Univerity of
Wisconsin (24)
by Dakota Schmidt
Projected Starters
G
6-4
PT%
72.00
G
PTE
17.81
6-2
PT%
16.56
F
PT%
82.44
F
6-9
PT%
0.00
6-8
PT%
13.38
HS100 AC/AA
79
Zak Showalter
PTE
6.39
6-8
F
Bronson Koenig
HS100 AC/AA
Nigel Hayes
JR
NBA
JR
NBA
JR
PTE
33.16
HS100 AC/AA
3-AC
NBA
25
PTE
0.00
HS100 AC/AA
NBA
PTE
1.40
HS100 AC/AA
Ethan Happ
Vitto Brown
FR
JR
NBA
Bench Rotation
G
6-3
PT%
0.00
C
PTE
0.00
6-3
PT%
0.00
F
G
HS100 AC/AA
Brevin Pritzl
PTE
0.00
6-9
PT%
0.00
Jordan Hill
HS100 AC/AA
77
Alex Illikainen
PTE
0.00
HS100 AC/AA
6-5 Riley Dearring
PT%
2.44
PTE
-0.49
HS100 AC/AA
SO
NBA
FR
NBA
FR
NBA
SO
NBA
Since Bo Ryan arrived in
Wisconsin, three things have been
guaranteed every year: death, taxes,
and the Badgers in the NCAA
Tournament. Only Big 10-rival
Michigan State (18 years), Duke (20
years), and Kansas (26 years) have a
longer active streak of consecutive
tournament appearances than
Wisconsin’s 17.
That insane level of consistency
is why the Badgers get the benefit
of the doubt in the top 25, despite
losing four of their six leading
scorers from last season. Frank
Kaminsky and his 18.8 points
and 8.2 rebounds per game was
undoubtedly the biggest loss, and
replacing the National Player of the
Year will be a tall order.
Their departures have paved
the way for Bronson Koenig and
Nigel Hayes to take over as the
leaders of the team. Koenig was
a beneficiary of the constant
defensive attention on Kaminsky
and Sam Dekker, hitting 40 percent
of the mostly open 3-pointers their
presence afforded him. Without
that, he’ll have to utilize his quick
first step more and finish better
than 47 percent around the rim.
Hayes, another long-range
shooter (39 percent), also has the
ability to post from either block
and get to the rim. Those wellrounded skills should serve as the
undeniable go-to weapon for the
Badgers, working as the primary
pick-and-roll screener. Though he
probably won’t be as effective as
Kaminsky, he’s a reliable option
amidst a bunch of unknowns.
Vitto Brown and Zak Showalter
will be going from benchwarmers
to potential starters. Despite
standing at 6-foot-8, Brown is
projected to take over Kaminsky’s
role as the team’s starting center.
While that frame would usually be
a huge deterrent, Brown’s 7-f00t3 wingspan and 237-pound build
should allow him to be a pretty
solid rebounder. He’s also displayed
flashes of a solid shooting stroke,
with the jumper being able to
stretch from mid-range to beyond
the arc.
Showalter is a former walk-on
guard who landed on the Badgers
roster due to his defensive tenacity
and ability to cut to the rim. While
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