Tag: 2015 final four

Former Badger big man ties the knot

After a legendary career at Wisconsin, current NBA player Frank Kaminsky and his bride Ashley Brewer tied the knot this week.

After a legendary career at Wisconsin, current NBA player Frank Kaminsky and his bride Ashley Brewer tied the knot this week. Kaminsky was a member of the Badgers from 2011-2015, leading Wisconsin men’s basketball to heights they had never reached.

Kaminsky really stepped into his own in his junior season in 2014 averaging 13.9 points per game and 6.3 rebounds, helping lead the Badgers to a Final Four birth, losing to Kentucky. Additionally, in November of that 2013-2014 campaign, he set the program record with 43 points against North Dakota.

The next season he went on to win Big Ten Player of the Year as well as the Naismith Award, averaging 18.8 points and 8.2 rebounds. The Badgers went on to defeat the unbeaten Kentucky Wildcats in the Final Four and ultimately lose to Duke 68-63 in the 2015 National Championship.

Kaminsky was selected ninth overall in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets and he currently plays for the Houston Rockets.

Congratulations Frank the Tank!

Former Wisconsin MBB coach honored Wednesday

After what felt like far too long, former Badgers men’s basketball coach Bo Ryan is set to be honored Wednesday in Madison.

After what felt like far too long, former Badgers men’s basketball coach Bo Ryan is set to be honored Wednesday in Madison. Ryan along with multi-sport athlete Gary Buss will be inducted into the Madison Sports Hall of Fame Club.

Ryan was the head coach at Wisconsin for 14 full seasons (12 games in 2015) and produced 364-130 overall record, which is good for an all-time program best 73.7 percent win percentage. Additionally, Wisconsin made the NCAA Tournament in all 14 of the campaigns he was the head coach.

Most notably, the Badgers made two consecutive trips to the Final Four in 2014 and 2015, losing in the National Championship to Duke 68-63 in the latter run.

Ryan helped coach some of the best players in program history, namely Alando Tucker, Devin Harris, Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker amongst others. There’s no denying that he left a substantial impact on the program, the university, the city of Madison and the state of Wisconsin as a whole.

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Two former Badger centers ranked in top 25 since 2000 by ChatGPT

College Basketball Report asked AI software ChatGPT who the best centers have been since 2000, which listed two Badgers in the top 25.

It’s wild the world has come to this point, but College Basketball Report asked AI software ChatGPT who the best centers have been since 2000, and it listed two Badgers in the top 25.

According to the software, two big men from the 2010’s made a big enough impact for Wisconsin. Frank Kaminsky came in at No. 9 while Ethan Happ sneaked in at 21.

Starting with Kaminsky, this ranking comes as no surprise. The seven-footer led the Badger to back-to-back Final Four appearances in 2014 and 2015, including a trip to the championship in 2015.

Kaminsky holds the Wisconsin record for the most points in a single season, producing 732 points in 2014-2015. His 43 points against North Dakota on Nov. 19, 2013 is a school record. He also finished with 153 career blocks, which was the program record until Happ passed him in 2019.

The 2014-2015 campaign earned him National College Player of the Year and Big Ten Player of the Year. After four seasons with Wisconsin, Kaminsky capitalized on his great senior, being selected ninth overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2015 NBA draft.

Happ’s career didn’t include as many legendary moments as Kaminsky’s did, but the 6-foot-10 center from Milan, Illinois, left his mark in Madison.

Starting all 139 games over his four-year career with the Badgers, Happ finished with 2,130 points (third all-time), 1,217 rebounds (program record), 154 blocks (second all-time) and 217 steals (second all-time).

Happ’s highest scoring campaign came in 2017-2018, when he compiled 590 points, which is the 10th highest scoring season in Badger history. The following season, he snatched 10.1 rebounds per game, coming down with 342 boards (second most in program history).

His 52 double-doubles and two triple-doubles are the most in Badger men’s basketball history.

Happ did not get selected in the 2019 NBA draft and now plays overseas for Rio Breogán of the Spanish Liga ACB.

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Locked On Spartans Podcast: Travis Trice on Michigan State’s 2015 Final Four run, Elite Eight win over Louisville

The former Spartan point guard joins the show to talk about MSU’s win over Louisville in the Elite Eight.

Wil and Matt are joined by Travis Trice to discuss MSU’s run to the 2015 Final Four and win over Louisville in the Elite Eight.

You can find the episode on iTunes, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.

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