The last time No. 20 Wisconsin (8-3 Big Ten, 17-7 overall) played the Gophers (5-6, 17-7), both teams were in a must-win situation. The Badgers came in having dropped two consecutive games in response to their upset win at then-No. 2 Indiana, while Minnesota had fallen back into the middle of the Big Ten with its third-straight loss.
The stakes aren’t exactly the same this time around, but UW’s slippery position in the conference title race and the Gophers’ delicate NCAA tournament résumé give both sides ample reason to feel like Thursday’s matchup is a must-win.
The Badgers out-rebounded Minnesota 32-28 (including an 8-7 advantage on the offensive glass) back on Jan. 26, a perhaps unexpected event because of the Gophers’ top-rated rebounding numbers among NCAA Division I teams.
Assistant coach Gary Close said boxing out is one of the first concerns in playing Minnesota; the Gophers rank No. 3 in the nation in offensive rebounds, and senior forward Trevor Mbakwe leads the Big Ten with an 8.8-rebounds-per-game average.
“Mbakwe could put somebody right underneath the backboard and take the ball,” Close said. “He’s that good.”
While statistics don’t always tell the entire story, Close went on to say that teams who beat Minnesota typically “negate” its rebounding advantage. He wasn’t too far off, either: The Gophers have lost both Big Ten games in which they were outrebounded. Further, their rebounding margin in conference wins nearly doubles (+13.4) their margin in losses (+7.2).
“If we can take that part of their game away, we’ll be fine,” said freshman forward Sam Dekker.
In Wisconsin’s last four games (since its 45-44 win over Minnesota), it has averaged 65.5 points per contest. Although that increase is due in part to playing three overtime periods in the last two games, the Badgers feel they are starting to find their groove offensively.
Although Close said UW has been making better cuts and appears to be getting more comfortable playing with each other as the season progresses, redshirt senior forward Jared Berggren said the Badgers’ offensive success comes down to simply hitting shots.
“When we were in a little bit of a slump, we were getting some good looks and we just were missing them,” he said.
The Princeton, Minn., native will play his final collegiate game in front of his hometown crowd Thursday, along with senior forward Mike Bruesewitz.
While Berggren admitted he’s excited for the atmosphere in Williams Arena, he said Thursday’s tilt is more about chasing a conference title than any kind of homecoming.
“Every game is big now,” Berggren said. “And this next one is the biggest game of the year because it’s the next one.”
