Trice finding his groove again for UW
MADISON, Wis. - Make no mistake about it, Wisconsin is more than senior standout Ethan Happ.
Just ask Badgers coach Greg Gard, who chuckled when asked whether Wisconsin is a better team when Happ kicks the ball out to D’Mitrik Trice or Brad Davison.
“Well a lot better because you have to make a defense give up something,” Gard said. “If they are going to dig or send a guy to double team, you have to be able to make a play. Whether it’s reversing the ball, making a play inside again, or if we were able to knock down perimeter shots – that’s important."
“Trice has always been a confident kid, kind of quietly; he’s not bashful about shooting it, you usually don’t have to tell him twice to let it fly.”
Trice scored 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting in the Badgers’ 62-46 win against Northwestern on Saturday at the Kohl Center. The sophomore point guard finished 4 of 6 from beyond the arc, and nailed all four of his 3-point attempts in the first half to help Wisconsin secure its third straight win.
The effort marked the eighth time this season that Trice has scored at least four 3-pointers in a single game this season. He’s second in team scoring with a 13 points-per-game average.
Gard credits Dean Oliver with spending extra time helping improve Trice’s skills. Oliver, a second-year Badgers assistant coach, played collegiate ball at Iowa.
Gard said that Trice is developing a broader vision of playing the point, particularly with facets that don’t involve scoring.
“I think he’s done a better job of understanding how he can impact the game other than scoring,” Gard said. “Coach Oliver has done a terrific job with him, teaching with film. It helps to have a guy of Dean’s experience; the levels he’s played at to tutor a young guard.”
Trice has gone through some shooting woes this season, but has posted double-digit scoring performances in four of his last five games, including Wisconsin’s 72-60 at Illinois on Wednesday.
In 20 starts, Trice has shot 45.7 percent (53 of 116) from 3-point range, with a decrease to 41.5 percent (22 of 53) in nine Big Ten games.
Trice admits his success, of late, has been simple: The ball is going in.
“Honestly, just seeing the ball go through a little bit,” Trice said. “Getting to the free-throw line last game and then just making the simple plays, making the shots that Ethan kicks out or Brad one mores to me.
“Just seeing the ball go through the net is a confidence booster for anybody.”