Preview: No. 23 Wisconsin returns home to face Jacksonville State
No. 23 Wisconsin (7-3) vs. Jacksonville State (4-6)
Game: Thursday, Dec. 14 in the Kohl Center
Time: 6:00 P.M. CT
Watch: BTN
Listen: 1310 WIBA AM and 101.5 FM (Matt Lepay and Brian Butch on the call); stream online on iHeartRadio
Prediction: Wisconsin 72, Jacksonville State 57
Follow Online: The Badgers' Den
Twitter: @Badger_Blitz
Betting line: Wisconsin -19.5 (according to ESPN BET)
PRE-GAME NOTES
Wisconsin, after its six-game winning streak was snapped by the No. 1 Arizona Wildcats last Saturday, will have a chance to rebound against the Jacksonville State Panthers of Conference USA.
More than anything, the Badgers can finally take a deep breath after enduring their toughest stretch of games in perhaps years. They managed to beat the then-No. 3 Marquette Golden Eagles at home, then went to East Lansing and whooped Michigan State. But nothing could prepare them for the buzzsaw that was Arizona.
The Badgers were in the game for about 12 minutes. Then the Wildcats went on a 22-8 run to close the first half and never looked back.
Nothing Wisconsin did seemed to work.
Their starters collectively shot 17-46 from the field, and A.J. Storr was the worst offender. He had an awful 4-13 shooting night, and finished with less points (10) than field goal attempts. Storr struggled to make jumpshots, and couldn’t take advantage of the paint, which was a theme for the Badgers.
The strength of Wisconsin’s frontcourt was the reason they were able to enter on a six-game winning streak. Steven Crowl and Tyler Wahl were quickly humbled on Saturday.
Wahl had one of his worst games of the season, shooting just 3-9 and was so rattled that he even committed multiple travel violations. Crowl finished with a decent day on paper, but had absolutely no answers for Arizona’s size. Ultimately, all offensive momentum seemed to die whenever he or Crowl tried to force a shot in the post over a larger defender.
The only Badger who had a “good” game was probably John Blackwell, who went 4-5 from 3 and scored a team-high 17 points off the bench. The freshman has exceeded all possible expectations and has even scored in double figures in seven of the first 10 games of the season.
Such a brutal loss will undoubtedly leave a bad taste in the Badgers’ mouths, yet they’ll have the chance to regroup and restore their confidence against a 4-6 Jacksonville State team.
The Gamecocks’ record may be unimpressive, but they’re 15th in the country in points allowed at 61.5 per game, and their six losses have come by an average of just 4.3 points
Their issue is scoring.
Gamecock guard Kyky Tandy is the only truly dependable source of offense on the entire current roster. He’s a fifth-year senior who transferred from Xavier after starting just six games in four years, and is now the leading scorer in Conference USA. Tandy’s currently leading the team by a wide margin in points per game (17.4), field goal attempts (15.4) and minutes (29.5).
He has struggled with his shot, especially recently, shooting 8-26 over his last two games. It wouldn’t be surprising if he can bounce back against a Badger team that’s allowed multiple talented scoring guards to succeed as of late.
The only other double-digit scorer on the roster is Tandy’s backcourt mate Quincy Clark. He may average 10.2 points, but his performance has worsened over the course of the season and just returned to the starting lineup in their last game. Clark averaged 12.6 points per game over the first six games, but that’s dropped down to 6.5 over the past four.
Their biggest concern against the Badgers may be size. The only member of their regular rotation who could have an impact on Wisconsin’s frontcourt is center Mason Nicholson. He’s 6-foot-10, but only averages 10.9 minutes per game and just re-entered the starting lineup in their last matchup.
| Pos. | WISCONSIN | HT/WT | PTS | REB | AST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
G |
Chucky Hepburn (Jr.) |
6-2, 195 |
9.8 |
3.3 |
3.9 |
|
G |
Max Klesmit (Jr.) |
6-4, 200 |
7.6 |
1.5 |
0.8 |
|
G |
A.J. Storr (So.) |
6-7, 205 |
13.8 |
2.9 |
0.8 |
|
F |
Tyler Wahl (Gr.) |
6-9, 225 |
10.3 |
5.8 |
1.1 |
|
F |
Steven Crowl (Jr.) |
7-0, 247 |
12.1 |
7.1 |
2.1 |
| Pos. | JACKSONVILLE STATE | HT/WT | PTS | REB | AST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
G |
Kyky Tandy (Sr.) |
6-2, 190 |
17.4 |
2.4 |
1.6 |
|
G |
Quincy Clark (Jr.) |
6-4, 195 |
10.2 |
2.7 |
3.3 |
|
G |
Travis Roberts (So.) |
6-6, 205 |
3.9 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
|
F |
Juwan Perdue (Sr.) |
6-6, 200 |
7.7 |
5.5 |
1.0 |
|
C |
Mason Nicholson (Jr.) |
6-10, 280 |
5.1 |
3.1 |
0.0 |
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