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

Brad Davison

The case for: The case for Davison is based largely on intangible attributes. Davison is as tough as they make basketball players these days and he has a flair for making clutch shots. Most notably this season was his late, dagger three against Xavier, followed by his own Gator chomp. I wish it was a Tomahawk Chop, but I appreciate the gamesmanship nonetheless.

Davison is also third on the team in scoring and fills up other stats at a solid rate for a mostly off-ball guard. He’s averaging just under two assists and three rebounds per game. What isn’t on the stat sheet is all the hustle plays he makes. Drawing charges, deflecting passes and getting his team and the crowd pumped up during big moments are what sets him apart.

The case against: While Davison is shooting 75% from the free throw line, he’s only 30/40 while Trice is 29/41. The difference is due to the lack of attempts in this case. Davison should not only be better from the line, just as Trice should, but he should be getting to the line more too.

The biggest argument against Davison is his inconsistency. After scoring a whopping 0 points against Marquette while only attempting three shots, a game the Badgers could’ve really used his contribution, he came back the next game with 24 against Savannah State. Sure, Savannah State is a much weaker opponent, but he followed that up with only seven against Grambling. He dropped 26 at Western Kentucky, and then only four against Minnesota at home.

Davison has scored in double digits each of the last three games since the Minnesota loss, so hopefully, he is realizing how important he is in the scoring department. But as of right now he is very hit and miss.