Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers looking for redemption against Terrapins

Wisconsin Basketball and Maryland will face off for the second time this year on Friday in Madison. Can the Badgers avenge their earlier loss to the Terps?

Which Wisconsin team are we going to see on Friday?

Well, there’s the group we saw in the first half of the Badgers’ 64-60 loss to the Terrapins back on January 14, and who he had seen plenty of prior to that in their losses to Western Kentucky, Minnesota, and Purdue. That Wisconsin squad only scored 15 points before halftime on a putrid 7-26 shooting from the floor against Maryland.

Then, there’s the team we saw in the second half of that contest and have continued to watch throughout Wisconsin’s current four-game winning streak.

Those Badgers stormed back from a 38-17 deficit to take a one-point lead with just over two minutes remaining in the game by converting quality shots from the field and playing lockdown defense, holding the Terrapins to just five field goals in the second half. However, they ultimately lost the game thanks to a backbreaking three-pointer from Anthony Cowan with 44 seconds left and some missed opportunities in their final possessions.

Revenge will be on the minds of the Badgers in Round Two of this matchup as they look to notch their fifth consecutive victory on Friday night in Madison. Will we see Wisconsin put together a complete game this time around, or will another sloppy stretch of play doom them once again?

Projected starters

No. 24 WISCONSIN (15-6)

G – D’Mitrik Trice – SO (13.9 ppg)

G – Brad Davison- SO (10.8 ppg)

F – Khalil Iverson – SR (4.8 ppg)

F – Nathan Reuvers – SO (8.7 ppg)

C – Ethan Happ – SR (18.5 ppg)

No. 21 MARYLAND (17-5)

G – Anthony Cowan Jr. – JR (17.0 ppg)

G – Darryl Morsell – SO (8.4 ppg)

G – Eric Ayala – FR (8.5 ppg)

F – Jalen Smith – FR (11.9 ppg)

F – Bruno Fernando – SO (14.9 ppg)

Keys to the game and prediction

The first order of business for the Badgers in this rematch will be to stay out of their own way.

In their last game against the Terrapins, Wisconsin shot themselves in the foot by committing 23 fouls, and Maryland capitalized by going 24-29 from the charity stripe compared to the Badgers’ 3-6. In a game that was ultimately decided by just four points, that massive free throw disparity doomed Wisconsin. If not for the unlikely feat of holding the Terrapins to just five second-half field goals, the Badgers would not have had a prayer of even getting back in the game. They will need to be smarter if they are going to get the win on Friday.

Another decisive factor in the January 14 loss was Wisconsin’s abysmal shooting.

Ethan Happ struggled all night to find good looks for himself in the post against Maryland’s physical and athletic frontcourt duo of Bruno Fernando and Jalen Smith, but, as we saw in their last outing against Nebraska, the Badgers do not need Happ to pour in points in order to win games due to his ability to facilitate shots for his teammates. However, those guys could not by a bucket for most of the night before Wisconsin’s 24-6 rally in the final 9:18, scoring only 15 points in the first half while going 0-10 from three-point land until Nate Reuvers hit one with 17:29 left in the game.

This obviously cannot happen again in Friday’s rematch. Happ will most likely have a tough go of it against Fernando again, so the Badgers will need their complementary players to do what they did against the Huskers and knock down the shots they are supposed to.

I expect them to do just that on their home floor, especially with Reuvers, Brad Davison, and D’Mitrik Trice really stepping up their games throughout Wisconsin’s winning streak. Pair that with another dose of the lockdown defense we have grown accustomed to seeing the Badgers dish out this season, and I like the Badgers to win their fifth straight, 68-64.

All stats courtesy of Sports-Reference.com