Can Wisconsin's Bench Carry the Momentum from Sunday's Success?
MADISON, Wis. – When it comes to filling out a lineup card, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard has been fortunate with the five starters he’s come to rely upon.
A national player of the year candidate, a senior who has played in more games than any other player in program history, a steady true freshman point guard, a forward who is UW’s most versatile defender, and a blossoming forward make up Gard’s lineup, a five-man unit that is 20-3 when they start a game together and has played 75.4 percent of UW’s minutes this season.
That’s left little minutes for the reserves but doesn’t diminish what is asked of them: deliver a positive impact in scoring, rebounding, hustle plays, energy, or, hopefully, a combination of everything.
That group delivered that pop on Sunday in UW’s 77-63 win over Michigan. Starting with Chris Vogt delivering a block and a dunk in the 33 seconds after checking into the game, Wisconsin’s top three reserves combined for 10 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks.
Vogt finished with four points, two blocks, and a rebound in 12 minutes, 1 second on the court, chipping in with his defense against Michigan sophomore Hunter Dickinson. Guard Jahcobi Neath hadn’t scored in his previous six games but came out aggressive, being rewarded with had six points in his 12 minutes. Ben Carlson did help with the scoring but had six defensive rebounds in just over nine minutes, a new high for him in a conference game.
“I thought they did a good job,” Gard said. “Jahcobi coming in and giving up some help in the backcourt. I thought he gave us some good minutes. Chris, defensively against Hunter Dickinson, who is a very tough cover, a really good player. Ben grew as the game wore on.”
It’s somehow fitting that after one of the best overall bench performances of the season, No.13 Wisconsin (21-5, 12-4 Big Ten) will again be shorthanded on its bench Wednesday. Neath will not play at Minnesota (13-12, 4-12) as he serves a one-game suspension for throwing punches following Sunday’s post-game fracases.
Through a combination of injuries and sickness, Gard entered the 2022 calendar year and the restart of conference play not fulling knowing how deep his rotation could go.
When fully healthy, Wisconsin has typically leaned on four reserves off the bench – guards Lorne Bowman, Jordan Davis, and Neath, forwards Carlson and Carter Gilmore, and center Vogt – but the availability of that group as a collective unit has been sparse.
UW only played two games at full strength in the 2021 calendar year and that trend has continued. Of the reserves, only Vogt has played in all 26 games. Neath (nine), Gilmore (five), Davis (five), Bowman (four), and Carlson (one) have all missed time.
The lack of consistency has limited production. The reserves reached double figures in three straight games from Dec.8-Dec.15 but held to seven points or fewer nine times in the last 13 games. In the two games leading into Sunday, the bench scored a combined five points on 1-for-8 shooting.
But while Sunday was one of Wisconsin’s best collective efforts since conference play resumed, individual players have been taking greater steps. Vogt is averaging 13.6 minutes and 2.9 points in conference play (higher than his season average). He’s scored points in six straight games and had at least three rebounds in four of them, but the senior’s defense has improved.
Averaging nearly three fouls over his first 18 games, Vogt has averaged fewer than two over the last eight games. He was part of UW’s improved defensive effort against Dickinson in the second half, making post touches harder and improving on-ball pressure. The result was Dickinson scoring six second-half points after scoring 15 in the first half.
Carlson has been in a season-long scoring funk as he works to recoup time lost last season (back injury) and this season (illness). He is 19-for-58 overall (32.8 percent), 1-for-18 (5.6 percent) from 3-point range, and doesn’t draw fouls (4-for-9 on free throws), but the sophomore has shown a bigger willingness to attack the glass, notching four rebounds in five second-half minutes.
“I know he struggled a little bit that first half, so it was really good to see him do some good things on the defensive end in that second half,” junior Tyler Wahl said of Carlson. “It’s a testament to how hard he works in practice every day. It’s a really good thing to see him improve and play well.”
Bowman – the only UW reserve who scored in UW’s 66-60 win over Minnesota last month – is in the same boat as Carlson, making up for time lost last season when he was at home dealing with a family issue and battling through illness this season.
If he’s recovered from the non-COVID illness that kept him out against the Wolverines, Bowman will be in line for plenty of minutes with Neath’s suspension. If he can’t play, UW will likely rely on Davis (1.0 ppg) or Gilmore (0.9 ppg) to add a lift.
“That is what we keep seeing from guys coming off the bench, doing those little things, making hustle plays, bringing energy,” senior Brad Davison said. “We love that energy and we feed off of it.”
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