Despite starting its season opener with an energized ceremonial tribute to last years men’s basketball squad, the No. 17 Wisconsin Badgers (0-1) received the misfortunes associated with Friday the 13th and fell 69-67 to the Western Illinois Leathernecks (1-0).
With the return of juniors Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig and a matchup against an opponent that was predicted to finish last in one of the NCAA’s weakest conferences, it seemed almost inconceivable that the Badgers would end falling in their home opener, but the loss will serve as a wake-up call for the the team as it faces a much tougher road ahead.
One of the most glaring weaknesses shown by Wisconsin was its ineffective defense. The Badgers allowed the Leathernecks to shoot 54 percent from the field for the game and were simply not making enough stops on the defensive side of the ball.
“I just don't think we moved our feet well enough and that’s something we’re gonna have to keep working on,” Koenig said.
By the end of the first half, the Badgers had showcased an exciting offense as Hayes led Wisconsin to a 44-37 lead with 17 points with an additional 18 points coming from Bronson Koenig, Zak Showalter and Khalil Iverson.
However, the second half would be a major struggle for Wisconsin.
With an abysmal 25 percent team shooting percentage and a combined 0-10 field goal shooting from starters Hayes and Showalter, the Badgers simply could not find their offensive rhythm that they had in the first half and failed to make enough adjustments on defense, which allowed the Leathernecks to outscore the Badgers 32-23 in the second half.
Followed by a reenergized Kohl Center crowd, Wisconsin made one last run in the last six minutes of the game after falling behind by eight points, but the Leathernecks held off the Badgers as Bronson Koenig's jumper rimmed out as time expired.
Aside from porous defense and offensive shooting, free throws also plagued the Badgers as they finished the game 16 of 25 from the charity stripe.
“In a two-point game how huge do all those [free throws] look? They look pretty big,” head coach Bo Ryan said.
After receiving much praise from teammates and performing exceptionally well in the Badgers’ exhibition game against UW-Riverside last Thursday, redshirt freshman Ethan Happ struggled mightily against Western Illinois, as he finished off the night with only four points after receiving two early fouls in the first half.
Freshman standouts Charlie Thomas and Khalil Iverson also had growing pains on the offensive side of the ball, as they finished the night shooting a combined 3-of-13 from the field and a combined 4-of-9 from the free throw line.
The loss was a complete shocker for fans and served as a stark reminder that this young Wisconsin squad will endure some growing pains this season.
“We got a long way to go,” Ryan said. “We play again Sunday, we play again Tuesday, we’ll see what we can find.”
The Badgers will get a chance to get back on track when they face off Sienna (0-1) at the Kohl Center Sunday at 7:00 p.m.
