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After a red hot start to the season, sophomore guard Johnny Davis has finally come back to earth and shown that he might just in fact be human.
More than that, Wisconsin’s collective warts are more palpable when he’s not playing like a National Player of the Year front runner.
Over his last eight games, Davis is shooting just 46-for-130 (35%) from the field, including 9-for-30 (30%) from beyond the arc.
So what’s the problem?
I think the reasoning for his recent struggles is a culmination of things for the fast rising sophomore.
First of all, he’s playing nearly 35 minutes a game. The additional tread on Davis’ tires are almost assuredly beginning to catch up with him. Tired legs might be preventing him from getting his usual lift on his jump shot, causing his jumper to fall flat.
Additionally, the former La Crosse Central standout was arguably the biggest surprise in that country at the beginning of the season.
He’s now facing somewhat of an adjustment period due to the added attention he’s getting on the defensive end. It’s becoming tougher and tougher for him to get the ball in his spots and get off clean looks.
What comes next for Davis?
He’ll surely work through his shooting woes because head coach Greg Gard will work tirelessly to put him in positions to succeed, and further accentuate his strengths.
In the meantime it’s going to be more important that Davis not force things when they aren’t there, and instead focus on creating for his teammates when teams throw additional attention his way.
It’s tough to continue playing confidently when the shots you’ve been hitting all season simply aren’t falling.
Thankfully Davis has found myriad ways to impact the game despite his recent shooting struggles, specifically on the glass.
Over his last eight games, he’s averaging 9.6 rebounds per game. I don’t think Davis gets talked about enough as potentially the best rebounding guard this program has ever seen.
The La Crosse (Wisc.) native is going to need to continue growing and adjusting as the season progresses. At this point it’s more of a mental game than anything else, but that’s arguably the toughest adjustment to make of all.
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