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D’Mitrik Trice, the Badgers’ second-leading scorer, will need to continue to produce, as will teammate Ethan Happ.
Just as the Wisconsin Badgers were heading into the core of their Big Ten schedule — before a turnover-plagued 84-80 overtime loss to Purdue on Jan. 11 and a 64-60 defeat at No. 19 Maryland on Jan. 14 — the team went ahead and announced a home-and-home series with Tennessee for the next two seasons. That means the UW will travel to Knoxville late this year (but early next season) for a Dec. 28 game, and the Volunteers will play at the Kohl Center in 2020. Tennessee was ranked No. 3 in the country at the time of the announcement, with a 13-1 record and a well-rounded roster.
While it’s admirable that Badgers head coach Greg Gard wants to continue boosting the team’s already strong non-conference schedule in the future, he also has a pretty full plate in front of him right now.
The Badgers blazed to a 9-1 start, with the only loss coming to No. 4 Virginia (coached by Tony Bennett, son of former UW head coach Dick Bennett). They defeated two early-season Big Ten opponents and pushed their way into the bottom reaches of the Top 25. Then came tough single-digit losses to Marquette, Western Kentucky (!) and Minnesota. Heading into a nationally televised matchup with No. 2 Michigan on Jan. 19 at the Kohl Center, the Badgers are 11-6 and a mediocre 3-3 in conference play.
The road to the NCAA Tournament won’t get easier from here on out. You may recall Wisconsin missed the Big Dance in 2018 for the first time since 1998. This season’s team — anchored by redshirt senior Ethan Happ, who leads the team in practically all offensive categories, and second-leading scorer, redshirt sophomore D’Mitrik Trice — certainly has a shot at redemption, but these Badgers need to find ways to stop beating themselves. In the Purdue game, Wisconsin committed 17 turnovers, including two crucial ones in overtime; at Maryland, UW scored only 15 points in the first half and needed to score 45 in the second half to lose respectably.
“That’s another loss on our record that we definitely beat ourselves,” sophomore guard Brad Davison told the Wisconsin State Journal after the Purdue game. “[We] need to come out and find a sense of urgency and be our own energy from the start. … With conference play started, we’ve got to figure it out and get better from it.”
The next month includes games with Nebraska and No. 6 Michigan State, plus rematches with Maryland, Minnesota and Michigan. So they better figure it out fast.
