Hey, guys! Looking forward to the game tonight. This game scares the hell out of me because I recognize St. John's length and athleticism.
Wisconsin graduated integral big men from last season in Jared Berggren, Mike Bruesewitz, and Ryan Evans. I think we will miss Berggren the most. He was a very good post-defender and our best big man. We'll miss Bruesewitz's hustle plays. Frank Martin was incredibly complimentary of Bruesewitz following our win over K. State in the 2012 NCAA Tournament, which is telling of his importance. Ryan Evans had a terrific junior season in 2011-2012, but took a giant step back in 2012-2013 and was a complete liability on offense. We will miss his ability as a versatile defender, but not his offensive woes.
Now, in their place, we will have Frank Kaminsky, Sam Dekker, Nigel Hayes, Vitto Brown, Duje Dukan, and Evan Anderson. It is a talented, yet inexperienced front court.
- Kaminsky has been an important contributor since he was a freshman, but is now the starter. How will he adapt? He is a finesse big man with a solid shooting stroke. Can stretch the floor, but is not a knock-down shooter by any stretch.
- Dekker is a heralded sophomore. Came in as a consensus 5* prospect a year ago and expectations were through the roof. He is an incredibly gifted offensive player, but was put on a short leash because of his defense. We were prone to scoring droughts in 2012-2013 and having our most gifted offensive player being on that freshman leash had our fan base playing tug-of-war. It's a new year and Bo Ryan will undoubtedly keep Dekker in there. Behind GRIII and Gary Harris, Dekker is the conference's best pro prospect. Dekker is listed as a forward, but is more of a wing-forward.
- Brown and Hayes are both freshman that have impressed the coaching staff thus far. They are young and both from Ohio. We'll see what each can bring to the table.
- Dukan is a guy that many are intrigued about. His father is the Director of International Scouting for the Chicago Bulls. He is a junior (RS) that has yet to really contribute to the Badgers, but as a 6'8"-6'9" wing with a nice shooting stroke, should provide some stability.
- Anderson had some big-time offers out of high school (Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette), but also hasn't been a large contributor for Wisconsin. His imposing size will provide us with some depth, though. He just needs to learn to be a bit more disciplined defensively.
The backcourt is the strength of this team, especially when you consider Dekker is a wing-forward.
- It's good to have Josh Gasser back. He was an all-conference defender in 2011-2012 before tearing his ACL before last season commenced. Really hurt, especially after losing Jordan Taylor to graduation. A lot of young guys had to grow up quick. Good defender, good shooter, but this is his first live action in over a year. We'll see what happens.
- Ben Brust is an undersized shooting guard with range up to 25' ... Kid has no problem letting it fly. Despite his height, he is a deceivingly good rebounder.
- Trae Jackson is Jim Jackson's son. Kid made the transition to PG last season and was lightning in a bottle. Made some huge plays for Wisconsin, but also committed turnovers and questions surrounded his overall on-court attitude. All indications (per news sources) point to a much better demeanor this season.
- Our backup guards include Bronson Koenig and George Marshall. Koenig is a highly-rated recruit from Wisconsin that chose us over Duke, UNC, Kansas, and Marquette. He is one of the more talented guards we've had come here in some time. Sweet stroke from behind the arc and he should get some minutes. The other guard, George Marshall, was originally pegged to be the starting PG in 2012-2013 when Gasser went down. Unfortunately, he had some trouble adapting and was relegated to the bench. He does bring a lightning streak to the offense, though. He is very quick.
I think Wisconsin holds the pace. In the past six seasons, I can think of just three times a team completely controlled the pace (Duke in '07, UConn in '08, OSU in '11). That's not to say we win every game because that is simply not the case. Bo Ryan teams are just very good at dictating the tempo.
I'm expecting St. John's to pull out the win tonight. Wisconsin is too inexperienced in the front court and I am not sure how well Gasser performs in his return from his ACL injury. On top of that, we have not been so hot coming out of the gate over the past couple seasons against bigger opponents. Assuming my prediction of St. John's winning is correct, that'll be huge come March. Wisconsin currently ranks only behind Duke, Kansas, and MSU in NCAA tournament appearances in a row.
Also, I'm not sure if any of you have ventured to the Wisconsin Scout board or Buckyville to see what other fans are saying about tonight's game. The chatter has been pretty mild because we are in the middle of football season trying to secure a BCS bid! Big game tomorrow versus BYU, so many have that in mind. That's not to say anyone is dismissing St. John's as an opponent. Just unfortunate that the two seasons overlap. A little different than North Carolina who can't wait to get out of football season.
Anyway, sorry for the incredibly long post and best of luck tonight! I would love to see my Badgers pull it off in South Dakota, but I think early-season struggles and a scoring drought gives you guys a six-point victory.
66-60, St. John's.