As the end of the regular season draws near, the Wisconsin men's basketball team has put together a season that has thus far exceeded the expectations of college basketball fans and analysts across the country. Despite the loss of its two leading scorers from last season, in Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor, this year's team has gathered up their wits under the venerable direction of head coach Bo Ryan and his staff. They have pieced together a 24-2 record heading into the tail end of the conference season which will likely earn them a respectable position in the NCAA tournament later this month. Now, as the Badgers head into the postseason, we hand out the grades and shed light on which factors ultimately led to the team's success this season.
Offense
The void left behind by the graduation of Tucker and Taylor was quickly filled by the likes of senior forward Brian Butch, senior guard Michael Flowers, sophomore guard Trevon Hughes and junior forward Marcus Landry, who have combined for two-thirds of all points scored by the team this season. Yet, the team's fifth-place standing in scoring at 68 points per game leaves room for improvement.
Grade: B-
Defense
Defense has exceeded our expectations a little bit,"" assistant coach Howard Moore said. ""We knew we were going to be a little bit of a better team, but the numbers we've been able to sustain throughout the season have been pretty strong.""
That's putting things lightly. Holding their opponents to 54.9 points per game, the Badgers are the best in the country in scoring defense. They also sit second in the conference in defensive rebounds and defensive field goal percentage.
Grade: A
Coaching
How does Bo Ryan follow up a season that saw Wisconsin's first ever No. 1 ranking and the best record in school history? With a school record in conference wins and a Big Ten title this year just two very winnable games away, that's how. And forget about altering the system: Ryan has not adjusted his coaching scheme just because he lost the all-time leading scorer in UW men's basketball history. He's using the same scheme he has always used. What's more, Ryan and his assistants are on pace to match - and likely exceed - the success of last year's highly touted squad.
""Coach Ryan has been doing the same thing for 35 years,"" Moore said. ""I don't think we're going to change anything at this point!""
Grade: A
Senior Leadership
The trio of Butch, Flowers, and senior center Greg Stiemsma has been crucial to the team's success this year, providing game-winning shots in Texas and Indiana and leading the team in field goal percentage, rebounds, blocks and points. Combined with the experience and heart that senior guard and fan-favorite Tanner Bronson brings, the team's four seniors have led this year's squad through a fair number of tough contests and have come out victorious in many of them.
Grade: A-
Starting Five
Butch, Landry and junior guard Joe Krabbenhoft have started every game this season and have been fairly consistent in their play, though Butch struggled early in the season with his perimeter shooting and has only been hitting 68 percent from the line. Hughes, who has stepped in as point guard for most of the season, started off hot in non-conference play but has since deferred some of the scoring burden to his teammates. Flowers has also been in the starting lineup for the better part of the season and consistently performs at the highest level on defense, but has been sporadic on the offensive end of the court, leading the team in scoring some nights and coming up relatively short on others.
Grade: B+
Bench
Contributions from the likes of Stiemsma and sophomore guard Jason Bohannon have been critical in many games this year, particularly in Big Ten play. They have even earned a few starts each this past season. Freshman forward Jon Leuer has also put up some significant numbers in many of the 25 games he has played this year. However, few other players have made a considerable impact on the team.
Grade: B-
Freshmen
Six of the 16 players on this year's squad are either redshirt or true freshmen, and though we've seen glimmers of potential from the likes of guard Tim Jarmusz and Keaton Nankivil, only Jon Leuer has played a major role on the court in this year's campaign. The limited playing time from center J.P. Gavinski, guard Brett Valentyn and walk-on guard Wquinton Smith have yielded negligible results.
Grade: C
Returning Players
Without question, the returning players have stepped up and taken turns filling the void left by last year's team leaders.
""Mike, Brian, Greg, Joe, Trevon... everyone is a leader in some certain way,"" said Bohannon. ""We all kind of look towards each other [in big games].""
Grade: B+
