Wisconsin coach Greg Gard addressed the media following the Badgers’ narrow 3-point loss to Michigan on Tuesday.
Michigan big men Vladislav Goldin and Danny Wolf mostly dominated Wisconsin centers Steven Crowl and Nolan Winter throughout the contest. The two Wolverines combined for 44 of Michigan’s 67 points, corralled 12 total rebounds and blocked eight shot attempts.
Crowl and Winter, meanwhile, scored just 10 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked one shot attempt.
Gard addressed Michigan’s paint dominance with the media following the loss.
“It was Goldin and Wolf at the rim,” Gard said. “Goldin went seven for nine, and Wolf goes four for six, so it’s at the rim. We didn’t do a good job of handling that. We still ended up with them under a point per possession. They had 67 points on 70 possessions, so even with that, we were able to negate most of their three’s and make them have to go for two’s. They did a good job of taking advantage of that. Goldin’s a load, and they did a good job of putting those two guys in the middle of the floor and playing off it.”
A bulk of the damage arrived when both Goldin and Wolf switched on to Wisconsin’s smaller guards. That created an offensive advantage, specifically in the game’s waning minutes.
“When they did the big-big pick and roll, we didn’t get under and jam the roller well enough,” Gard said. “When you’ve got a 7-footer who can handle the ball and throw it up top, you have to prevent the roll coming down hill.”
UW’s 22.2% clip from deep didn’t help either. Wisconsin made just three of 16 three-point attempts in the second half which ultimately limited the variety of offensive looks the Badgers received in the closing frame.
“We need to knock down some threes so we can spread the ball a bit more,” Gard said. “When we can spread the floor a bit more, we can attack gaps and that allows us to get to the free throw line more. I thought we had good looks. I didn’t think they were all great, but typically we’re going to shoot 25 to 30 a game. You’ve got to hit at a clip that’s better than six for 27.”
Veteran guard Max Klesmit struggled mightily from that range. He ended with eight points off 3-of-14 from the field and 1-of-9 from long range. He missed multiple looks down the stretch and is now shooting 25.4% from deep this season.
“Max has made those shots before,” Gard said. “He’s in a slump right now, and we’ve got to help him get out of it. The one before that, the one of the backboard, it’s not what we wanted at that point… But the 22-second one, we ran that and got as good a look as you’re going to get.”
Next, Wisconsin will travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin for an in-state showdown against No. 5 Marquette on Dec. 7.