Wisconsin (3-1 overall) scored less than a minute into its game against Presbyterian Tuesday and never looked back, topping the Blue Hose (0-4) 88-43.
The Badgers shot 43 percent from three-point land (16-37) and assisted 24 of their 33 field goals against Presbyterian's matchup zone defense.
“We’ve played a lot of good teams in this five years of us being in Division I, but that was the greatest display of shooting and passing that I’ve seen,” Presbyterian head coach Gregg Nibert said. “I’ve lost some games, but I don’t think we’ve ever lost as bad as we lost tonight.”
Wisconsin had just six turnovers Tuesday after racking up 16 against Cornell Sunday. Head coach Bo Ryan said it’s hard to gauge Wisconsin’s turnover numbers between two teams with different defensive approaches, as Presbyterian did not press and trap the same way as Cornell. However, he also said the Badgers practiced on better positioning themselves to receive passes, and that work paid dividends against Presbyterian.
“I just thought we did a better job of squaring up, getting in position, seeing the open man, making the next pass,” Ryan said. “I thought they improved.”
Although junior guard Ben Brust had one of those turnovers, the Hawthorn Woods, Ill., native also finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds for his third double-double through just four games this season.
Brust, who had 11 points and seven rebounds in the first half alone, grabbed his 10th rebound just over three minutes into the second half.
“He’s like Rodman except he’s maybe only 6-2, but he goes and goes and goes,” Nibert said. “You better stay with him, because he’s relentless.”
Ryan said Brust’s success on the glass is a matter of the guard simply taking advantage of his opportunities.
“Where hard work meets opportunity, guys can get pretty lucky,” Ryan said. “It seems like a lot for the little guy, but it’s not.”
Although it’s a mere four games into the season, Brust’s 9.3-rebounds-per-game average is tops in the Big Ten. Michigan State’s 6-foot-9, 270-pound senior center Derrick Nix averages 8.5 per game.
Brust had a season-low two rebounds in Wisconsin’s 74-56 loss to No. 10 Florida, and he said he likely won’t continue to grab nine rebounds per game as the Badgers’ face tougher competition.
“Teams aren’t going to be missing that many times later on in the year, which will really limit the opportunities for rebounds,” Brust said.
The junior could not exactly pinpoint why he has pulled down so many rebounds this season.
“I wish I had a good answer,” Brust said. “I’ve been playing this game for so long; I kind of just have a knack for where it’s going to be.”
Freshman forward Sam Dekker (16), sophomore forward Frank Kaminksy (10) and redshirt freshman guard George Marshall (12) all had career-high-scoring nights for the Badgers.
Kaminsky, who shot a combined 1-of-5 in the past two games, connected on all four of his attempts in 13 minutes Tuesday. The Lisle, Ill., native said his bounce-back effort was all about being confident.
“I was in a little bit of a slump for the past week, and I just wanted to go out there and bring energy,” Kaminsky said. “It worked out.”
Dekker shot 6-of-8 (2-of-4 from beyond the arc) in 15 minutes of action, while Marshall’s 12 points came on four, three-point shots. The guard shot 4-of-6 from downtown.
Wisconsin will travel to Las Vegas for a matchup with No. 14 Creighton Friday. The Bluejays beat Presbyterian 87-58 Sunday, and Nibert said Wisconsin and Creighton are both deep teams that shoot well from beyond the arc.
“I think it’ll be a two-to-four-point game,” Nibert said.
