Wisconsin Basketball 2015 Preview: Guards
By Jim Oxley
Mar 22, 2015; Omaha, NE, USA; Wisconsin Badgers player Zak Showalter (3) reacts after making a three-point basket against the Oregon Ducks during the second half in the third round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at CenturyLink Center. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
The Wisconsin basketball team kicks of the 2015-16 season Friday night, and will do so without two major contributors from years past at the guard position.
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The Badgers will need to move on this season without Josh Gasser and Traevon Jackson at the guard position.
Gasser was the ultimate glue-man for the Badgers during his five-year career with the Badgers. He played in 148 games as a Badger, starting 144 of them. He had a career .452 shooting percentage, shooting .402 from three-point range and .837 from the free throw line. He averaged 7.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game in his career.
Wisconsin Badgers
Jackson played in 111 games as a Badger, scoring 7.6 points, 2.8 assists and 2.5 rebounds over the course of his career. He was injured in 2014, missing nearly half the season, but he returned in the NCAA Tournament to provide a spark off of the bench during the Badgers run to the National Championship.
Both players are now gone, graduated after stellar careers at Wisconsin. The Badgers will look to the future with a young group of guards looking to continue the strong play the position has seen in recent years.
The Badgers have historically had strong guard play, with Gasser and Jackson preceded by guys like Ben Brust, Jordan Taylor, Jason Bohannon, Trevon Hughes, Michael Flowers and Kammron Taylor in just the past 10 years alone.
Badger guards historically play strong on-ball defense, take care of the basketball, and run the hell out of the swing offense, looking to post up when they have a size advantage.
Expect this year’s group of guards, led once again by Bo Ryan, to continue doing many of the same things.
Here we take a look at the guards on the roster for the Wisconsin basketball team, beginning with the projected starters, moving on to key backups, and finishing with the reserve players.
Next: Starting Point Guard