Tag: wisconsin badgers basketball

Jonathan Davis Signs National Letter of Intent with Wisconsin Basketball

Wisconsin Head Coach Greg Gard received Jonathan Davis letter of intent on Wednesday as Davis is a part of a five-man 2020 recruiting class.

Jonathan Davis

6’4″, 185, guard, La Crosse, Wis. (Central)

Davis held a Wisconsin offer since December of 2017 but he didn’t verbally commit to play for the Badgers until June of 2019. Davis officially became a Badger on Wednesday when he faxed in his letter of intent to play for his home state Badgers.

There were many aspects about Davis’ game that Greg Gard was drawn to but Gard appreciates and enjoys recruiting players who have played multiple sports in high school and Davis certainly fits that bill. Outside of being a standout basketball player, Davis has also excelled on the football field as he has served as La Crosse Central’s starting quarterback. The competitive nature that Davis has developed playing both football and basketball will certainly serve him well when he enrolls at Wisconsin.

Note: All quotes/stats provided by uwbadgers.com

Davis chose Wisconsin over other offers from: DePaul, UW-Green Bay, Iowa, UW-Milwaukee, Minnesota, Northern Iowa, UNLV, and West Virginia

Davis Accolades: Four-star recruit by Rivals … conference player of the year averaged 23 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists per game as a junior for La Crosse Central, earning unanimous first-team all-state selection and first-team all-conference honors … La Crosse Tribune Coulee Region Player of the Year in 2018-19 … as a sophomore, averaged 22.7 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists per game and earned first-team all-conference and first-team all-state honors … along with brother, Jordan, helped lead Central to the WIAA Division 2 state tournament each of their three years on the varsity team, winning the state title in 2017 with current Badger Kobe King … on the football field, Davis is also a standout three-year starter at quarterback, passing for 6,572 yards and 56 touchdowns, while rushing for more than 2,000 yards and scoring another 34 touchdowns on the ground.

Gard on Davis: “Johnny is the ultimate competitor. He’s proven that on the basketball court, on the football field and in the classroom. Johnny’s ability to play and guard multiple positions is extremely valuable in today’s game. He brings a tremendous toughness and competitive spirit to both ends of the floor. His experiences as a high school quarterback will serve him well as he makes the transition to a collegiate basketball player. He has grown up watching Wisconsin Basketball and takes pride in wearing our colors. We’re excited to get to work with him and to help him reach his potential as a Badger in the years to come.”

Lorne Bowman Signs National Letter of Intent with Wisconsin Basketball

Lorne Bowman becomes the latest member in the 2020 recruiting class to sign his letter of intent to play for the Wisconsin Badgers.

Lorne Bowman

6’2″, 180, guard, Detroit, Mich. (St. Mary’s)

Bowman became the first commit in Wisconsin’s 2020 recruiting class when he made his verbal commitment to Wisconsin in November of 2018. Bowman made it official on Wednesday by signing his letter of intent to play for Wisconsin.

The Badgers are getting a talented playmaker who is able to not only create shots for himself but also for his teammates. Despite D’Mitrik Trice, Brad Davison, and Trevor Anderson being ahead of Bowman when he arrives on campus the trio will all be seniors. There may not be many minutes available to Bowman in his first year but it could be beneficial to him to see the floor as a true freshman to gain some valuable experience before he officially takes over once Trice, Davison, and Anderson have exhausted their eligibility.

Note: All quotes/stats provided by uwbadgers.com.

Bowman chose Wisconsin over other offers from: Iowa, Nebraska, Buffalo, Oakland, Toledo, and Valparaiso

Bowman’s Accolades: Four-star recruit by ESPN … ranked No. 94 in the ESPN 100 for 2020 … standout at St. Mary’s High School is a two-time Class A All-State honoree in Michigan, earning first-team honors in 2019 and honorable mention in 2018 … averaged 23.1 points and 5.1 assists per game during his junior season … averaged 22.5 points and 4.9 assists per game as a sophomore … in AAU, member of EYBL where he excelled at the Nike circuit, averaging 13.5 points and 3.6 assists through his first six games.

Gard on Bowman: “We are ecstatic to have Lorne join our Badger family. He’s the ultimate competitor, both on the court and in the classroom, and we can’t wait to begin working with him. It was evident early on that Lorne is exactly what we look for and he’s only continued to improve. Lorne plays at his own pace, always under control, giving his team whatever it needs in the right moments with a skillset that can turn from scoring guard to playmaker in an instant. He has a great ability to get the ball where it needs to be and can also create shots with his tremendous pull-up game. Lorne displays natural leadership, both by his extreme work ethic and also through his communication on and off the court.  Lorne and his family are a pleasure to be around and represent everything that being a Badger is about.”

 

Game Day Grades – Wisconsin vs. McNeese State

Grading the Wisconsin Badgers basketball performance against McNeese State.

Offense: B

Wisconsin’s offense in the second half was much improved compared to the first half. For starters, Wisconsin shot 60.7 percent (17-for-28) from the field over the final 20 minutes compared to shooting 44.4 percent (12-for-27) in the first half.

The Badgers were able to generate looks for themselves in the first half that simply didn’t fall, compared to the second half. The one constant, though, was the Badgers were able to consistently set their shots up by registering an assist as Wisconsin registered 19 assists on their 29 made field goals.

Eight different players for Wisconsin registered an assist and seven of the eight registered at least two. Trevor Anderson led the way with four assists off the bench as he played 13 minutes.

Wisconsin did well at generating points in the paint in the second half as 16 of Wisconsin’s 30 points in the paint came in the second half. Although Wisconsin finished the game with 30 points down low, the Badgers were able to do most of that damage without Nate Reuvers. Reuvers dealt with foul trouble throughout the game as he finished with four fouls in 21 minutes on the court.

Reuvers still finished the game with 10 points as he was one of four Badgers to reach double figures. Brad Davison led the way with 24 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field, Aleem Ford finished with 16 points, and Brevin Pritzl had 13 points.

Defense: B

Wisconsin’s defense in the first half against McNeese State wasn’t very good, as the Badgers allowed the Cowboys to shoot 45.5 percent (10-for-22) from the field.

In particular, Wisconsin’s defense didn’t have an answer for Sha’Markus Kennedy, as the Badgers allowed him to score 18 points in the first half alone. But the Badgers defense was able to tighten in the second half defending him as he only scored two points on 1-for-2 shooting from the field in the second half.

With Wisconsin limiting Kennedy in the second half and making sure he couldn’t gain the same kind of comfort, he was forced to try and set up one of his teammates on offense. Kennedy finished the game with three assists all coming in the second half as he was one of three players for McNeese State to finish the game with three assists.

A.J. Lawson was the only other player for McNeese State to finish the game in double figures with 10 as the Cowboys finished the game 21-for-45 (46.7 percent) from the field.

Although Lawson did reach double figures he did struggle taking care of the basketball as he finished with six of the Cowboys 18 turnovers. With Wisconsin creating such a high amount of turnovers against McNeese State the Badgers did an excellent job of capitalizing their mistakes into 30 points.

Wisconsin was able to register 10 of McNeese State’s 18 turnovers off of steals.

Overall: B

Wisconsin didn’t play a great first half as the Badgers were only up by three at halftime. Wisconsin was able to get on track and officially put the game away in the second half when the Badgers went 13-for-15 from the field over the first 10 minutes of the second half including making 10 straight field goals over that stretch to put the Badgers up 71-to-52.

During Wisconsin’s hot streak a number of players contributed as Ford scored 10 points, Pritzl had seven points, Davison registered six points, and D’Mitrik Trice chipped in with two points.

In the stretch where Wisconsin made 10 straight of their shot attempts it also included the Badgers knocking down all four of their 3-point attempts. It was good for Wisconsin to finally see the three falls for them considering their struggles from the perimeter to begin the season. The struggles from the perimeter continued in the first half as Wisconsin went 3-for-13 but in the second half, it seemed like they couldn’t miss as they went 7-for-15.

Five different players for Wisconsin made at least one three and four of the five made at least two of their 3-point attempts. Walt McGrory was one of the five players to make a three as he finished the game with a career high nine points. McGrory was able to provide a spark for Wisconsin off the bench in the first half as he finished the game with two rebounds, two assists to one turnover in 24 minutes on the floor.

Wahl played a bench high 26 minutes and in his time on the floor, he was productive on both ends. Wahl finished the game with three points on 1-for-2 shooting from the field but he also registered three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

Game MVP: Brad Davison

Davison certainly had his shot falling as he finished with a season high 24 points on an impressive 7-for-8 shooting from the field and 3-for-4 from 3-point range. In addition, Davison went 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Davison was able to set up his teammates as he finished the game with two assists and registered three rebounds. Not to mention with McNeese State struggling to take care of the basketball it wasn’t surprising to see Davison contributing in creating those extra offensive possessions as he had a team high four steals.

3-Point Shot Wisconsin vs. McNeese State

Three keys to Wisconsin winning a second game in a row against McNeese State.

McNeese State was able to register its first win of the season as they beat Southern New Orleans 104-33 on Monday night. After playing their first two games on the road losing to Western Michigan and Louisiana by an average of 7.5 points the Cowboys will play their third road game in a week.

In this Badgers Wire feature, we will look at the three keys or questions for Wisconsin as they prepare to play McNeese State.

LAYUP: WISCONSIN’S ABILITY TO LIMIT SECOND CHANCES

Wisconsin through two games has allowed their opponents to average 12 offensive rebounds per game, which they have turned into an average of 15 points per game.

In particular, Wisconsin will need to box out the 6’8″ Sha’markus Kennedy as he has registered at least four offensive rebounds over the Cowboys first three games.

McNeese State is averaging 10.6 offensive rebounds per game as Kennedy is responsible for 13 of the team’s 32 offensive rebounds this season. With Kennedy leading the team in offensive rebounds the Cowboys have averaged 10.3 second chance points.

In order for Wisconsin to take control of the game earlier compared to their win over Eastern Illinois, the Badgers are going to need to attack the defensive glass. If Wisconsin can consistently limit the Cowboys offense to one shot per offensive possession it should help make sure the Cowboys can’t stick around.

MID-RANGE: THE PLAY OF WISCONSIN’S BACKCOURT

D’Mitrik Trice and Brad Davison have been able to distribute the basketball effectively while the two continue to find their shots from 3-point range. Trice and Davison each have registered four assists this season, which leads the team.

In addition, Trice and Davison should be able to get open looks against the Cowboys defense. McNeese State is only allowing opponents to shoot 35.5 percent (66-for-186) from the field but the Cowboys haven’t played anybody of note.

Making it important that Wisconsin is able to work the basketball around in order to create an open shot. If that’s Trice or Davison creating an open look for a teammate or them being the recipient the Badgers will need to knock down their looks in order to build a lead.

3-POINTER: SLOWING DOWN MCNEESE STATE’S BIG 3

McNeese State has three players who are averaging double figures in Dru Kuxhausen (17 ppg), A.J. Lawson (15.7 ppg), and Kennedy (13 ppg).

In particular, Wisconsin’s defense will need to be cognizant of Lawson as he has scored in double figures in all three games but has also attempted 13.3 field goal attempts a game, which leads the team. In addition, Lawson has registered seven assists over three games, which leads the team.

Lawson is going to get his shots up against the Badgers but Kuxhausen is coming off McNeese State’s win over Southern New Orleans where he went 7-for-10 from three. Making it important that Wisconsin’s defense doesn’t allow either to get any open look where they can shoot in rhythm.

Between Lawson and Kuxhausen they are shooting a combined 35-for-72 (48.6 percent) from the field. If Wisconsin allows either to get enough room they’ll attempt a shot making it important that Wisconsin doesn’t allow them to create a mismatch.

Nate Reuvers Named Big Ten Player of the Week

Nate Reuvers was named by the Big Ten as its player of the week.

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It’s only been two games but Nate Reuvers certainly has been impressive in the early goings as he’s averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 6.5 blocks.

This is the first time in Reuvers career where he has been recognized as player of the week by the Big Ten. Reuvers is the first Wisconsin player to earn this recognition since Ethan Happ who did it last season (Dec. 10, 2018).

In Wisconsin’s season opener against Saint Mary’s Reuvers finished the game with 22 points, tying a career-high while also registering six rebounds and four blocks. Reuvers was able to follow that up by registering his second career double-double against Eastern Illinois as he finished the game with 14 points and 14 rebounds in addition to having nine blocks.

Reuvers has been Wisconsin’s most consistent scorer as he’s shooting 46.2 percent (12-for-26) from the field and has made at least one three in each game. In addition, Reuvers 6.5 blocks per game rank second nationally behind Marquette’s Theo John who’s averaging eight blocks per game.

Wisconsin will host Marquette on Sunday at noon as the game can be seen on FS1. Before the Badgers square off with their in-state rival in the Golden Eagles the Badgers will play McNeese State on Wednesday at 6 p.m.