On December 9, 2017, T.J. Schlundt experienced his first real taste of college basketball. The redshirt junior guard was thrust into Wisconsin’s rotation on short notice, as UW was unexpectedly without both Kobe King and D’Mitrik Trice for its matchup with in-state rival Marquette. It was on that day that Schlundt chased Golden Eagle guards Andrew Rowsey and Markus Howard around for 13 minutes as MU’s prolific backcourt hung 47 points on a depleted Badger roster.
Since then the redshirt junior guard has emerged as Wisconsin’s first guard off the bench. Schlundt said he’s grown to be more confident on the floor and recognized how important staying poised and not being timid is to his success. He likens his role to that of Milwaukee Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova.
But in the nearly two months without Trice and King, Wisconsin’s (3-9 Big Ten, 10-15 overall) offense is still undergoing growing pains as its backcourt continues to develop. Freshman guard Brad Davison is noticeably restricted by a left arm injury he first sustained in mid-November. Redshirt sophomore guard Brevin Pritzl is in the midst of a cold streak that rivals the worst of a Wisconsin winter. Schlundt has played admirably throughout the season, but his game is limited. And UW has tried using junior swingman Khalil Iverson and redshirt junior forward Ethan Happ as its primary ballhandlers more in recent games, but their skill sets in that role are also limited.
The constant backcourt rotation can also be attributed, in some part, to the physical and mental toll of being a primary ballhandler.
“Playing point guard takes a ton of energy out of you, especially when teams put pressure on you and you gotta be out on the floor that long,” said assistant coach Dean Oliver, who played the position back in his college days at the University of Iowa.
Oliver adds that when point guards get fatigued, their focus starts to waver and their play might struggle as a result. Davison, who averages the most minutes of any active Badger, has done a better job of merely reacting to situations, Oliver says, but that he still has plenty of room to grow in areas such as ball screen offense and knowing when to make the right pass.
UW travels to Champaign, Il. on Thursday to face off against the Illinois Fighting Illini (2-9, 12-12). When the teams first met in mid-January, Davison, the Badgers’ leading scorer that night, said Wisconsin’s reactionary guard play was crucial in its victory.
“We really moved the ball well,” he said. “The ball didn’t stick. We didn’t over-dribble. We passed. We cut. We moved without the ball. It makes the game a lot simpler.”
But Wisconsin has not won a game since knocking off Illinois on January 19. It got blown out by Iowa, struggled to match Michigan State’s firepower, collapsed in the second half at home versus Nebraska, came out flat against Northwestern and most recently, struggled down the stretch at Maryland.
When Wisconsin first met Illinois, however, its backcourt had one of its best games of the season. Davison finished with 18 points. Pritzl tacked on 16 points. And Iverson chipped in 13 points in 32 minutes.
UW’s backcourt is hoping to replicate that success Thursday night. In a season of uncertainty and turmoil, it would provide a worthwhile lift.
Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. CT.
