Wisconsin Basketball: Who is the second best player on the team?

D’Mitrik Trice

The case for: Trice is the best three-point shooter on the team, both statistically and realistically. The number of shots he takes shouldn’t result in as high of a shooting percentage as he has, but he’s simply been that good this year.

Trice is more than just Wisconsin’s biggest threat from downtown though. He also shares primary ball-handling duties with Happ and is second on the team in assists, averaging 2.8 per game. Trice is relatively secure with the ball too, which is important to mention considering Wisconsin’s turnover woes as of late.

A very underrated aspect of Trice’s game is his ability to score inside the arc too. His numbers don’t reflect it, likely due to volume (it has to catch up to him somewhere) but his jump shooting ability on two-point shots, plus his quickness to the rim and touch allows him to keep defenders honest.

The case against: Trice’s biggest knock is his free throw shooting. He currently sits at an underwhelming 71% on the season. For as good of a pure shooter as he’s shown so far this year, that percentage absolutely needs to be higher.

Happ is an easy target for opposing teams to foul because of his own putrid free throw percentage. In a late-game scenario, I don’t fully trust Trice to knock down clutch free throws. He’s the next best ball handler on the team and will get plenty of chances to prove me wrong, but in March you only get one chance to win a game with clutch free throws.

Other, less significant things that go against Trice here are his size, his recent inconsistency shooting the ball and a lack of willingness to attack the rim just a bit more than he presently does.