Tag: Ben Carlson

Tracking where Wisconsin basketball transfers will call home in 2022-23

See where Wisconsin basketball transfers will call home in 2022-23:

The transfer portal has become part of a growing trend throughout the college basketball landscape, and, like it or not, it’s here to stay.

More than 1,200 players have entered the transfer portal in each of the last two offseasons, which averages out to roughly three players per Division one team transferring each year.

Players both incoming and outgoing can quickly alter the trajectory of a program due to the unpredictable nature each offseason can bring.

Unexpected transfers or early departures can often be mitigated by landing an experienced impact transfer at a position of need, or leave your roster with a glaring weakness just the same.

This offseason, Wisconsin has seen in-house transfers from Lorne Bowman, Ben Carlson, and Matthew Mors – all of whom entered the portal in search of a better long-term fit.

With all three transfers having found new homes, now seems like the perfect time to see where Wisconsin basketball transfers will call home this upcoming season:

Wisconsin basketball transfer Ben Carlson is headed to the Pac-12

The Badger forward is headed to the Pac-12

On Saturday afternoon, Wisconsin basketball transfer forward Ben Carlson announced his decision.

The Minnesota native is headed to Utah, according to his Instagram. Carlson is a former four-star recruit in the class of 2020, and spent the past two seasons at Wisconsin. He was a top-five player in the state of Minnesota’s 2020 class, and a top-20 power forward nationally according to 247Sports.

After playing sparingly due to injury issues as a freshman, Carlson appeared in 32 games as a sophomore while averaging 9.2 minutes per contest. He shot 33% from the field and averaged 1.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Here is a look at Carlson’s Instagram post that confirmed the news:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cc_WMSVOLTo/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

 

Ben Carlson working through early season struggles

Sophomore forward Ben Carlson is working through early some season struggles

Sophomore forward Ben Carlson has severely underperformed pre-season expectations thus far. The former top 100 recruit is in the midst of an offensive rut, shooting (.324 FG%) and 0 of 11 from three. Few players need to see the ball go through the hoop more than Carlson at this point.

Ben Carlson has appeared in all 11 games (starting 1), and averaging 2.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

Nov 9, 2021; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Ben Carlson (20) dunks the ball as St. Francis Terriers guard Bahaide Haidara (24) looks on at the Kohl Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports

Ben Carlson is a strong rebounder, versatile defender, and providing good energy off the bench – those are things he’s doing well right now. However, UW needs more from him offensively.

He’s been hesitant around the rim – shying away from contact at times, and hasn’t been the floor spacer Wisconsin was counting on at the beginning of the season. Now, I definitely think he can still give Wisconsin some good minutes off the bench, but perhaps its more likely that comes as a versatile forward that comes in to provide energy and rebounding.

Defensively, Carlson has played pretty well and has been a solid rebounding presence when called upon. Here’s to hoping Carlson is able to turn things around after a slow start, because I had initially thought he’d be more of a 6th man for this team, and that just hasn’t been the case. There is ample time for the sophomore to turn things around this season.

Despite the slow offensive start, I don’t believe this is indicative of the player his is or will be for the badgers. Ben Carlson is someone that’s still capable of being an impact player off the bench this season.

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Ben Carlson back in practice for Wisconsin basketball after injury

The Badger freshman is back in action

Wisconsin basketball got freshman forward Ben Carlson back this week as the Badgers prepare for the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

After missing the past few months with what had been described as an upper-body injury, Carlson was “full-go” according to Greg Gard in Tuesday’s press conference.

Carlson was a part of the Wisconsin rotation through the first four games of the year, but even after being cleared it’s unclear if he is in the plans come Friday against North Carolina.

He’s been out of the rhythm of it for so long that I don’t know if that’s a good position to put him in, I think more than anything else,” Gard said.

The Badgers meet the Tar Heels on Friday at 6:10 PM in round one of the NCAA Tournament.

Louisville’s star guard and a key freshman for Wisconsin will both be out today

The Badgers and Cardinals will both be missing pieces

College sports in 2020 often brings last minute injury news. For No. 23 Louisville and No. 12 Wisconsin, both squads will be missing pieces for this early afternoon matchup.

Jeff Goodman of Stadium announced this morning that grad transfer Carlik Jones, Louisville’s leading scorer and assist man at over 17 points per game and five dimes, will not play against the Badgers.

For Wisconsin, the State Journal’s Jim Polzin reported minutes ago that freshmen guards Carter Gilmore and Ben Carlson will both be out. He did add that they are being held out for reasons unrelated to COVID-19.

WATCH: Aleem Ford drains three-pointer in 25-point unanswered Wisconsin run

In the No.7 Wisconsin Badgers Friday night matchup against the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions, the Badgers started the game on an insan…

In the No.7 Wisconsin Badgers Friday night matchup against the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions, the Badgers started the game on an insane 25-0 run.

This effort was led by Aleem Ford who had eight points, a rebound, and an assist in the first ten minutes of the first half. These points came off of two three-pointers and a layup. Micah Potter also contributed significantly to the run with five points, two steals, two assists, and a rebound.

Wisconsin has looked phenomenal in the first half of the game, leading 53-19 against the Southwestern Athletic Conference Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions at halftime. This game has allowed many key freshmen to get minutes early on, with Jonathan Davis, Ben Carlson, and Steven Crowl all getting significant minutes in the first half.

Stay tuned to Badgers Wire for continued updates.

Five takeaways from Wisconsin’s 74-64 opening win over Eastern Illinois

The Badgers open the season 1-0

The Badgers began the 2020-2021 campaign the same way they started last season: a win at home over Eastern Illinois. Both games were a tale of two halves, but the narrative was flipped.

Wednesday night was all Wisconsin through the first 20 minutes where the Badgers locked down defensively and built a 43-20 lead at the break. The Panthers stormed back with 47 second half points and ended up falling 77-67.

With freshman making their Wisconsin debuts, a Badger team that looked completely different from one half to the next, and ultimately a 1-0 start to the year, here are five takeaways from the opening win:

WATCH: Freshmen Jonathan Davis and Ben Carlson score their first collegiate points

The No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers tipped off their 2020-21 season against the Eastern Illinois Panthers tonight after what ended up being…

The No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers tipped off their 2020-21 season against the Eastern Illinois Panthers tonight after what ended up being a 263-day wait since their last game.

Starting for Greg Gard’s team were five seniors–D’Mitrik Trice, Brad Davison, Aleem Ford, Micah Potter and Nate Reuvers.

Related: Projecting Wisconsin basketball’s 2020-2021 rotation

That was the biggest storyline coming into the season: Head Coach Greg Gard and his team returning nearly their entire production from last year’s Big Ten regular season-winning unit.

One slept-on storyline, however, is what impact freshmen Jonathan Davis and Ben Carlson have in their first collegiate seasons. The talent and production of the senior starting five is known, and it will most likely take some underclassmen stepping up as difference makers in order to bring this team to the next level.

Related: Five early-season storylines to watch for Wisconsin basketball

Well, both Davis and Carlson wasted no time making an impact in tonight’s matchup against Eastern Illinois, scoring their first points just seconds after entering the game:

Davis entered the program as a three-star recruit and was ranked as the No. 2 player in the state of Wisconsin, while Carlson came as a four-star and the No. 4 player from his home state of Minnesota.

Davis, Carlson and the Badgers will be back in action Friday night against the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions before starting their conference slate on December 21 against the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

One way that Wisconsin basketball could look very different this season

One major change from last year to this year for the 2020-2021 Badgers

The 2019-20 Wisconsin Badgers were as resilient of a group as you will find throughout the history of college basketball. A tragedy before the season began, losing a key member of the rotation in Kobe King during the middle of the year, and yet somehow finding a way to win eight games and take a title share in the best conference in college basketball.

There’s the obvious differences with this upcoming season surrounding fans in the stands, the schedule, and more, but this change is one that will take place on the court. With over 80% of the scoring returning to Madison, and losing only one key contributor in senior Brevin Pritzl, what could feel significantly different between the 2019-20 Badgers and this edition? The answer lies in the 2020 freshman class.

During the dominant month of February for Wisconsin basketball, perhaps the most impressive element was the fact that head coach Greg Gard was only playing eight players per night. The shortened leash and big minutes for his key contributors helped Gard lead UW to an all-time turnaround. In this 2020-2021 squad, however, consistently playing ten or 11 players, especially early in the season, would be more expected than surprising.

Expect the two top-ranked 2020 recruits, Ben Carlson and Johnny Davis to see the court immediately. Beyond them, how deep will this bench go? Does senior guard Walt McGrory find the hardwood early on after appearing in 14 games last season? Is the Steven Crowl hype real enough to give him rotational minutes in his true freshman season? Does Gard feel that Wisconsin needs another ball handler in Detroit native Lorne Bowman, or does the freshman decide to redshirt?

Despite these being questions, they are ones that do not feel like their is a bad answer attached. These are good problems to have, and depth issues that only elite teams will face in 2020-2021. For a team that went eight deep in order to win a Big Ten championship, it would be hard to see the Badgers playing less than ten guys at the outset of the year. Over time, expect the rotational picture to become clear. Expect early mistakes, and short stints and leashes for young players, but also expect wins. This team is as deep as any in the country, and ready to turn a weakness from 2019-20 into one of their most important strengths in 2020-2021.

Wisconsin basketball releases jersey numbers for the incoming freshman class

The Badger recruiting class of 2020 now has their numbers

[lawrence-newsletter]Yesterday, Wisconsin’s incoming recruiting class of 2020 announced which numbers they would be taking on in their freshman season. Each player posted their number on Twitter with a jersey edit.

Here is the full list of Wisconsin jersey numbers for the incoming freshman:

Jordan Davis: #1

Lorne Bowman: #10

Carter Gilmore: #14

Ben Carlson #20

Steven Crowl: #22

Johnny Davis: #24