On the Stove Top: 7/18/10

Summer League Wrap-Up
The Vegas Summer League concluded Sunday and the biggest surprise has to be Marcus Landry reappearing with the New York Knicks after his stint with Indiana in the Orlando session. Landry fared much better with his old crew, even getting loose for 14 points and a baseline stuff against Toronto.

Meanwhile, Joe Krabbenhoft and Greg Stiemsma finished up Sunday as the sixth men for their respective teams, but there wasn't much tangible production to show for it. To his credit, Krabby finished with a solid +/- and six boards in his finale.

But the highlight of the week has to be Stiemsma sparring with DeMarcus Cousins last Wednesday. See for yourself how Stiemsma responded to Cousins' elbow to the throat in the Wolves-Kings game ... let's just say nothing's changed with ol' Stiemboat. But good for him.



Milwaukee's top pick, Larry Sanders, also put himself on the map with the league, especially point man Brandon Jennings.

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Recruiting Countdown
July has taken on greater significance on the recruiting battlegrounds now that there is no live April evaluation period allowed. The second July evaluation window opens July 22nd and some major Wisconsin targets will be making their school decisions in the next two weeks.

Unfortunately, the Badgers are not widely considered the favorite for Cedar Rapids (IA) Jefferson senior Jarrod Uthoff or Medina (OH) junior Kenny Kaminski. The versatile Uthoff wants to make his decision on Monday before heading out to his next tournament. He's sensitive to the fact his family wants him to stay close to home, which may compel him to choose one of the three Iowa schools in his final six.

Kaminski is considered a Michigan State lean and his recent comments do nothing but reinforce that sentiment. The 6'7" sharpshooter counts Wisconsin, Indiana and Ohio State among his finalists and will announce his destination on July 31st (or soon after). It's pleasantly surprising that UW jumped into the final mix lately even though Kaminski admits he "really [hasn't] talked to them that much."

[2010-11 NCAA Recruiting Calendar]

Hughes Eyes Post-Wisconsin Career

The long, often harsh, road toward a professional basketball career begins today for Wisconsin guard Trevon Hughes as the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament tips off once again.

Coincidentally, Hughes will be teaming up with Cornell's Ryan Wittman on the K&D Rounds Landscaping team. The PIT website will update with scores and stats as they become available throughout the week.

Hughes is one of 64 seniors hoping to make a good impression on even one NBA team. And if not, then at least some European scouts. The rosters have shuffled a bit since they were announced due to some injuries. Draft Express breaks down who the top prospects are and the surprising omissions. Stay healthy Pop!

Previous participants at Portsmouth include former Badgers Marcus Landry and Brian Butch, who both recently found themselves called up to the big leagues. Landry was recalled by the Celtics, meaning Boston now has two Badgers on its roster (the other: Michael Finley). Butch was signed by Denver for the remainder of this season after a stellar stint in the D-League.

Hughes acquitted himself just fine in last Friday's NABC College All-Star Game at the Final Four. It's no surprise that he jacked up a trey about 10 seconds into the game, but he also dished out four assists and stayed true to form with solid rebounding (six boards). Jason Bohannon started out hot in the weekend's 3-point shooting contest but was eliminated in the second round.

National Signing Day

Welcome Evan Anderson, Josh Gasser and last-minute commitment Duje Dukan to the Wisconsin family officially as all three signed their national Letters of Intent today. Dukan verballed to Bo Ryan on Tuesday to give the Class of 2010 one ballhandler, one shooter and one big man. The class is not wowing the media, but a classic and balanced group of Badgers.

While in past seasons Wisconsin has been ahead of the curve in recruiting, the team only has one 2011 verbal commitment at this time, with many more scholarship spots to fill. In addition to this year's high school juniors, the staff will be hitting the pavement hard in the 2012 class as well, going after guys like Peoria's Bobo Drummond.

And, oh yeah, Wisconsin spanked UW-Superior in their final exhibition tune-up on Wednesday, 80-47, behind the near triple-double of Trevon Hughes. [box score] I don't put much stock in these exhibition games. Since I didn't follow the game I cannot comment on it, but the regular season is now just a few days away.

I was not able to catch the game since I am in New York all week, but I was able to watch ex-Badger Marcus Landry for the first time as an NBA player. It was also my first trip to the basketball mecca that is Madison Square Garden. The New York Knicks found another way to give a game away. Landry saw action in the final minute or so, and thankfully avoided entry into Club Trillion. He played just enough to commit one foul, corral one rebound and hoist one jumper. It was a good time -- $10 tickets and plenty of room to maneuver courtside after halftime.

On a final NBA note, Milwaukee rookie Brandon Jennings continues to remove all doubt that he will be a star in this league, scoring 32 points in a win over Denver. Most of the internet is abuzz over this early candidate for Rookie of the Year [video], though not all agree. Jennings he may end up being a shoot-first point guard, but so what? He is actually bringing *gasp* excitement back into the Bucks equation. I would buy a ticket to a "Jennings game" any day over a "Michael Redd game."

Update: Pro Badgers Around the Globe

Since everyone has been keeping an eye on Marcus Landry's attempt to stick on an NBA roster, it seemed like a pretty good time to review which ex-Badgers are still playing professionally:

Marcus Landry
- After finishing up the preseason schedule, Landry will find out Monday if he will be staying with the New York Knicks. The Knicks currently have 13 players with guaranteed contracts and Landry is up against two other players with partially guaranteed contracts -- Joe Crawford and Chris Hunter -- for the final roster spot. Keep your fingers crossed. [edit: He made it!]

Greg Stiemsma
- Stiemsma played in South Korea, Turkey and the D-League last year and has been in Sioux Falls, SD, and the Madison area this month. According to reader Stephen Chung, however, Stiemsma was the #2 overall pick in the Korean Professional Basketball League's international player draft this summer. If you have a Korean character set installed on your 'puter and speak Korean, here's an article!

Brian Butch
- Butch landed in Athens, Greece and got off to a decent start the other day. His coach with the Ilysiakos club has instructed him to only shoot 3-pointers! You can follow the Polar Bear's adjustment to Greek living on his Jump Around blog for the Big Ten Network.

Michael Flowers
- Flowers is ballin' in Holland with Matrixx Magix Nijmegen. He's teammates with the Great White Flight, Henry Bekkering. Brother Jonte is doing well in France's top league. [stats]

Alando Tucker
- Tucker is struggling to find his stroke and playing time in the preseason. [stats]

Kam Taylor
- Kam is killin' it in France with STB Le Havre, which I believe is in the top French league also. After three games, Taylor is one of the league's scoring leaders. [stats]

Mike Wilkinson
- Wilkinson is back in Turkey after a year in Russia.

Devin Harris
- Harris is injured (strained groin) ... again. But you can buy a personal appearance -- and Nets tickets -- for $25,000!

Kirk Penney
- In case you had not heard, Penney was the Australian National Basketball League MVP last season. He is playing with the New Zealand Breakers again this season.

Michael Finley
- Meanwhile, Finley scored 20 points the other night to lead San Antonio to victory. His game has aged quite nicely.

Others
- Jason Chappell (Austria), Ray Nixon (France), Zach Morley (Spain), Rashard Griffith (Romania)

Summer Furlough

It has been well over a month since the last update here. I've sat on some of the recent summer topics, so let's review a few of the things I have not been posting about:

Football roundtable
I like sticking strictly to the hardwood, but I did participate in a Badger football preseason roundtable with some fellow UW bloggers. Part one covers the offense and part two covers the defense (part three is in the works as well). Check it out if you are so inclined. Special thanks to Duff Beach at On Wisconsin! for extending the invite and putting this together along with Adam Hoge of Bucky's 5th Quarter. All I have to say is ... I am waiting 'til next year for the gridders. And I mean that in a good way.

NBA Summer League
Marcus Landry made a name for himself in the NBA's Summer League by catching fire from long-range and generally making an impact with the Sacramento Kings. Cowbell Kingdom called him the most reliable outside shooter on the squad. Landry had nothing to lose and just might have earned a training camp spot.

The team didn't win much, but Landry shot 48.5% from the field and hit 10-of-24 from behind the arc in about 20 mpg. This in addition to a handful of block and rebounds--not bad for a non-drafted invitee, eh? [video interview]

On the other end of the spectrum, Joe Krabbenhoft got the invite to Portland's summer squad but barely got off the bench. Greg Stiemsma had one decent appearance with Memphis, but fared only slightly better than Krabby in terms of playing time.

Vander Blue attends summer school
The news that Madison prep hero Vander Blue was attending classes this summer seemed to renew hope that he may still be a Wisconsin lean. But the speculation is just that, as traditional western powers Arizona and UCLA are now very involved and on his list of three or four campuses to visit. Florida also appears to be a likely finalist for Blue's talents.

The senior-to-be continued to perform well on the grassroots scene despite skipping a few events to focus on his academics. Blue continues to play things close to the vest, as he should. As his grandfather stated, when Blue gets cleared to play D1 ball as a college freshman (hopefully with a good ACT score later this month and other fulfilled requirements) we will hear a lot more on this subject, starting in September most likely.

Cameron Wright now holds a slew of big-time offers of his own and should not be considered Plan B for the Badgers ... they would be fortunate to get either kid for 2010. The catch-22 is that the true "Plan Bs" are beginning to make their final decisions too and may be off the market if eith Blue or Wright spurns Bo at the last moment. Port Washington's Josh Gasser is getting ACC and Pac-10 offers at this point after being told he could walk on at Wisconsin. Players like Darren Tillman and Darryl Trayham have been mentioned in this class, but not repeatedly. Rather that scrambling for scraps, perhaps the program would hold the scholarship for 2011 (more below), especially if Diamond Taylor is a redshirt candidate this season.

U.S. falls short in World University Games
In July, Bo Ryan appeared to be cruising to the gold medal game of the World University Games, before his team collapsed against Russia in the fourth quarter. Team USA held a 10-point lead through much of the game and led by six with 2:30 left. Do you think that reopened some old wounds from last season for the coach?

Clemson's Trevor Booker went 0-for-4 from the free throw line, part of a 20-for-31 team performance in the semifinal game [box score]. After starring for most of the tournament, Penn State's Talor Battle shot 9% from the field. Sadly, Purdue's Robbie Hummel summed things up:

"We didn't give enough to win. Russia played harder than we did, and we didn't get some calls, but that's the way the game goes. It was a very tough loss, and we are all very disappointed."

Team USA settled for an anticlimactic victory over Israel to claim bronze in an extremely hostile environment. It would have been nice for Bo to grab the gold and get a little publicity nationwide for how he runs things here at Wisconsin. But considering how little these games were even covered (ESPN did not even run scores for the tourney until USA's loss), it's not a big deal. Though the Americans seemed destined for a rubber match with Serbia, the host Serbs wound up with the gold as many expected. At least Bo got to teach a coaching clinic while abroad.

I bet Bo wished he still had some of those WUG big men on his roster when he returned to Madison. Bo did work closely with Big Ten adversaries Battle, Hummel and Evan Turner, which I suppose could give him at least one additional nugget of insight when Wisconsin plays one of their teams this season. And in turn, Turner said he learned patience from the ordeal.

With such a deep team, the scoring and rebounding was very balanced in typical Wisconsin style. Individually, Team USA players excelled in two areas. West Virginia's De'Sean Butler and Battle were both in the top eight for 3PT% while Turner (#4) and Hummel (#10) both had great assist-turnover ratios for the tournament.

New recruiting targets emerge
Wisconsin has at least expressed interest in D.C.-area sophomore Darion Atkins. Atkins is a 6'7" center who probably projects as a forward at the collegiate level. It's possible the staff first caught wind of him as they kept tabs on Jeremy Glover, since Flint Hill played Atkins' Landon School team last season.

Darion Atkins, F - Rivals :: Scout :: stats

The talent in Ohio continues to capture the attention of Bo Ryan and his staff. The signing of Rob Wilson last year seemingly opened some connections in the state as several Class of 2011 guards have seen their names pop up in conjunction with UW's recruiting efforts.

Trey Burke, G - Rivals :: Scout :: ESPN :: stats
Trey Lewis, G - Rivals :: ESPN :: stats
Traveon Jackson, G - Rivals :: ESPN :: stats
Jakarr Sampson, F - Rivals :: Scout :: ESPN :: stats

In addition, two guards from Rockford in the 2012 class, Austin Angel and Fred Van Vleet, are on the radar.

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Removed the following prospects from the recruiting sidebar:
: : : Class of 2009
F Mike Bruesewitz, Minneapolis
SG Diamond Taylor, Chicago
SG Jeremy Glover, Oakton VA [+]
: : : Class of 2010
F Kyle Kelm, Randolph WI
: : : Class of 2011
G Nick Latzke, Minneapolis
PF Mike Shaw, Chicago [v]
F Wayne Blackshear, Chicago

Landry at Portsmouth; Bennett on the Radio

At the same venue where his older brother Carl really earned his first NBA paycheck, Marcus Landry is getting one shot to prove his worth too.

No one expects the NBA to start banging down Landry's door. He still lacks a profile on DraftExpress.com. Though the goggled one shot only 5-of-14 from the field in his first action at the Portsmouth Invitational on Thursday night, he did manage 13 points & 7 rebounds (3 offensive) in 26 minutes. He took six 3-pointers, making a pair in the first half. By scouring the play-by-play, I see Landry missed a couple layups but did have a steal + finish in the second half while his team, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, was blowing the doors off the competition.

Landry's teammates include 6'6" B.J. Raymond (Xavier), 6'10" Alade Aminu (Georgia Tech) and another pair of 6'8" forwards. Statistically, Raymond was very efficient with 19 points, 4 treys and 3 steals. Physically, the former Musketeer has been knocked for his athleticism, but is of a similar build as Landry. So Landry will have his work cut out for him trying to outshine Raymond in this setting.

The team will play two more games this weekend. Marquette's Wes Matthews is also in Virginia, while Dominic James declined.

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One tidbit I forgot to post yesterday was an interview Lance Davis did with former Wisconsin head coach Dick Bennett on ESPN Radio's "The Badger Hour" a few days ago. According to Bennett himself, he has not followed the men's basketball team ... at all. He was caught up in watching teams out West, which is understandable, and even lending a hand with the Wisconsin women's team that his daughter Kathi helps coach now.

In the 22-minute interview, Bennett sheds some light on several subjects such as his relationship with both Roy Williams and Bo Ryan, Terry Porter's mental toughness, and Tony Bennett's new gig at Virginia. Bennett obviously supports Tony's move and believes the ACC is consistently the best basketball conference in the country. He also said he "will not rest" until Brad Soderberg gets another head coaching job. In retrospect, he is truly haunted by how his final season in Madison unfolded. For anyone familiar with Bennett, this is old hat, but it is almost scary how heavy that weighs on him to this day.

Give the Big Ten a Gold Star

I was impressed with Penn State's perseverance tonight in digging out the NIT championship against Baylor. Just another example of the Big Ten's strength this year. Can you believe the Nittany Lions finished with 27 wins?!

More specifically, I was impressed with Jamelle Cornley. The undersized, injury-plagued senior forward was a great representative for the Big Ten Conference. He must have gotten the memo. Cornley turned in some gritty performances in the NIT after hurting his shoulder. Penn State will miss his game enormously next year.

Penn State also loses two other seniors who logged a lot of time in Happy Valley in Stanley Pringle and Danny Morrissey. The team loses almost half of its scoring and a third of its rebounding with those three, so I am not sure where the Nitts will fall in the conference pecking order next season. Battle returns of course, and Penn State also has a pair of big, long bodies in Andrew Jones and Jeff Brooks that flashed potential.

As for the real tournament, the Big Ten would have been expected to post a 6-7 record based on seeding alone, but has already secured a winning record thanks to the run by Michigan State. Add an 8-7 record (or maybe even 10-6 if MSU gets crazy) in the NCAA Tournament to Penn State's postseason success, and you almost forget about Indiana's epically embarrassing season and Iowa's impending disaster.

The future looks bright for the conference despite not having any incoming McDonald's All-Americans. The all-conference team was littered with sophomore stars, so keep an eye on April 26 -- the deadline for early entrants to declare for the NBA Draft. Purdue's JuJuan Johnson has already announced he will be back (as expected), while Ohio State's Evan Turner seems the most likely to bolt.

Marcus Landry is in Detroit as I type this, awaiting his chance to display his skills in the NABC College All-Star Game on Friday night. After that, Landry's next stop will be the Portsmouth Invitational event out in Virginia next week to see if he can get any indications that an NBA team might want to take a chance on him. Best of luck to him. Joe Krabbenhoft must settle for getting bashed (along with his father) in the comments section on a hometown newspaper site. Unbelievable ...

So the question is, can I root for Michigan State this weekend? In a word, yes. With conference pride. And also because it helps my ridiculous bracket.

Wisconsin Gets X'd Out

The Xavier Musketeers gave the Badgers a harsh reminder about what elite defense looks like when they put the clamps on Trevon Hughes and company in the second half of Sunday's battle, thus denying Wisconsin a return trip to the Sweet 16.

Wisconsin's apex in the game was the 16-6 run by Hughes and Marcus Landry over a six-minute stretch that spanned the halftime break. However, the 33-26 lead disappeared slowly over the subsequent seven-minute scoring drought.

Even though Wisconsin already finished behind three of the other top defensive teams in the nation during the Big Ten season (with a combined 1-4 record), it had the distinct displeasure of running into two more of the season's best in back-to-back tournament games. Contrast that to last season's run as a higher seed where UW (the second-best defensive team according to Pomeroy rankings) got to play against three teams more known for their offense.

The Badgercentric blog sums up a few other thoughts on Wisconsin's demise. The Badgers missed far too many makeable shots, despite Landry's best efforts. Wisconsin shot 28.6% on the day and only 3-of-20 from long distance. Xavier was suffocating, especially to Jason Bohannon.

I give Xavier a lot of credit, but I still think Hughes and Keaton Nankivil need to finish better near the rim that they did against the X-men for this team to advance any further next season. I absolutely loved Pop's aggressiveness going to the hole and would love to see "NCAA Hughes" show up for the entirety of his senior season. Hughes finished 11-of-13 from the line for a total of 17 points, despite missing all seven 3-point attempts and hitting only 3-of-16 from the field (some of those were garbage shots in the final minute).

To keep the theme going, the X-factor in the game might have been Xavier's freshman center Kenny Frease. The seven-footer scored Xavier's first three points after four minutes of spinning its wheels. Then down the second half stretch, Frease twice drew "and-ones" at crucial moments to reverse any semblance of Badger momentum.

Frease is still pretty raw, but it was a blatant tragedy that the 6'6" Landry had to guard that giant. Not too many teams have the personnel to match those 265 pounds in the post. The shame is that Wisconsin is one of those teams. But both of the aircraft carriers on UW's bench lack either skill or experience ... or more frightening, both.

Landry held his own otherwise, as predicted. He completed his excellent Badger career quite respectably with 18 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and one block. [box score] The Goggled One finishes fifth in career blocked shots with 99 and tied for eighth with 181 offensive rebounds.

Things probably could not have gone worse on the court for Joe Krabbenhoft. Krabby fouled out with zero points and was pretty invisible. Despite a forgettable final game, I look foward to seeing Joe on the sidelines someday for a college team that visits the Kohl Center, or even better, on the UW staff. Krabbenhoft was a great leader and one of the winningest Badgers of all time.

In the end, Xavier out-Badgered the Badgers. The Musketeers were deeper and more skilled and it will be easy to cheer for those guys to win out.

From Now On, Everything Is Icing

More than 24 hours have passed since Wisconsin's most gratifying win of the season. Beating 5-seed Florida State was not an improbable victory, but at halftime it sure seemed like it. And considering the team's hot and cold resolve in late-game situations, I don't think anyone really expected a repeat of the Virginia Tech finish.

But that's what Trevon Hughes gave us. He is an ACC killer. Pop showed the ultimate level of toughness by hanging in over the course of 45 minutes in a game where he made decisions (4 TOs, two critical missed FTs) even he termed "bonehead plays."

"He was really strong with the ball on that particular play," said Marcus Landry. I agree.



In the locker room after the game, footage shows a mix of youthful excitement and flat out relief from some of the players.

For me, Wisconsin missing the tournament would have been confirmation of a disappointing season. By winning one in Boise already, the season is officially a success in my eyes. A fine line isn't it? Not only did the team give Bo Ryan his first coaching victory over a better seed, but the Badgers may have gotten a bit of their end of the game mojo back.

Toney Douglas is a heck of a player. Wow. But Florida State turned out to be just a two-trick pony.

After leading the team with an impassioned halftime talk, Joe Krabbenhoft got a steal and a big 3-pointer to start an incredible 13-0 run. Following Krabby's lead, Wisconsin came out to start the second half as a team. Keaton Nankivil rose from anonymity again. His eight straight points capped the run to give the Badgers a 32-31 lead with 14:40 remaining. At that point, it was a brand new ballgame and a breath of fresh air. [box score]

Nankivil finished with 14 points off the bench and thankfully Bo stuck with him despite some foul trouble. Besides the ankle injury, defensive consistency and overall intensity is what has kept the sophomore off the floor even as fans have been clamoring for him to get more playing time.

"He was tough. Knocked down some shots. Got some confidence going," Ryan said of Nankivil after the game. "I think he was even talking to himself when he went down the court a couple times. Did you see the lips moving? He wasn't trash talking, that's Keaton getting himself going. We knew we had him ready then."

Even so, Wisconsin needed clutch outside shooting from Jason Bohannon to make up the seven-point deficit it faced with five minutes to play in regulation. Again, an impressive display of mental toughness and persistence by the team. Then, when J-Bo hit the first shot of overtime form behind the arc, we started to believe.

Thanks to UW and Michigan, the Big Ten more than held it's own in round one despite Illinois and Ohio State losing. The conference posted a 4-3 record despite having four teams seeded 8th, 10th, 10th and 12th. Since then, Purdue won a second-round game as the Big Ten creeps closer to topping postseason expectations. A sweep by Michigan State and Wisconsin today would guarantee it.

As I expressed earlier, any more wins at this point are gravy. Xavier is a tough, well-coached major conference program stuck in the "mid-major" Atlantic 10 conference. The Musketeers will not be as long along the frontline as the Seminoles were however, which is why I have a feeling Old Man Landry will be a key factor in any success the Badgers have. He needs to rediscover that baseline spin move that served him well through his first three seasons at Wisconsin.

Speaking of Landry's senior season, he needs four more blocked shots to tie Kurt Portmann for fourth place all-time in Badger history. He needs three more offensive rebounds to pass Patrick Tompkins on the career offensive rebounding list.

As we update the seniors' progress on Record Watch, congratulations are in order for Hughes also, who sneaked onto Wisconsin's top ten in career steals in the past few games, passing Wes Matthews. Pop should be able to climb several more places next season.

Player - Career Rebounds (Season Total)
5. Kim Hughes - 806
6. Alando Tucker - 769
7. Joe Krabbenhoft - 753 (217)

Player - Career Off Rebs (Season Total)
2. Mike Wilkinson - 311
3. Andy Kowske - 240
4. Joe Krabbenhoft - 231 (60)
5. Sean Daugherty - 227
6. Brian Butch - 222
7. Michael Finley: 205
8. Patrick Tompkins: 181
9. Marcus Landry: 179 (51)

Player - Career Blocks (Season Total)
3. Mike Wilkinson - 117
4. Kurt Portmann - 102
5. Marcus Landry - 98 (34)

Links:
- Madison Memorial makes good on Jeronne Maymon's vow to win a state title.
- Talk about bad timing. Officials wait until the state tournament to let a Chicago high school powerhouse know about their "illegal" uniforms, which may have cost them a championship.

Brackets and Award Winners Set in Stone

Wisconsin secures a fourth-place finish, thanks to tiebreakers
Playing Indiana was a fitting conclusion to the regular season, akin to Wisconsin going out and buying a snazzy new suit before the Big Dance. The Badgers looked great.

Wisconsin posted a season-best 140.5 offensive efficiency rating against Indiana, which is great since the Badgers allowed the Hoosiers to shoot 54% from the field. For once, the scrubs even extended an already sizable lead. Eleven different Badgers scored, including senior walk-on and secret blog favorite Morris Cain. Kevin Gullikson also played one of his best games ever. [box score]

Joe Krabbenhoft finished up his Kohl Center strongly, with a career-high 19 points and nine boards. Thanks for being a rebounding machine for the past four years Joe! Fellow senior Marcus Landry suffered four turnovers, but grabbed seven rebounds of his owned and tied a career high with six assists. Trevon Hughes added five steals.

But the snazzy suit UW dressed up in on Sunday didn't cover up all the pimples. A pair of freshman guards from Indiana (Verdell Jones and Nick Williams) torched the Badgers for 43 points on 13-of-19 shooting. Driving the lane and getting off good shots was just too easy a task for those two. I guess we should expect that sort of thing from UW at this point, but I was a little surprised how easily Jones burned Pop at times.

More importantly, though, the win wrapped up a "bye" into the Big Ten Tournament's semifinal round, thanks to Iowa's weekend upset of Penn State (which, oddly enough, also put an end to the craziest of the final week's conference standing scenarios). Wisconsin will play as the #4 seed versus Ohio State on Friday at 1:30 p.m. CDT. If they win, the Badgers would play either Michigan State (1), Minnesota (8) or Northwestern (9).

Minnesota has tortured this particular fan enough for one season and I want nothing to do with the Gophers as a potential Saturday foe. Assuming Wisconsin is a lock to make the tournament, a chance to upset the Spartans and improve its tourney seeding would be a great opportunity, especially since the Badgers gave one away earlier in the year to Tom Izzo & Co.

All-Big Ten picks revealed
Izzo was named Coach of the Year by the coaches as the Big Ten Network unveiled the conference's postseason awards. I thought Penn State's Ed DeChellis deserved the award and apparently the media agreed.

Beyond the coaches, the all-conference selections appeared fairly on point. I thought Krabbenhoft could have gotten a third-team nod, but Marcus Landry was the only Badger to be named to the all-conference second (coaches) or third (media) teams. I agree that Landry was the most consistent of the four Badger leaders.

Krabby and Hughes managed honorable mention nods from the media, but Joe was conspicuously absent from the same list by the coaches.

It was a foregone conclusion that the Wisconsin+Bo Ryan streak of consecutive first-team All-Big Ten selections was going to end after such an up-and-down season. In my opinion, it will be tough for Wisconsin to start another streak like this seeing as all five of the first-teamers were sophomores. In all, nine of the 15 players named all-conference were in only their second season of Big Ten play. Sure Hughes or Leuer could blow up next year, but it will take some major improvement. All in all, this is a huge positive for the conference though.

Michigan State cleaned up the awards, with Kalin Lucas winning a well-deserved Big Ten Player of the Year trophy. However, if I had a vote, I would have given Damian Johnson the defensive player of the year award over MSU's Travis Walton. Remarkably, Johnson was in the top 30 nationally in both steal % and block %.

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Links:
- Binghamton's top player gets blackballed by America East coaches in all-conference voting. Yet the coaches and athletic directors protested Coach Kevin Broadus' recruiting methods by naming him Coach of the Year?
- St. Mary's -- even with Patrick Mills back -- lost big to Gonzaga. But thanks to some heads-up scheduling, the Gaels get one last tune-up before the NCAAs.
- If you missed it, enjoy Wisconsin's video Senior Salute to this year's four-man graduating class.
- Mild Racine-Oregon connections lead to mild upset in the Jamil Wilson sweepstakes.

Badgers Marching Forward

Watching Wisconsin come out with guns blazing had me on the edge of my couch last night even though I was catching the Big Ten Network replay of the game. I already knew which team had won. Regardless, Marcus Landry was dishing to a cutting Trevon Hughes and Jon Leuer was looking like Hakeem Olajuwon inside as Wisconsin built and maintained an eight- or nine-point lead in the game's first 13 minutes.

Then the Wolverines switched out of the 2-3 zone that the Badgers had shredded and into the 1-3-1. Wisconsin started throwing the ball out of bounds at times. And not only was Manny Harris active, but he was opening things up for his teammates offesnively. DeShawn Sims and C.J. Lee combined to score 14 points in a short span that saw Michigan take a 34-32 lead into the locker room.

So when UW put the clamps on Big Blue (only two points in the first 9:58 of the second half), my body decided it was lights out. Yeah, I missed out on how tight the game ended up. I missed Landry's continued clutch play, whether is be his passing (5 assts) or hard-earned 3-point plays. On the bright side, catching some shut-eye on the couch allowed me to bypass the shaky free throw shooting and an infuriating foul by Hughes.

Missing the drama of the 60-55 final just brought me back to earth. It was a game Wisconsin (18-10, 9-7) was supposed to win anyway. The Badgers have now won six of seven games since Leuer supplanted Keaton Nankivil as the fifth starter.

After getting shut out of the rebounding column in the loss to Michigan State, Joe Krabbenhoft was a man possessed against the Wolverines, hauling in 11 boards to pace the Badgers. [box score] Thanks in large part to Krabbenhoft's efforts, Wisconsin held a significant advantage on the glass over Michigan. Wisconsin simply matches up well with Michigan since the Wolverines are a perimeter-oriented team that lacks the inside fortitude to turn UW's lack of true height into a negative.

Besides the foul, Hughes somehow finished with zero assists and three turnovers. But Pop was an ultra-efficient 7-of-11 from the field in accumulating a game-high 19 points.

The win sets up one of the more anticipated rematches of the Big Ten season. When Minnesota ripped a win out of Wisconsin's grasp at the Kohl Center in mid-January, it sent the Badgers into a tailspin the likes of which Bo Ryan has never experienced in Madison before. The Gophers were riding high at 16-1. How times have changed.

Minnesota is only 4-7 since that fateful Thursday night, while Wisconsin has gone 6-5. Oddly, even with 20 wins, Minnesota may need this win more than Wisconsin. The victory over Louisville and at Wisconsin are the marquee feathers in Minnesota's cap, tempered by the team's soft non-conference schedule.

On Sunday, Krabbenhoft passed Larry Petty and likely cemented his place (7th) on Wisconsin's career rebounding ladder. Likewise, Landry surpassed Greg Stiemsma in career blocked shots at Wisconsin. I actually thought Landry should have been credited with one more block, but oh well. Goggles is only six blocks away from moving into fourth place all-time in school history. Both Krabby and Landry will move up a spot or two on the all-time offensive rebounding list before season's end.

Player - Career Rebounds (Season Total)
5. Kim Hughes - 806
6. Alando Tucker - 769
7. Joe Krabbenhoft - 719 (183)

Player - Career Off Rebs (Season Total)
1. Alando Tucker - 314

2. Mike Wilkinson - 311

3. Andy Kowske - 240
4. Sean Daugherty - 227

5. Joe Krabbenhoft - 223 (52)

6. Brian Butch - 222

7. Michael Finley: 205

8. Patrick Tompkins: 181
9. Willie Simms: 176
10. Marcus Landry: 173 (45)

Player - Career Blocks (Season Total)
3. Mike Wilkinson - 117
4. Kurt Portmann - 102
5. Marcus Landry - 97 (33)

Hawkeye Down

Iowa certainly delivered one of the lowest moments of Wisconsin's season in Iowa City, but the Badgers shot down the Hawkeyes for a measure of payback on Wednesday night. Wisconsin's upperclassmen took turns picking apart the Iowa defense, leading to an enjoyable 69-52 win.

Statistically Wisconsin led Iowa in every traditional category, including all three shooting percentage stats. The team was especially effective converting buckets after Iowa turnovers. [box score] And the best part about watching it from the comfort of my own home was that the totally worthless "stand up old people" chant by the student section was barely audible!

In the first half, the junior back court of Jason Bohannon and Trevon Hughes combined for 21 of the team's 36 points on a mercurial 8-of-13 shooting from the field (3-of-4 on treys) and five assists. Hughes finished with 6 assists, 2 steals and only 1 TO. Hard to believe, but the assist total was a career-high for Pop. Bohannon, on the other hand, has now nailed 14-of-19 (73.6%) from 3-point land in the last four games. Keep your fingers crossed for more of that.

After the halftime break, Marcus Landry came to life and Joe Krabbenhoft continued to put in a full day's work. The senior forwards totaled 16 of UW's 33 second-half points. Landry surpassed the 1,000-point plateau for his career, but it was Krabby's aggressiveness on offense that helped subdue any hopes Iowa had of pulling an upset. He finished with a team-high 16 points.

Jon Leuer looked really comfortable working the glass against Iowa's big men and grabbed eight rebounds.

Iowa seems to have uncovered a really nice player in sophomore Jake Kelly. Kelly is extremely quick with the ball; he shook Hughes on a few occasions. His 17 points were the bright spot for Todd Lickliter's crew.

Yesterday, the Wisconsin State Journal had a nice article on the progress made by the fifth upperclassmen in Bo Ryan's rotation: Kevin Gullikson. With the return of Keaton Nankivil, Gully is bound to see a decrease in minutes. However, unless his superior post entry passing ability magically transfers to someone else, Gullikson will still have a place on the floor from time to time.

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I had to chuckle at a few whistles in this game. Two of Jordan Taylor's fouls were complete and utter whiffs by the officials. The first was when one of the Hawkeyes stumbled after getting an offensive rebound and JT just happened to be in the vicinity. The second time, Taylor was playing defense on a drive but did not appear to even touch the player in question. He left the floor amazed that he had to explain himself to Greg Gard.

In Iowa's defense, when Kelly (or was it Gatens?) dove to the floor to save the ball after it was stripped by Krabbenhoft he never hit touched the end line. The referee had a different idea.

Record Watch Update

Senior Marcus Landry's lone blocked shot against Purdue tied him with Louis Ely for seventh all-time in Wisconsin history. He has already surpassed his total from all of last season. Landry has 92 career blocks and at least 11 more games to play. Earlier this season, he also moved into 10th place among all Badgers in offensive rebounds, with 160.

Player - Career Blocks (Season Total)
4. Kurt Portmann - 102
5. Greg Stiemsma - 96
6. J.J. Weber - 95
7. Marcus Landry - 92 (28)
7. Louis Ely - 92

Player - Career Off Rebs (Season Total)
8. Patrick Tompkins: 181
9. Willie Simms: 176
10. Marcus Landry: 160 (32)

Classmate Joe Krabbenhoft pulled down six defensive rebounds in the game to break out of a tie with Brian Butch for ninth place all-time on the total rebounding ladder. He did not have an offensive board against the Boilermakers, but grabbed three against Illinois to move into a sixth-place tie with Michael Finley on the career list of offensive rebounders.

Player - Career Rebounds (Season Total)
6. Alando Tucker - 769
7. Larry Petty - 718
8. Dale Koehler - 680
9. Joe Krabbenhoft - 673 (137)

Player - Career Off Rebs (Season Total)
4. Sean Daugherty - 227
5. Brian Butch - 222
6. Joe Krabbenhoft - 205 (34)
6. Michael Finley - 205

Wisconsin Attempts to Cap Big Ten's Big Day

Perhaps building on its decent showing against the ACC last week, the Big Ten posted a number of impressive victories on Saturday, highlighted by two humongous upsets.

Michigan's shocking win over Duke at Crisler Arena took the cake, but was followed minutes later by Ohio State hanging on to topple Notre Dame (in Indianapolis with Luke Harangody). [box score]

Now the stage is set for Wisconsin to complete a nearly flawless day for the conference. Minnesota stayed undefeated in a blowout, Illinois crushed Georgia and Northwestern nearly doubled-up DePaul. Those three teams won by a total of 78 points! Just ignore woeful Indiana's unsurprising loss to Gonzaga. In fact, just ignore the Hoosiers until next year.

I had to chuckle the other day reading on Inside The Hall about an obscure ACC rule that brought the Wake Forest-Indiana blogging to a halt during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Wisconsin's trip to Marquette would be the perfect time for a live blogging event, but alas, I do not get ESPNU and will have to find a stool at a local establishment. Rather than rehash a "cable or satellite" vent, I started thinking about the these two teams that are usually polar opposites in terms of style.

However, there are eerie similarities as well. Both Wisconsin and Marquette like to go small (one by preference, one out of necessity). Both teams have four entrenched upperclassmen in the starting lineup, with one big man starting almost by default. And when looking at individual matchups--for entertainment purposes only--you see four of the important players really mirror each other.

The Tale of the Tape:
Trevon Hughes vs. Dominic James

Marcus Landry vs. Lazar Hayward

... even down to the lowly centers:

Keaton Nankivil vs. Dwight Burke

There are eerie similarities between Pop and James, both in stature and production. James is a better distributor statistically, especially this year, and also registers more steals. Hughes shoots a far greater percentage for the Badgers and is less turnover-prone, exemplifying the different coaching philosophies.

Landry and Hayward is a fun comparison because their career progressions have gone in opposite directions. Landry began as strictly a post player who moved his game out to the perimeter (with moderate success) to try to fill Alando Tucker's shoes. Marquette, on the other hand, has been forced to use their athletic swingman down low more and more because the Gold lack any size.

Regardless, Hayward scores more in fewer minutes than Landry, probably due to his prolific rebounding ability and Marquette's faster pace. While Landry needs to improve his free throw shooting, he vastly outpaces Hayward when it comes to blocked shots and 3-point percentage. Hopefully the two will guard each other during the game.

Cracked Sidewalks has compiled a nice list of game previews in its pregame coverage post. Check it out for the Marquette perspective of Buzz Williams' first game against Bo Ryan.

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If Friday night is any indication, UW recruit Vander Blue could be a huge beneficiary of high school defenses geared to stop Marquette recruit Jeronne Maymon this year. Blue torched Madison West for 27 points on six 3-pointers in Memorial's season opener.

Paradise Jam Continues

Wisconsin survived some choppy waters this weekend, but is on course to win another Paradise Jam tournament title. The team's reward for winning two straight on the island is a game with #2 Connecticut on Monday night.

The quest began with a knock down, drag out nail biter on Friday night when UW barely escaped the matchbox gym with a 60-58 overtime win against Iona. The Badgers were lucky to survive their 19 turnovers, but were never able to get into a good flow due to tons of physical defense by the Gaels and terribly inconsistent officiating. Winning a game like that has to give you faith in UW's ability to close out games under adversity. [box score]

Tonight, Wisconsin toppled San Diego, 64-49. Topping the Toreros seemed easier thanks to much better Badger shooting (48.8%). Without DirectTV's Sports Pack, I followed the game via Patrick Herb's live blog at uwbadgers.com. Herb's blogging during the Iona game also probably was the best source of info on the opening round action too, where UW shot only 27.3% in the second half.

Trevon Hughes has been the engine for Wisconsin so far in the Virgin Islands. He led all scorers with 21 points against Iona, hitting 11-of-12 free throws. Against San Diego, he again paced both sides with 22 points (8-11 FGs, 2-4 3s). [box score]

The tourney appears to be a coming out party for Tim Jarmusz. Foul trouble plagued Jon Leuer and Marcus Landry on Friday, but Jarmusz put in 30 minutes of great work. His best attributes continue to be hitting timely 3-pointers, drawing fouls and diving for loose balls -- which provides UW with some very important extra possessions. It is uncanny how Jarmusz is always "mixing it up." It was good to see Keaton Nankivil bust loose a little with 8 rebounds in the first game and 10 points tonight.

There were a few concerns, of course. The statistics do not really reflect the struggles at the charity stripe, as several different players missed front ends of bonus opportunities. Jason Bohannon has really struggled with his shot, shooting a combined 5-of-22 so far. And as a team, the threes are not dropping: 5-of-21 vs. Iona, 5-of-16 vs. San Diego = 27%.

Landry bounced back to lead the team in rebounds (7), assists (6), and blocked shots (5) versus the Toreros.

Moving on, the championship should be a great game to watch. This will be the fourth time under Bo Ryan that the Badgers have faced a team ranked second in the AP poll. My expectations are lower than the ones I had for last year's Duke game, but now that the match up is set I am definitely stoked. The Huskies have a phenomenal freshman point guard, Kemba Walker, to add to senior A.J. Price this year. Even though Pop is hot right now, he will need a lot of help.

I love the matchup between Jeff Adrien and Landry, but am not sure how we will play Hasheem Thabeet. The guy's offense is spotty, but he will be altering every shot in sight. Thabeet already has 12 blocks down there in two games! Bo could try giving some meaningful minutes to one of his own aircraft carriers, like J.P. Gavinski or Ian Markolf, but it probably wouldn't be pretty. I think Leuer is the key offensively and containing UConn's guards a must on defense.

Landry's block count: 8 + 2 (Iona) + 5 (S.D.) = 15 total/79 career*
*Moves into 9th all-time, passing Michael Finley

Redshirting and Player Development

Forgive me if I merely gloss over the recent blowout of SIU-Edwardsville, which was hardly more than a glorified exhibition. Marcus Landry still looks like a beast. He set a personal best for the second game in a row, this time by virtue of his five blocked shots. That gives him eight on the young season, good enough for 72 career blocks (look out Stiemsma). And it was good to see Jon Leuer (19 pts, 8-10 FGs) come alive. It seems like whenever Jordan Taylor finds someone for an alley-oop, the recipient is headed for a banner day.

Since I was not able to watch all of the game, the most interesting tidbit of the night was Ian Markolf getting off the bench for the final two minutes. Jared Berggren was the only eligible Badger to not see the floor, so he remains the final freshmen left to cement his plans to redshirt or not. Was Bo Ryan trying to send a message to the lad in a game where even Morris Cain made two buckets? [box score]

At the very least, we got the answer to the question of whom Bo would turn to first in a pinch for a big body. It is obvious that Berggren would get more out of an extra year of physical seasoning than Markolf. Numerous references have been made to the simple zone defense that Berggren played in at his high school. And look at it this way if you must: if you know only one of the bigs will redshirt, don't you theoretically want your higher-rated recruit in the system for five years, rather than four?

On the flip side, just because a player rides the pine without redshirting (Markolf) does not mean the guy won't end up being a big contributor in a Wisconsin uniform. Last year was the first time in the last five seasons that the Badgers did not have a player using a redshirt. As a result, two post players played less than 4 min/g. Keaton Nankivil averaged a lowly 2.4 min/g in 19 appearances, while redshirt freshman J.P. Gavinski averaged 2.1 min/g in only seven games. The jury is still out on Gavinski but Nankivil is already starting for Wisconsin as a true sophomore.

Including Nankivil, I count three times in Bo's tenure that a scrub big man has gone from a non-factor to major contributor, regardless of redshirt status. The Greg Stiemsma Experience began with a disastrous 2.7 min/g average in 10 games his freshman year. Jason Chappell played a grand total of 11 minutes in eight games in 2002-03, took a medical redshirt the next season and again played 3.4 min/g in 14 appearances the following year. Both Stiemsma and Chappell were valuable pieces in their final campaigns.

This issue rarely raises its head with guards. Because every team is desperate for bigs, you don't find any walk-on big men. Eventually, some program will offer that behemoth a scholarship, so schools offer full rides to pivot projects "just in case" (see Gavinski, J.P.). Only once has a full scholarship guard started out with less than 4 min/g and seen his star rise. That was Kammron Taylor, who struggled through 2.3 min/g of PT in 18 games as a true freshman in 2003-04. Mickey Perry redshirted in 2005-06, but transferred out the next season when he was averaging 3.3 min/g in seven games played. Would he have played eventually? Most likely.*

The bottom line is that guards are naturally inclined to adapt more quickly to the college game. They are more coordinated on average, as many big men are still adjusting to their bodies from crazy growth spurts during their high school careers. Wisconsin is not getting any superstar one-and-done centers, so the staff grabs post players with potential and guards who are ready to play for the most part. And in the event that backcourt depth is needed, the program seems to have decent luck with walk-ons. Clayton Hanson should be an inspiration. Once a member of the dreaded 4 min/g and under club, the Reedsburg Rifle worked his way into 30 min/g his final two seasons, even earning a schollie as a senior, when he helped UW reach the Elite Eight.

*Once again, the departure of DeAaron Williams was the more damaging loss in my opinion. He was definitely in the rotation, albeit the low end, as a redshirt sophomore (2005-06), playing 7.9 min/g.

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Paradise Jam Prep
The Badgers are in the Virgin Islands preparing for their first game in the Paradise Jam tournament against Iona. Wisconsin will play at 7:30 CT tonight and Sunday night, win or lose. You can watch poor quality streaming video right from the tourney's website or wait until Sunday (semifinals) and Monday (finals) which will be broadcast by Fox College Sports and Fox Sports Net respectively.

Only six people voted in the most recent poll for a possible Paradise Jam game being their most anticipated game of the regular season. For one thing, a match up with Connecticut in this tournament is far from guaranteed, given the strength of this year's field. Plus it is still early in the season. Maybe it also has to do with how hard it is to actually catch the games live. By the way, the Texas game at the Kohl Center on Dec. 23 took honors, with 42% of the poll's vote, edging out this year's Marquette game (38%).

I have to give another shout out to Landry, who took the time before the trip to counsel the team's youngest players on the importance of keeping focused on their grades even while taking a business trip to the beach. He knows from personal experience. As predicted, there has been no shortage of ink and copy devoted to Landry's story so far this season.

Landry's Actions Speak Volumes

You hear the term "statement game" from time to time and it is often hard to define. But you know one when you see one. Marcus Landry made a loud statement Sunday afternoon during Wisconsin's season-opening roller coaster of a win against Long Beach State.

Landry's 23-point, three-block performance at the Kohl Center said, in essence, "You can count on me." This was not the same Marcus that got out to slow starts the past two years and traditionally starts out games innocuously. Long Beach Marcus was not laid back, with his mind on his money. He was fired up.

The senior from Milwaukee was money from three-point land though, hitting 3-of-5 smooth-looking shots behind the arc, including the backbreaker off a Trevon Hughes dish with 30 seconds left. Landry beat his chest and flexed occasionally to provide some Tucker-esque leadership. Somewhere, Alando was smiling.

The game will not land on many defensive highlight reels, except for Landry's clutch blocked shots. Overall, it was played at pretty slow pace that seemed to favor the Badgers. However, Wisconsin's defensive efficiency was only 103.2 for the game. Last season, UW went just 5-4 in the nine games it allowed the opponent to post an offensive efficiency over 100. After a hot start, LBSU cooled off from 3-point land (5-for-18 overall), where UW actually had an advantage (8-for-18), which would have you expecting a Badger rout. [box score]

But Wisconsin's entire team gave up too much inside to the relentless 49ers. Eleven of LBSU's 13 second-half field goals were either a lay-up, tip-in or dunk. Landry carried his weight offensively and defensively, but once Keaton Nankivil started to get a little offensive rhythm going, he was back on the bench, presumably because of something he was not doing defensively.

Joe Krabbenhoft had trouble in the second half bottling up guard Donovan Morris, who single-handedly brought his team back to within two, 57-55, with seven minutes remaining. Apparently Jon Leuer, who flew down the lane for an aggressive lay-in earlier on, was not an acceptable answer inside either.

Nope, Tim Jarmusz rounded out the crunch-time lineup. To me, this was an oh-uh moment for Nankivil and Leuer fans. Then again, Jarmusz was the only true freshman that Bo Ryan felt comfortable inserting into close games last season. TJ was his typical, chippy self contributing to another Badger win. Bo admitted after the game that he planned to send Nankivil in, but just couldn't:

"[Jarmusz] was hustling so hard that the guy had to tackle him to keep him from getting to the free throw line. I was going to put Keaton in there right before that but the way Tim was playing and their small line-up and they were running guys off of those screens ... He played big and with that kind of drive and hustle, I couldn’t take him out.”

As for this year's freshman, Bo did not hesitate to insert Jordan Taylor when he saw Hughes make a few wrong moves. Taylor's 15 solid minutes included a beautiful alley-oop pass to Landry right before halftime. It underscores again the faith this coaching staff already has in its freshman floor leader. The knock on Taylor has been that despite being Big Ten-ready right now, he somehow has a limited ceiling. If he proves people wrong on that point each year, Taylor could wind up being one of the best pure point guards Wisconsin has ever seen.

Second Badger Named to Watch List

Trevon Hughes was among the 31 players recently nominated for the Bob Cousy Award*, which goes to the nation's top point guard. Honestly, that's quite an honor considering the struggles Hughes went through last year.

Committee members must have been watching the three gems Hughes delivered against IPFW, Illinois and at Minnesota (the exception being the four turnovers against the Gophers). Taking care of the ball was a central problems in Pop's sophomore season. If you notice, the games in which Hughes was able to limit his turnovers, he was also virtually non-existent offensively -- neither scoring nor assisting others.

Improving on last year's subpar 1.17:1 assist-to-turnover ratio will be the barometer for success with Hughes. If he can turn in more performances like he did last February versus Michigan State, and harness his explosiveness, Hughes will live up to and maybe even surpass the modest preseason hype he has received.

The good news for Hughes came on the heels of Marcus Landry's inclusion on the preseason Wooden Award watch list. Landry and the rest of the big, bad Badgers will take on "lowly" UW-Whitewater in their exhibition finale tonight at the Kohl Center. No one is expecting a stunner like the one UW-Platteville delivered to Bradley this past weekend, but the Warhawks are a legit D3 powerhouse. I guess it's not a bad time to be from Whitewater, eh Stanley?

*Ed. note: The deadline for schools to nominate players for the Cousy Award is Jan. 10, so you will see this list grow quite a bit. Marquette and Michigan State fans can back away from the ledge now ...

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Wednesday is national signing day, which means high school seniors Diamond Taylor and Mike Bruesewitz will officially pledge themselves to the Cardinal and White. Speaking of which, Rob Schultz of the Capital Times digs into the recruiting practices of Wisconsin under Bo Ryan. The article leaves you with an impression of an efficient coaching staff, especially when you see the fiscal comparisons that Schultz uncovered. Of the five Big Ten programs that responded, Ohio State, Indiana, Purdue and Iowa have all spent more than double the dollar amount that Wisconsin has in recruiting for men's basketball over the past two seasons.

With regards to recruiting, the bottom line when discussing the "Wisconsin way" is that Bo would probably rather be a distinguished turtle than a tainted rabbit. Slowly and steadily, Ryan has built the Badger program, avoiding the large character risks and maintaining program-wide morale and camaraderie. He does this by focusing--right away--on players who want to be Badgers; those who don't let their own agendas get in the way of the team's agenda. So while other programs can currently tout better tournament records and Final Fours on their resumes, I have faith that Bo is building for the long haul. Some day, UW will wind up on top of the whole heap, if only for one shining moment.

Cheesy right? Well, this is Wisconsin. Enough rah-rah for now ... I'll save it for tonight's game.

Wisconsin Record Watch

The two seniors from the Class of 2005 each enter this season with their eyes on team goals. But both Joe Krabbenhoft and Marcus Landry have a chance to creep into the Wisconsin record book [pdf] by simply keep up the pace at which they have been producing over the years. Here's a look at a few potential milestones.

Joe Krabbenhoft
With a repeat of last season's performance, Krabbenhoft will place third in all-time offensive rebounding and approximately sixth in total rebounding. Needless to say, Joe's board work has been stellar. The ever-versatile Krabby needs only 87 assists to pass Michael Flowers for ninth place on the all-time assists ladder. Krabbenhoft will probably crack the Top Ten list for most minutes played as well.

Assuming another postseason bid this year, Wisconsin is guaranteed to play 31 games (success in the Paradise Jam, Big Ten Tournament or NCAA Tournament will increase that number). Even though games played is reflection of team success more than any other statistic, it's worth mentioning that if Krabbenhoft plays in every game this season, he will at least tie Alando Tucker for the most games ever played in a Wisconsin men's basketball uniform.

These are but a few reasons why "Dakota Joe" gets the loudest applause from Badger fans.

Year: Off-Def-Total Rebs
'05-06: 45-85 = 130
'06-07: 53-120 = 173
'07-08: 73-160 = 233
======================
Totals: 171-365 = 536*

Assists:
'05-06: 44
'06-07: 58
'07-08: 90
============
Totals: 192**

Minutes played:
'05-06: 505 (16.3/g)
'06-07: 724 (20.1/g)
'07-08: 1118 (31.1/g)
=====================
Totals: 2,347***


Marcus Landry
The academic problem in Landry's sophomore season puts a damper on his chase for a few milestones. Therefore, it is a real tribute to Landry's athleticism that he is knocking on the door of the Top Ten in career blocked shots. Greg Stiemsma finished in 5th place all-time with 96 blocks and Marcus can take a run at that total as a senior since he may be asked to defend the interior more again. Landry also has 132 offensive rebounds so far. If he duplicates last year's total (65) he will place sixth all-time, behind Brian Butch, though his final resting place will depend on Krabbenhoft's totals.

Blocked Shots:
'05-06: 6
'06-07: 31
'07-08: 27
============
Totals: 64****

Year: Off-Def-Total Rebs
'05-06: 22-28 = 50
'06-07: 45-71 = 116
'07-08: 65-129 = 194
======================
Totals: 132-228 = 360*

* Claude Gregory holds the career rebounding record with 902 total career rebounds; Tucker's 314 offensive rebounds are a career Badger record.
** Tracy Webster holds the Badger record with 501 career assists.
*** Tucker also holds the Badger record with 4,247 career minutes played in 4+ seasons.
**** Rashard Griffith holds the Badger record with 124 career blocks in only two seasons.

Media's Preseason Picks Are In

Wisconsin's Marcus Landry was named to the Big Ten's preseason all-conference team by the media this weekend, joining Manny Harris, Raymar Morgan, E'Twaun Moore and preseason POY selection Robbie Hummel.

It appears that Landry's Most Outstanding Player award from last season's Big Ten Tournament has helped distinguish him from the three other heralded upperclassmen returnees in Madison. Landry himself agreed. I am interested to see if the Goggled One can rise to the occasion.

Meanwhile, the media projects UW to finish third in conference play this season, behind Purdue and Michigan State. All three teams should be very solid this season, while the young'ns at Ohio State and Minnesota will determine whether the Big Ten begins its return to glory this season or next.

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The people have spoken. The majority of Hoops Marinara readers prefer Keaton Nankivil over Jon Leuer to start for the Badgers. Nankivil earned 51% of the vote, compared to 35% for Leuer. Nankivil has been getting a lot of attention lately as the one who will fill Brian Butch's shoes initally as the fifth starter. Even Bo Ryan had a few encouraging words about Nankivil in his Wisconsin media day press conference [video] last week.

It will certainly be a group effort, however, including both a more fit (sober?) Kevin Gullikson and J.P. Gavinski -- like it or not. I would not be surprised to see Leuer end up with more minutes played than Nankivil either, as long as Jon can keep his back healthy.