Notes: On Short Prep, Wisconsin Relying on Its Principles vs. No.1 Baylor

Trying to get a handle on the strengths and weaknesses of No.1-seed Baylor requires a deep dive that is not conducive to teams playing in the NCAA tournament, let alone having only one day of prep work.

To avoid “paralysis by analysis,” Wisconsin took things light on Saturday with a brief hour workout, extra stretching/recovery and plenty of film study to try and be prepared for when the ninth-seeded Badgers (18-12) face the Bears (23-2) at Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis Sunday afternoon (1:40 p.m., CBS).

They are easily the best team the Badgers have faced to this point, but the key to getting prepared for the Baylor machine for head coach Greg Gard is making sure his players rely on their previously established principles.

“It’ll be a principle game in terms of how we build our defense, our rules and obviously being good in transition will be important,” Gard told reporters Saturday. “I thought we were pretty good (against Carolina). We’ll have to be even better in it tomorrow afternoon.

“They are pretty simplistic and do those things really well. You rely on your principles and making sure you are adhering to your rules. In one day, you aren’t going to recreate something. You’re relying on habits you have hopefully built throughout the year.”

Wisconsin’s brand of basketball worked wonders in the opening round, delivering an 85-62 victory over eighth-seeded North Carolina at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. Continuing its recent boost in offensive efficiency, the Badgers shot 50.8 percent from the field, hit 13 three-pointers and delivered a rousing defensive performance against a low-post dominant Tar Heels frontcourt.

Over the last four games, the Badgers are averaging 71.8 points and shooting 45.1 percent (41 of 91) from three-point range.

“That’s the biggest thing, can we carry over what we did last night and we’re going to have to do it better,” Gard said. “We’ll have to probably play better than we played last night (and) different.”

But as good as Wisconsin played against Carolina, the Badgers acknowledge they’ll have to be even better against the Bears, who have been ranked in the top 10 all season and entered the tournament ranked third nationally.

UW is 0-4 against top-five teams this season and has dropped its last nine games against teams ranked in the AP Top 25. The Bears are unique compared to the Illinois, Iowas and Michigans in the Big Ten because of Baylor possessing a mobile/interchangeable lineup that’s comfortable switching assignments and applying frontcourt pressure.

“They really try to minimize your ability to change sides of the floor,” Gard said. “They force you baseline. We don’t see a lot of teams that do that.”

That pressure contributes to Baylor ranking ninth nationally in forced turnovers (17.6). Baylor forced 24 turnovers Friday, the eighth time this season the Bears have forced at least 20 turnovers in a game.

Wisconsin leads the NCAA committing only 8.9 turnovers per game this season and have committed more than 11 turnovers only four times in the last 47 games. The Badgers had only seven turnovers against the Tar Heels.

“It’s more focused on us,” senior guard D’Mitrik Trice said. “Coaches have made it a point to focus on what we can do to limit those turnovers and continue to take care of the ball, which is what they thrive on.”

With nowhere to go, senior Aleem Ford said the unusual tournament environment of being confined to rooms when not playing or practicing lends itself well to film study. He estimates he’ll watch three-or-four games to get a gauge of personnel and player’s tendencies.

“With a quick turnaround like this, relying on our rules and our principles that we’ve known for years now,” he said. “Just making sure we stay disciplined and play team defense on that end and try to negate the easy looks. That’s all we can really do right now … relying on our rules and instincts on the defensive end.”

Confident guard play is one of the many things that carries teams through this tournament. Having started 230 games in their college careers, Brad Davison and Trice combined to score 50 points on 18-for-30 shooting (60 percent). The combo dictated the pace and exploited North Carolina’s perimeter defense. On paper, they won’t be the best guards on the court.

Gard called Baylor’s backcourt phenomenal with All-Americans Jared Butler (17.0 ppg, 4.9 assists), Davion Mitchell (14.0 ppg, 5.3 assists) and MaCio Teague (16.4 ppg, 4.2 rebounds) all impacting the game in a variety of ways. The group shoot 49.3 percent from the floor, 42.1 percent from three-point range, have 296 assists and 126 steals.

“They put them in different positions, but they are all interchangeable,” Gard said. “They just take turns … Just having that many guys that are that high level of players really challenges you.”

While Trice doesn’t try to get caught up in the individual matchup comparisons, he feels that the Badgers have an edge with their style of play.

“I feel like they haven’t played a team like ours, a tough, gritty, defensive-minded team this year,” he said. “At the end of the day, the ball is going to be in our hands … I do think it’s going to come down to the head-to-head matchup between us guards.”

The South’s No.2 and No.4 seeds – Ohio State and Purdue – fell victim to upsets Friday, so the winner’s path to the Final Four becomes easier than previously thought. The winner between Wisconsin-Baylor will face either No.5 Villanova (who is playing without one of its starters) or No.13 North Texas, which knocked off Purdue for the program’s first tournament win.

In a true win-or-be-done scenario, at least one senior is confident they’ll be that opponent.

“I’m very confident (we’ll win),” Ford said. “I believe in our team, and I believe we have what it takes to keep winning games. That’s what it’s about right now. I feel like we have the right guys and the right team to do it. I feel very confident going in.”