As Wisconsin redshirt freshman forward Ethan Happ said after the game on Tuesday night, “To play in Madison Square Garden is like the holy grail of basketball and Georgetown is going to be a big test.”
Click here for player grades and advanced stats from Wisconsin’s win over North Dakota.
Wisconsin (2-1) will take on the Georgetown Hoyas (0-2) at 4:00 PM CT (ESPN2) on Friday afternoon. Led by seniors G D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera and F/C Bradley Hayes and head coach John Thompson III, Georgetown is an experienced, hard-nosed team that will give the Badgers a run for their money. They may been shocked by Radford University, but the Hoyas almost beat Maryland in College Park on Tuesday night. Here are three keys to victory for the Badgers on Friday afternoon.
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1. Protect the paint while staying out of foul trouble
In last season’s 68-65 win over Georgetown, the Badgers were able to do just enough against 6’10”, 350 pound center Joshua Smith. He only had 10 points in 25 minutes, but I specifically remember him dominating the paint at one point in the game. This season, the Badgers do not have the height, discipline, and depth at forward to guard Georgetown’s taller and improved big man in 7’0″, 275 pound Bradley Hayes, who is averaging 17.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game with a 68.2% field goal percentage through two games. Starting forwards Vitto Brown and Ethan Happ have struggled to stay out of foul trouble this season, and Hayes could present a huge matchup issue against Bucky on Friday. Additionally, Georgetown forward Isaac Copeland is also 6’9″, and has been the team’s third best scorer. He has the ability to score inside and out, so Nigel Hayes may be a good candidate to guard Copeland.
2. Contain Smith-Rivera
One of the best all-around guards in the country, senior D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera scored 29 points against Wisconsin last season, and he’s averaging 14.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in two games this season. He’s an excellent three-point shooter, and it’ll be up to Wisconsin’s guards to contain him throughout this game. He rarely sees the bench because of how vital he is to the Hoyas, so it’s likely that all of the Badgers guards will have to guard him at one point. I see this as an opportunity for Zak Showalter to continue his great defense and freshman Khalil Iverson to make an impact early on in the season.
3. It sounds stupid, but make shots
This year’s Badgers team is still a step behind when it comes to defense, and that’s been apparent through the team’s first three games. Against North Dakota, Wisconsin benefitted from several unforced errors by UND to lead to 16 turnovers. Not saying they didn’t play solid defense, but the turnover numbers were a bit skewed. What I’m getting at is that the Badgers need to hit shots and have an efficient offense to win this game. Against Western Illinois, the team shot so poorly at 35.5%, and still only lost by 2 points. Hence, facing an even bigger animal in Georgetown means making at least 45% of the team’s shots and about 75% from the free throw line. Wisconsin will need Nigel Hayes to shoot better from the field, as the junior forward has really struggled, especially from the perimeter. Without a strong performance on offense from Hayes, the Badgers will not be able to win this game. Also, Bronson Koenig has been the Badgers best offensive player this season, as the junior point guard leads the team at 19.0 points per game. He may be the best shooting point guard in the country, and Wisconsin will need Koenig to keep up the offense and his impressive assist to turnover ratio (2.50) to win.
4. Don’t look too far ahead
Knowing how Bo Ryan prepares his team, this shouldn’t be a problem for the Badgers. But, we all know that the team sees a potential matchup with Duke on Sunday (it would be at Noon if Duke beats VCU and Wisconsin beats Georgetown) as a big deal. Even though their teams may be vastly different this season, Duke beat the Badgers twice last season, including in the national championship game, and that’s going to be on the players’ minds. Wisconsin needs to focus on winning this game Friday against Georgetown, and then look ahead with what’s next. We all know everyone wants to see that rematch on Sunday, but the Hoyas stand in the way first.