior rebounds is what could be the difference between another NIT run and the NCAA Tournament. Their Big Dance resume is already in bad shape, they'll will have to finish a lot higher in the conference standings to avoid the NIT again.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Tim Frazier
SG - Talor Battle
SF - David Jackson
PF - Jeff Brooks
C - Andrew Jones

9 - Indiana (NIT) - Great recruiting class and I am a huge Tom Crean fan, but this year will be tough for a young Hoosier squad to make much noise in the Big Ten. The conference is the deepest and most talented that it has been in a very long time. Other years a hot, young team like Indiana could make a run into the top 5, but not this year. This will be the sheik team next year and this year you'll likely seen them stun a few top 4 teams along the way. But learning to play at the Big Ten level is not an easy adjustment no matter how talented you are. I wouldn't be completely shocked to see them finish higher, but not likely this year.

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Verdell Jones III
G - Jeremiah Rivers
G - Maurice Creek
PF - Tom Pritchard
C - Christian Watford

10 - Northwestern - This may have been the year for the Wildcats to make the tournament, but the loss of Kevin Coble effectively ended that dream. This is a surprisingly talented NU roster and with the way they defend and execute their precision offense they should never be taken lightly. But with Coble out for the season they'll rely on Michael Thompson and John Shurna. There are a couple intriguing freshmen to go along with Thompson and Shurna

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Michael Thompson
SG - Jeremy Nash
SF - Drew Crawford
PF - John Shurna
C - Luka Mirkovic

11 - Iowa - The outlook for the Hawkeye season is so bleak that they cannot help but surpass expectations this year. Scoring has been the problem this year for Iowa. There will be games when they are hot from behind the arc and maybe they'll get a few conference wins. But for the most part you can expect a lot of losses for Iowa (that too was fun to type).

Likely Starting lineup
PG - Cully Payne
SG - Anthony Tucker
SF - Matt Gatens
PF - Jarryd Cole
C - Brennan Cougill

I know that people hate preseason polls and predictions but at the conference level this is a lot of fun. Everyone has much hope and optimism for the season, except Iowa fans. There are eight teams capable of making a run to the NCAA Tournament (although Penn State is already on life support). The Big Ten should be a blast to watch this year.

Since I'm taking a wild stab at the standings here is my best guess at some post season individual awards.

All Big Ten First Team

PG - Kalin Lucas
SG - Manny Harris
SF - Evan Turner
PF - Robbie Hummel
F - DeShawn Sims

All Big Ten Second Team

G - Taylor Battle
G - Demetri McCamey
F - Jon Diebler
F - Damian johnson
C - JJ Dawson

Big Ten All Freshman Team

G - Brandon Paul - Ill
G - D.J. Richardson - Ill
F - Rodney Williams - Minn
F - Christian Watford - Ind
F - Garrick Sherman - MSU

While you were sleeping... the Badgers gutted out the win

Adam Hoge — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 08:20:18 -0000

More photos » by Eugene Tanner - AP

Fouls were a common theme Monday night in Maui.(AP Photo/Eugene Tanner)

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Well, the good news is that Wisconsin's front court should be well rested for Gonzaga's big men. Heck, Keaton Nankivil and Jon Leuer will basically enter tomorrow's game on five days rest.

The UW men's basketball team battled through foul trouble Monday evening at Lahaina Civic Center and somehow pulled out a 65-61 win over Arizona behind a team-high 24 points from Trevon Hughes.

A ridiculous 55 combined fouls were called in the game, leaving Leuer and Nankivil in foul trouble for most of the night. Leuer ended up fouling out with over 10 minutes remaining in the game and the two combined for only 27 minutes.

Monday's game was certainly not normal for a Bo Ryan coached team. UW led by eight at the half despite shooting only five free throws -- and making two of them -- in the first half compared to Arizona's 19 free throw attempts. Then in the second half, as the fouls evened out -- the Wildcats ended up with 30 fouls in the game -- Wisconsin actually lost the lead.

The Badgers ended up shooting only 17-of-29 from the free throw line, but they made six of their last eight attempts to help seal the win. Ironically, it was a play off a missed free throw that was arguably the biggest play of the game.

With UW leading 63-61 with five seconds remaining, Nankivil made his first free throw before missing the second. Arizona grabbed the rebound but Hughes knocked the ball loose and dove on the ground, creating a jump ball that gave possession back to the Badgers. He was then fouled and made 1-of-2 at the line to seal the 65-61 win.

Hughes, who has already been challenged by coaches and fans to play more consistent this season, came up big on both ends of the floor Monday night to make up for an small, low-scoring lineup that Ryan was forced to put on the floor.

On top of scoring 24 points and coming up with the big steal at the end of the game, he also blocked a Derrick Williams shot with 2:30 left in the game and the score tied at 55. Williams led all scorers with 25 points and appeared to have an easy short jumper in the lane before Hughes came from behind and swatted the ball loose. The UW point guard ended up making two free throws on the ensuing possession, which began the final 10-6 run for the Badgers that included two emphatic dunks by Nankivil.

Hughes finished with seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks to go along with four turnovers.

The Badgers will now have to regroup for a tough game tomorrow night against an underrated Gonzaga team that struggled against Colorado Monday. The game tips off at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN. Maryland will face Cincinnati in the first semifinal game at 7 p.m., also on ESPN.

Full Maui Invitational Field Overview

Ben Broman — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:28:06 -0000

We're just hours (okay, days) away from tipoff in Hawaii, and Maryland actually have a legitimate shot at winning the entire thing. Here's a quick overview of their competition; we'll go more in-depth as each game goes along (minus Chaminade). The bottom half of the bracket seems unusually loaded this year - it'll be a tough championship for whoever escapes the upper half.

First Round

Chaminade Silverswords

Maryland's first round game as the de facto #1 seed in the tourney pits them against hosts and traditional upsetters, Chaminade. Everyone remembers that one time they faced a team from the ACC in this tourney, but they shouldn't prevent much of a problem. They might be the worst team Maryland plays this year.

So Far: No games played

Watch Out For: Joel Smith, last year's leading scorer and disco extraordinaire. His straight-outta-the-70s fro may distract Eric Hayes.

Second Round

Vanderbilt Commodores

The favorite to play Maryland, Vandy could present a big-time problem for the Terps with their established size (skilled big man A.J. Ogilvy) and sweet-shooting freshman guard John Jenkins. This one will be tight, and would give Maryland a chance to test their young bigs against an established center.

So Far: An easy win over Libscomb and a 2-point nailbiter over St. Mary's to get to 2-0

Watch Out For: Jeffery Taylor, an athletic Swede with a penchant for big dunks and grabbing rebounds. Ogilvy and Jenkins have been disappointing in the first two games, and the onus has fallen on Taylor to get the points, which he's done - he leads the Commies (that's what I'm going to call them) with 19.5 points a game.

Cincinnati Bearcats

Two words: Lance. Stephenson. That's what this matchup will be about, even though Cincy has enough surrounding players to cause Maryland some trouble. Hopefully, Stephenson will be so concerned with beating Maryland that he takes the Bearcats out of the game with forced shots. Otherwise, they have the talent to make this interesting.

So Far: A close win over Prairie View A&M and a blowout of Toledo; they're 2-0

Watch Out For: Deonta Vaughn and Yancy Gates. Stephenson will get the talk, but senior PG Vaughn is the team leader, and super-talented Gates, a face-up four, can hurt opponents when he's focused in.

Third Round

Colorado Buffaloes

Well, Colorado did return four starters from last year, including stud SG Cory Higgins. Unfortunately for them, they're four starters from a team that had 9 wins. Still, more experienced usually means better, though probably not good enough to get all the way to the championship game. The lack of a dominating rebounding presence may hurt them, as it takes away from their ability to exploit Maryland's young bigs.

So Far: Three wins on the year, all showcasing an ability to score a lot of points against lesser opponents

Watch Out For: Dwight Thorne. Higgins is the star of the team and will score the points, but Thorne is the lone senior and a steady presence. He's very good from outside; whoever's manning him up will need to extend their defense.

Gonzaga Bulldogs

If you didn't notice, Gonzaga took Michigan State to the wire a few days ago. These guys are plenty talented, and will probably be Maryland's opponent in the final. That's not a great sign, if you look at recent history: Maryland's played Gonzaga three times since 2000 and lost all three, including two blowouts - one of which came last year. The Zags lose star PG Jeremy Pargo, but return SG Matt Bouldin and consistent inside presence Robert Sacre. Without a doubt, this will be Maryland's toughest matchup.

So Far: Two blowout wins a close loss to the #2 team in the country; 2-1

Watch Out For: Steven Gray and Demetri Goodson. Gray is the #2 man for Gonzaga and another solid outside shooter. Goodson is replacing Pargo, and has been a little turnover prone so far this year. Vasquez should be able to outclass him at point.

Arizona Wildcats

Ah, a game against Sean Miller. Personally, I'd love to lay down the law on Miller for messing with our recruit (Terrell Stoglin), and I'm sure it'll be an interesting game for Stoglin, too. Senior PG Nic Wise is the leader of this team, and one of the few holdovers after the ugly Sean Miller transition. Big man Jamelle Horne is also back, and he's capable of putting up numbers close to double-doubles. Arizona has talent, but I wouldn't bet against Maryland if this is the championship game.

So Far: Two easy wins that might not've been as easy as they should've been

Watch Out For: Solomon Hill. The freshman SF moved over to a area of relative stability (no, really) from his originaly USC commitment late last year. A cerebral wing with everything but a jumper, he's second for the Wildcats in scoring.

Wisconsin Badgers

It's supposed to be a building year for Wisconsin, but they aren't buying it. And really, there's no reason they should: these guys are the BC of college basketball. They simply find ways to always have a solid year and get an NCAA berth, no matter how bad they may seem. This year they have to deal with their star forward and a major starter leaving. They still have two guards back, Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon, who will be expected to shoulder a lot of the load. They're a big question mark right now, so I don't feel too comfortable taking a big stance on them one way or the other at the moment.

So Far: Two easy wins - though neither over 20 points - over bad but not terrible opponents.

Watch Out For: Jon Leuer. Bohannon and Hughes are the ones I mentioned, but it's Leuer - a long, lanky PF who would draw Maryland's big men out with his shooting ability - who's led the Baders in scoring and surprised everyone with his development.

Badgers win second straight, head to Hawaii with momentum

Jbharris87 — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:55:23 -0000

More photos » by Andy Manis - AP

about 1 month ago: Oakland, Mich.'s Travis Bader, left, looks to pass the ball against Wisconsin's Jon Leuer (30), Ryan Evans, top right, and Jordan Taylor during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)

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Buoyed by a strong defensive effort, the Wisconsin men's basketball team dispatched Oakland, 58-42, Wednesday night at the Kohl Center. The Badgers built a 24-point second-half lead over their Summit League opponent, en route to their second victory in as many games this season.

In addition to holding Oakland to just 42 points, the Badgers frustrated the Golden Grizzlies by allowing them to convert just 3-of-19 three-point attempts. The Grizzlies' propensity to take ill-advised shots from beyond the arc led to 26 defensive rebounds for Wisconsin. Oakland head coach Greg Kampe had no answer for his team's woes from three-point land.

"It's perplexing," Kampe said. "We did not shoot the ball well. We're a team that has a history of having really good three-point shooting teams."

Wisconsin forward Jon Leuer said the Badgers' success on defense is by design.

"[Defense] is what our whole system is predicated off of - getting stops defensively, forcing teams to take tough shots," Leuer said.

Johnathon Jones and Keith Benson combined for 27 points for the Grizzlies, while their teammates could only account for 15 among themselves. Overall, Oakland shot just 27.3 percent from the field.

Wisconsin's big men again took advantage of their size, as Keaton Nankivil and Jon Leuer combined to go 10-of-19 from the floor, scoring 21 of their points after halftime. The two also recorded six of the Badgers' eight blocks on the night. After blocking 11 shots as a team against IPFW in the season opener, Wisconsin has now rejected 19 shots in its first two games.

Trevon Hughes produced another solid performance, leading the team with 15 points, while dishing out four assists. He gave head coach Bo Ryan "a headache" because of his four turnovers, but the coach on the other bench was impressed.

"I thought Trevon Hughes, late in the first half, really dictated the game," Kampe said. "He had some great plays and was able to open the score up so we really didn't have a chance."

Hughes especially found success by penetrating the defense, driving by defenders and getting the Grizzlies' big men in foul trouble. Oakland held an early 8-4 lead before Kampe put Keith Benson and Will Hudson on the bench with two fouls apiece.

"That changed the whole game," Kampe said. "We had to go with smalls and we couldn't guard them."

Redshirt freshman Ryan Evans continues to see the most time off the bench for Wisconsin, logging 22 minutes. Evans again impressed with his energy, snagging seven rebounds and chipping in four points as well.

Poor shooting remains a concern for the Badgers, who went just 3-of-14 from three-point range. Tim Jarmusz and Jason Bohannon, who figure to be the team's biggest contributors in that area this season, struggled again, combining to hit just 1-of-5 shots from beyond the arc. Still, Ryan doesn't seem too concerned, because the team is creating opportunities.

"People are trying to find their rhythm right now," Ryan said. "We really had some great open looks tonight. Hopefully, we'll have some nights when somebody's going to have to pay for the open looks we get. I think we can knock those down in the future."

The Badgers will not play another game in Madison for two weeks, as they travel to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational. Wisconsin's first game is Monday against Arizona. Ryan said he believes the experience will prove to be a barometer of how competitive his team is.

"[Maui] is where a lot of things are found," Ryan said. "What we're looking for is to try and take care of Arizona. Then we'll take care of the next opponent. We won't get our normal preparation, and neither will the other team."

The competition generally figures to get much tougher for Wisconsin. After two relatively easy wins, the Badgers enter a tournament featuring teams from several major conferences. They then return home, only to face Duke in the most highly-anticipated game on their regular season schedule.

The Badgers have shown their followers a lot against weaker opponents, but the conclusions will certainly be clearer in 14 days.

-Jake Harris