MADISON, Wis. – Embarking on what could be a resume-defining stretch for the University of Wisconsin, head coach Greg Gard refused to play the “what-if” game Thursday evening with reporters.
“I have enough to do with just worrying about Marquette,” he quipped. “And I’ll have enough when we get to Michigan State and Arizona.”
Before Tuesday’s Big Ten opener at No.24 Michigan State or next Saturday’s daunting road game at No.2 Arizona, Wisconsin (5-2) must contend with No.3 Marquette at the Kohl Center Saturday afternoon (11:30 a.m./FOX), another nonconference opponent that entered the season with Final Four aspirations.
Much like Wisconsin was able to accomplish in returning much of its roster, Marquette (6-1) saw the core pieces return from a team that swept the Big East titles and earned a No.2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The group has done nothing to dispel the preseason high, knocking off No.1 Kansas in Honolulu and narrowly did the same to No.2 Purdue the following day.
Gard called point guard Tyler Kolek “terrific,” which might be an understatement. The 2023 Big East Player of the Year and an AP third-team All-American, Kolek was named a preseason All-American and leads the team in assists (36), minutes (29.7), and steals (12) and is second in points (13.9), FG percentage (54.4), and rebounding (5.0).
The Badgers held Kolek to six points in last season’s overtime victory in Milwaukee but the pieces around the senior are significantly better.
“Kam Jones may be the most improved of the group,” said Gard, referring to the player who scored 26 points against UW and is averaging a team-best 16.0 points per game. “Honestly, (forward Oso) Ighodaro presents a challenge in terms of how he can play. He’s like a wing minus three-point shooting, but how he puts the ball on the floor and how he makes decisions in some of their actions and dribble handoffs, it starts with the players.”
Marquette ranked seventh nationally last season in adjusted offensive efficiency (119.1 points per 100 possessions) and stands in that same spot through seven games with a nearly identical number (119.8).
The big difference through the season’s small sample size is Marquette is stingier with the ball. The Golden Eagles commit 8.6 turnovers per game and have a turnover percentage per offensive play of 10.7, tied for 10th in the country and nearly three percent less than last season.
Marquette committed just six turnovers in Tuesday’s win over Southern and has committed double-digit turnovers once.
“They have done a good job taking care of the ball and it starts with the point guard (Kolek),” Gard said. “And Kam Jones is 19 to 3 on assists to turnovers. That tells me they make good decisions. We aren’t necessarily built or are schemed to extend and have people produce a lot of turnovers. We’re more trying to force you into a difficult type of shot and create turnovers out of our defense.
“Their ability to take care of it is one of the things we emphasize here as well. And when you do, obviously you have more opportunities offensively versus if you’re throwing it around the gym.”
Wisconsin ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 10.0 turnovers per game, a number which will be tested by Marquette’s ability to get teams out of tempo. Possessing players who can push the ball up the floor, Marquette has forced at least 10 turnovers in every game, including a season-high 22 on Tuesday.
MU has converted those miscues into an average of 20.0 points per outing.
“If you play the possessions well enough, your outcome will take care of itself,” Gard said. “If you don’t, you won’t get the outcome you want.”
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