The worst stat for Wisconsin vs. New Mexico was not 2-26 on 3s

Reaction to the Wisconsin Badgers’ 59-50 loss to the New Mexico Lobos.

When a team makes only 2 of 26 3-pointers, as the Wisconsin Badgers did against the New Mexico Lobos on Tuesday in a discouraging loss, it is easy to look at that fact and declare it to be the worst statistic in the box score. I will be clear here and tell you that if you think the 3-point shooting line is the worst stat from the New Mexico game, you’re being reasonable. You’re being perfectly logical and sensible.

I won’t try to be the “I AM VERY INTELLIGENT!” meme from the cartoon in “The Nib” by Matt Bors, and tell you that you’re overthinking it.

You’re not overthinking it. You are exercising good judgment. In many ways, the short article I wrote about the Richmond loss applied to the New Mexico loss as well. It is striking to notice the similarities in the box score between the two games.

The Richmond and New Mexico games both featured the following:

  • At least 20 missed 3s by Wisconsin
  • No more than 16 free throw attempts by the Badgers
  • No Wisconsin player had more than four free throw attempts
  • At least 14 turnovers

The 3-point shooting is problematic, to be sure. Again, you are not overthinking it if you cite that as a big concern. Nevertheless, it’s not the shooting in isolation which stands out the most. The biggest problem with this team in Brooklyn and overall (it was true in the loss to Saint Mary’s as well) is that when shots don’t fall, the Badgers don’t compensate in the other aspects of offensive play. The defense is fine. It’s at the offensive end where the lack of high-level recruiting by Greg Gard shows up. It is also the end of the floor where the inability of someone to rise above the chaos and the limitations of this roster is most apparent.

Someone has to be able to get to the foul line 10 times a game when the threes aren’t dropping. I said that after the Richmond game. Beyond that, however, if the Badgers are going to miss at least 20 threes (20 versus Richmond, 24 versus New Mexico), they should at least be able to limit turnovers to only five or six, and compensate by not giving away extra possessions. You don’t need high-end talent to do that. You need unselfish team basketball, which is supposed to be UW’s identity, and which definitely rose to the surface in the brilliant takedown of Marquette.

Let’s say something more about that notion of unselfish team play, while we’re on the subject, because it leads me to what I view as the most alarming statistic from the New Mexico game. Yes, 2 of 26 on 3-pointers is a legitimate No. 1 candidate as “most alarming,” but for me, I choose another stat: Wisconsin had only six assists in that game.

Six. Assists.

Maybe, in the Frank Kaminsky-Sam Dekker era, one could accept that one or both players would get into a zone a few times a season and go wild in one-on-one situations. Maybe, under a special set of circumstances, Wisconsin’s best basketball players this decade (and century) would create shots through individual skill and not require passes to put them in position to score in big numbers. Fine… but with THIS roster, this 2019-2020 group of Badgers, Wisconsin cannot have six assists per game. That is TOTALLY unacceptable and an unsustainable way of playing.

Sure, the missed threes limited the assist count. No one needs to explain that part of the equation. However, if the Badgers are going to commit 14 turnovers, they ought to finish a game with 20 assists. If the Badgers are going to fail to move the ball well enough to create more free throw opportunities, the system is still failing beyond the missed 3-pointers.

Six assists shows that the blended team game so apparent against Marquette in the Kohl Center has not been carried on the road and taken to places such as Sioux Falls or Brooklyn. Wisconsin players need to help each other out. They need to assist each other a little more. It’s the holidays, after all.