After aniliating Savannah State 82-24 on Sunday, Wisconsin (7-5) looks to continue to protect its home court Thursday night when it hosts Milwaukee (7-2).
“You want to be prideful and protect your home court and we have done that in all except the Green Bay game,” head coach Jonathan Tsipis said.
Throughout the beginning of the season, the Badgers have experienced both convincing wins and losses, but it is crucial for them to take what they have learned thus far and keep their energy up as they near the start of conference play.
Milwaukee will pose a challenge for UW as Wisconsin will have to match up with a handful of skilled players. UWM is led by senior Steph Kostowicz, who currently averages 17 points and almost nine rebounds a game. Kostowicz is surely a strong presence on the floor, but following close behind her is another threat from the outside senior guard Jenny Lindner, a knock-down shooter.
“I think what makes Milwaukee such a good team is that they are very versatile,” Tsipis said. “Their posts are versatile and are able to score the ball anywhere on the floor.”
Overall, Wisconsin leads Milwaukee matchup 24-2 throughout its series history, experiencing their only losses to the Milwaukee program in 1992 and then again last season. This time around the Badgers are out for redemption.
With UWM being UW’s last non-conference game, it is important for the Badgers to remember to continue to improve defensively, especially if they want to snap Milwaukee’s seven-game winning streak. Tsipis, though, feels confident in the level of growth and maturity he has seen in his team thus far this season.
“We’re becoming better at that, we’re understanding how we have to share the basketball and how we can be defensively,” Tsipis said. “I think rebounding is a big part of both of our identities, and I think whoever wins the game on Thursday, it will be reflection of who won the rebounding battle or who scored more second-chance points.”
Rebounding has been somewhat of a swing statistic for UW this season, seeing as it tends to dominate on the boards in games it wins, yet lose the battle down-low in games it loses. Therefore, it will be important for players like Abby Laszewski to secure a dominating presence down low. Laszeswki has emerged this season as a strong contributor for the Badgers, on both ends of the floor. However, she will not have a size advantage against players like Kostowicz, so the fundamentals of boxing out and getting good positioning will be essential for UW.
After scoring her third double-double this season, Marsha Howard will look to be an offensive threat against UWM as well. The Badgers’ bench, especially Courtney Fredrickson, has also been a huge reason for the team’s success this season.
Wisconsin will look to continue its hot start against UWM and close the non-conference season on a high note.
“This game allows us to make a statement to close out the non-conference, and it will able to put us with that eight win and reverse the record from last year, and take that momentum into Big Ten play.”
Tipoff is at 7 p.m. from the Kohl Center.
