It’s hard to believe, but the UW Badgers only have four regular season games remaining. In three weeks, the Big Ten Tournament will tip off in Chicago. For the first time in five years, the Badgers must perform well in Chicago to get in the NCAA Tournament and/or improve their tournament seeding. After a 58-57 home loss to Rutgers Saturday, Wisconsin continues to be haunted by poor shooting and a lack of late-game execution. Without reigning Big Ten defensive player of the year Caleb McConnell, there was no reason the Badgers couldn’t pull out that win. The shooting and execution are becoming a problem and a trend.
UW Badgers Shooting Continues To Be Horrible
Wisconsin shot 21% from the field in the second half on Saturday. This was also a home game. I understand Rutgers is one of the best defensive teams in the conference and probably the country, but there’s no reason and no excuse to shoot that poorly on your home court.
The poor shooting has been a trend all season too. Too often, especially in the second half, we have seen this team go ice-cold from the field. Jan. 23 at Northwestern, the UW Badgers missed nine of their final 10 shots from the field and lost by three. Then Tuesday against Michigan, they did not make a shot in the final 10:45 of the game. What was once a trend is now, unfortunately, a major problem.
Late Game Execution Is Not Any Better
For the most part, it’s been a season to forget for Chucky Hepburn and Tyler Wahl. Wahl is a completely different player and appears to be struggling with confidence shooting the ball. For a pre-season all-conference player, there are times during the game he isn’t looking to shoot the ball. When he does, it’s too late, and he’s under the basket.
We also know about Hepburn’s struggles late in games. I realize Greg Gard gave the keys to him at the beginning of last season, but if this continues, Gard needs to take the keys away at the end of games. I mentioned in a previous piece that I’d like to see what Max Klesmit can do. You can keep Chucky on the court too. It might even help him if the doesn’t have the pressure on him. He’s a good shooter and has proven to hit big shots. He’s just in a slump right now. I don’t think the idea of continuing to give him the ball to shoot out of it is the answer.
Greg Gard Knows He Needs To Hit The Transfer Portal
In Greg Gard’s weekly press conference last week, he acknowledged he has to get players in the transfer portal next season. The UW Badgers had many players to replace, such as Johnny Davis, Brad Davison, Matthew Mors, Loren Bowman, and Ben Carlson. Mors, Bowman, and Carlson would have played a lot of minutes this season. Wisconsin did get Kamari McGee and Max Klesmsit from the portal. Both have shown to be good additions.
So what does Wisconsin need in the portal? They need a backup center, and they need multiple shooters. Steven Crowl has had a nice year, but he could use some help, especially with the talent of Big Ten centers. The Badgers don’t have enough shooters on their roster. If this team can address those, this team can contend in the Big Ten in next season.
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