Coming off an 88-43 win Tuesday over Presbyterian College, Wisconsin now heads to Las Vegas for the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational and a Friday night matchup with No. 14 Creighton.
All-American junior forward Doug McDermott, who averaged 22.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while leading Creighton to a 29-6 mark last season, leads the Blue Jays (4-0 overall) into the season with high expectations. The son of head coach Greg, McDermott’s 1,382 points coming into this season were the most by any incoming junior since Davidson’s Stephen Curry in 2008. During the season’s first four games, the Ames, Iowa, native has averaged 16.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game while shooting over 56 percent from the field.
Unlike past years, however, the Badgers (3-1) head into this tournament matchup with one test already under their belt in last Wednesday’s defeat at the hands of No. 10 Florida. Having already been given that necessary early season wakeup call, UW is now ready to compete.
Perimeter defense had always been a strength for this Badger program, but against Florida it was a glaring weakness. The Gator guards penetrated with ease, ultimately opening up the floor enough to allow UF to score 74 points on a defense that led the nation last season in allowing just 53.2 points per game. If the Badgers hope to knock off Creighton and then to knock off the winner of the tournament’s other semifinal matchup (Arizona State and Arkansas), they will need to improve defending penetration.
One bright spot for UW early on has been the aggressive play of junior guard Ben Brust. After averaging just 7.3 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in just over 21 minutes per game last season, the Hawthorn Woods, Ill., native has already notched three double-doubles in the first four games, averaging 14.5 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in the early going.
Brust leads three Badgers averaging double figures so far this season, joined by redshirt senior forward Jared Berggren and freshman forward Sam Dekker. Dekker, who had 16 points in just 15 minutes of action Tuesday night, has continued to improve as he gets more comfortable coming off the bench.
Regardless of outcome, Wisconsin has certainly answered calls from its fan base and from critics of the program to beef up what has, over the past few years, been a fairly weak non-conference schedule. Other than the ACC/Big Ten Challenge game against North Carolina, Wisconsin’s only major non-conference foe last season was in-state rival Marquette.
This season, the Badgers will face two top-14 teams in their first 9 games, with additional games against Arkansas/ASU, Virginia, California, and Marquette to follow. If the Badgers can survive that non-conference lineup unscathed, they will be more than ready for the grueling Big Ten slate that lies ahead.
But right now, the focus is on the task at hand, and that task is getting a win over Creighton. Despite the obvious temptation to look forward that comes with any tournament, the Badgers are fully aware they must focus on one game at a time.
