David Stluka / UW Athletics
David Stluka / UW Athletics On a mission: Freshman Badger standout Ethan Happ (shown in 77-76 win over Michigan State) has helped the team make it to the NCAA tournament.
The Wisconsin Badgers are a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, which begins this week. At 20-12, UW faces No. 10 Pittsburgh (21-11) in the first round of the East Regional on Friday at Scottrade Center in St. Louis.
Nobody expected the Badgers to enter the Big Dance as a No. 1 or No. 2 seed, as they did the past two seasons, reaching the Final Four both times. But back in January, I didn’t even think they would make the tournament at all.
Wisconsin, a team in disarray two months ago, has been on a mission to prove it can overcome significant off-court distractions, many caused by former (and formerly revered) head coach Bo Ryan and his extramarital conduct.
Ryan retired abruptly on Dec. 15, and longtime assistant Greg Gard was named his interim replacement under awkward circumstances. With a record of 7-5 at the time, Wisconsin easily could have been 10-2 but lost three early-season games by one or two points.
Under Gard, UW began the Big Ten season 1-4. Then the Badgers went on a tear, winning 11 of their final 13 regular-season games — including benchmark wins over four ranked conference teams (Iowa, Maryland, Indiana and Michigan State) — and positioning themselves for a national tournament run after all.
In last week’s Big Ten Tournament, the Badgers lacked the characteristic tenacity they showed most of this season’s second half, exiting in the second round after falling to Nebraska, 70-58, while shooting only 30% from the field.
The Pitt game will mark UW’s 18th straight NCAA tournament appearance. Last week, athletic director Barry Alvarez officially named Gard head coach of the Badgers, and Gard now marches into St. Louis with a stable of starters (Nigel Hayes, Bronson Koenig and Zak Showalter) with invaluable NCAA tournament experience complemented by a hungry group of freshmen and sophomores — led by 6-foot-9 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Ethan Happ — who have shown steady improvement all season long.
While I think Wisconsin will beat Pitt, a second-round matchup — most likely against No. 2 seed Xavier (27-5) — could prove considerably more challenging.
Although the likelihood of 14th-seeded UW-Green Bay (the only other state team in the tournament) ousting No. 3 Texas A&M in the West Regional on Friday in Oklahoma City is about the same as the Badgers making a third straight Final Four appearance, the Phoenix deserve applause for making the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1996.
