With eight newcomers on its roster, the new-look Wisconsin basketball made its preseason debut on Saturday. A veteran-laden roster dispatched of the Division II Parkside Rangers with relative ease as the Wisconsin Badgers earned a 94-71 victory, leaving plenty to like and plenty to work on.
“There were a lot of things we have to clean up,” Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard said in a post-game interview. “I thought we got we gave up straight line drives. We gambled on things at times. We got out of position. There were times in the first half I thought when it was in front of me that you know we stopped the ball well. We were physical at the rim, but there’s you know there’s a lot we have to get better at on both ends of the floor.”
Greg Gard deploys veteran starting lineup
At Big Ten Media Days this week, Gard professed his program’s mantra to “get old, stay old.” Even in the age of the transfer portal where retaining developing talent can be as difficult as ever, the Badgers are leaning into maturity wherever they can find it.
In his starting lineup on Saturday, Gard deployed 23-year-old point guard Owen Foxwell, senior Jack Janicki, Miami Redhawks transfer Eian Elmer, All-Big Ten preseason honoree Nolan Winter, and former Hofstra Pride forward Victory Onuetu: a group entirely comprised of seniors and older.
Who remains in that starting five remains in question. Badgers forward Austin Rapp is recovering from offseason surgery that kept him sidelined most of the summer.
“I’m experimenting,” Gard said of his starting group. “I may change the lineup in the next game.”
Wisconsin basketball still seeking connectivity
Despite the experience throughout the lineup, the Badgers struggled at times to take care of the basketball, committing 15 turnovers. UW turned the ball over 15 or more times in just three games all of last season.
“First time seeing an opposition jersey, so there’s a lot of things that need to be cleaned up,” Foxwell said. “Like, we were never going to come into this being perfect or a finished product.”
The five-year Australian NBL veteran coughed the ball up a team-high four times, but also led the way among all players with six assists in his first outing as the Wisconsin Badgers point guard. In true veteran fashion, Foxwell committed to improvement declaring that he “had turnovers that you probably won’t see again for the rest of the year.”
Eight of UW’s turnovers were committed by forwards as the Badger big men handled the ball in offensive sets with regularity on dribble-drives, high-low actions, and ball screens, adding an apparent new wrinkle to the Wisconsin offense.
Still, Gard acknowledged that his frontcourt has “got to be better” with the ball in their hands.
Nolan Winter looks the part
While facing a non-Division I opponent, Wisconsin basketball fans would certainly hope that a preseason all-conference honoree could impose his well throughout the afternoon. Particularly in the frontcourt, against a roster lacking anyone taller than 6-foot-9, a player of Winter’s caliber should be a force to be reckoned with on both ends of the floor.
Against Parkside, Winter was just that, helping Wisconsin dominate inside as the Badgers doubled-up the Rangers in paint points 56-28.
The Lakeville North product immediately went to work on Saturday. Putting Gard’s pre-season proclamation that “big is back” in college basketball into practice, UW’s first offensive possession of its exhibition slate was a post touch to Winter, resulting in a layup assisted by Janicki just ten seconds after the opening tip.
The rest of the afternoon was much of the same for 7-footer, who poured in 15 points in 22 minutes with effective work in the post, cutting down open lanes in the paint, and executing in the pick-and-roll. Winter added nine rebounds, a pair of assists, a block, and a steal for good measure.
Regardless of the level of competition, Winter looked like a player ready to take on the challenge of shouldering a heavy load for a potential NCAA Tournament team.
Up next for Wisconsin basketball
Wisconsin resumes exhibition play this Thursday, October 15th with its second of three preseason contests. The Badgers travel north to face the Green Bay Phoenix inside the Resch Center. Tip is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. central.
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