Jarmusz enjoys special career night

MADISON - Tim Jarmusz, having endured a long layoff with the rest of his teammates, couldn't have picked a better time to have a career day.

For a senior that has been consistently inconsistent throughout his career, Jarmusz finally reaped the benefits of a 12-point effort based entirely off a hot hand from downtown.

What makes his four 3-pointer effort all the better is the fact that Jarmusz's older brother, Adam, a first lieutenant in the Army who just returned home following a tour in the middle east, was in attendance.

"Today was just one of those nights where whatever you throw up is going in," Jarmusz said following UW's 80-56 win over Coppin State. "Adam doesn't get to too many games, but he's been to a couple before. We just worked the ball really well in the zone and I was able to find open spots and knock down some shots when I was open."

Jarmusz hit four of his five attempts from distance, good for an 80 percent clip that was a far cry from his 28 percent average from beyond the arc entering the game. Whether it was the holiday spirit shining though, a contagious team shooting effort or just one of those nights, Jarmusz has a memory in his bag that should stay fresh for a long time to come.

"It's great," Jarmusz said. "For him to be able to come home over the holidays and to spend Christmas with him and have the whole family around is just something that's really special. I'm glad he did go over there and I'm proud of him and I love him for it, but I'm glad he's home and he's safe and able to spend Christmas with the family."

Having spent time along the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan for the first six or seven months of his tour, Adam Jarmusz (25) spent the remainder of his time in Kandahar, the capitol city of Afghanistan.

The older Jarmusz will spend a number of weeks home before beginning training as part of a special forces unit in mid-January. After starting off in Ft. Benning (Georgia), Jarmusz will then transfer to Ft. Lewis (Washington) before heading back for another Middle East tour in October.

Before leaving to pursue his training, Adam Jarmusz was able to take in his younger brother's career night inside the Kohl Center. As Big Ten season approaches, aside from the fact Tim Jarmusz was able to showcase an offensive explosion in front of his older brother, it seems as though Jarmusz has some confidence brewing.

That doesn't go unnoticed by his head coach.

"That was pretty special," UW head coach Bo Ryan said. "Nobody roots harder for Tim on this team than all of his teammates with the fact of how hard he works and the energy he brings. To get results that show in a column…Tim does a lot of good things but he'll get a lot more noticed because he hit those four threes.

"For him to have some confidence going into the Big Ten, I'm all for that. Everybody on our team is."