Chris Vogt's Impact for Wisconsin is Greater than Points
MADISON, Wis. – Chris Vogt has been through enough recruiting processes to know when he feels he’s found the right fit. Having gone through three of them, he’s become a pseudo expert at it by this point.
It’s the reason why Vogt felt so sure of himself when Wisconsin was an option for him earlier this year. He hadn’t stepped on campus, never shook a hand of the Badgers coaching staff, and had no prior relationship with any player on the roster, but the energy over the phone and virtual meetings was palpable.
“I felt like we connected from the jump,” Vogt said. “I feel like our values align, where they needed a big man. They had forwards graduate, so I was able to come in for one year and play.”
The Badgers have been better off for it. Through the first month of the season, Wisconsin (6-1) ranks 10th nationally in defensive efficiency according to KenPom, limiting foes to 56.7 ppg and just 38.5 percent shooting. Having a 7-foot, 257-pound center is part of the reason why.
In Wisconsin’s 70-66 win at Georgia Tech Wednesday, Vogt didn’t score a point, but the Badgers outscored the Yellow Jackets by 13 points in the 10 minutes he played in the first half. Vogt registered six rebounds and an assist in the half, grabbing one of his two offensive rebounds and kicking it out to Brad Davison for a 3-pointer.
On the defensive side, Georgia Tech only managed one of its five first-half offensive rebounds with him on the floor.
“It’s always nice to have a nice big Buckeye on your team,” junior Tyler Wahl said. “Having Chris down there allows us to bounce guys around because he’s a solid rim protector.” Frankly, Wahl would have taken a Spartan, a Boilermaker, or frankly, anybody as a reinforcement heading into this season. The exodus of Wisconsin frontcourt players Micah Potter, Nate Reuvers, and Aleem Ford following the conclusion of the 2020-21 season created some nervous energy heading into the offseason.
After Wahl, the Badgers had Ben Carlson and Steven Crowl waiting for an expanded role, but the two freshmen lacked experience and the strength needed to withstand the rigors of Big Ten play.
Enter Vogt, a Kentucky native with 101 games of college experience at Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati. He didn’t light up the scoreboard with points, averaging 5.0 per game and shooting 56 percent from the free-throw line last year, but Vogt ranked among the American Athletic Conference leaders in blocks (fifth) and offensive rebounds (15th).
Dating back even further, Vogt’s 488 blocks in high school rank as the second-most in state history, including one game where he tied the state record with 17.
“He understands who he is,” head coach Greg Gard said. “He understands what he’s good at and what he’s not good at, and he plays to his strengths. Altering shots, blocking shots, rebounding, all of those things are welcome attributes that he’s helped us with.”
Although just 1-for-6 from the field and averaging 0.9 points per game, Wisconsin doesn’t look the same without Vogt on the court. In UW’s 63-58 home loss to Providence, Vogt picked up his second and third foul in a 41-second span. With Crowl already sitting with two fouls, the Badgers were forced to play smaller against an experienced, physical Friars frontcourt. UW was outscored 19-5 in the last eight minutes of the first half, giving up eight points in the paint and two 3-pointers off offensive rebounds.
There is also the issue of fouls. Vogt is second on the team with 18 despite having played just 74 minutes, averaging a foul every 4.1 minutes on the court. For comparison, Davison has a team-high 19 fouls but is averaging a whistle every 11.6 minutes on the court.
The frequency of whistles isn’t the major concern to Gard, acknowledging that fouls happen with the physicality playing the low post and dealing with quicker guards off of ball screens. The issue comes when Vogt, Crowl (who is averaging a foul every 10.7 minutes), and others utilize incorrect technique and start grabbing arms or not being straight up.
“They think they’re chested up; really they’ve broken the plane,” Gard said. “(We) show them that on film. In the moment they think, coach, I’ve stayed straight up. I’m like, I’ll show you the film. No, you didn’t. They always learn best from seeing themselves.”
Being coached well has guided Vogt on his college journey. He committed to Northern Kentucky and head coach John Brannen out of high school, playing in all 35 games his sophomore year. When Brannen was hired at Cincinnati, Vogt followed and averaged 11 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks in his first season. He declared for the NBA Draft before returning for his senior season.
When he put his name in the transfer portal, Vogt said Wisconsin was one of the first schools to contact him. With the COVID-19 pandemic wiping out multiple recruiting periods, high school prospects and college transfers were forced to learn about potential schools doing their own internet research, phone calls, and virtual tours.
Throughout his conversations with Gard, the coaching staff, and Davison (the only other senior on the roster), Vogt became sold on his potential.
“It was a pretty hard part of it, kind of how the whole world has been for the last year and a half,” Vogt said. “There’s a difference when you meet someone face to face and talk. I’m not from Wisconsin. My outside, honest perspective was always top of the league, a high-class program. It’s a standard program for the Big Ten. They play very disciplined basketball, they get into what they want to do, and it’s been nothing short of that.”
Continuing with Saturday’s in-state rivalry game against Marquette (7-1), the Badgers are in tune-up mode for the beginning of Big Ten play. While league games start tonight, Wisconsin will have to wait until Wednesday before hosting Indiana.
Vogt had a taste of Big Ten basketball from his time at Cincinnati, facing Ohio State and Iowa in 2019. He remembers that physicality and toughness being of a higher echelon than the other games that filled out the schedule. It’s an opportunity to compete against the best in the frontcourt, a reason why he came to Wisconsin and why the Badgers were so eager to add him.
“They play tough basketball in the Big Ten,” Vogt said. “I like playing in the low block, back to the basket, and being a rim defender. I feel like that’s going to pan out well for me.”
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