Fans call for Greg Gard's job after disappointing loss to James Madison in round one
Ladies and gentlemen we have yet another upset on our hands and unfortunately for Badger fans, Wisconsin is the latest victim in the NCAA Tournament. This game seemed to be out of hand from tipoff and the Badgers never quite looked like themselves.
Early turnovers put Wisconsin in a hole that they were never able to dig themselves out of. Head coach Greg Gard never seemed to find an answer to James Madison's physical defense. When interviewed in the middle of the first half, instead of talking about the eight turnovers his team already had, he focused on how he needed to speak to the referees.
Gard's comments didn't sit well with fans and his coaching performance in this game seems to be the straw that broke the camel's back. They did not hold back on social media talking about how they wanted to see a change. Here are some of the best tweets we could find.
Went from a near top tier program to a joke. Fire Greg Gard. https://t.co/R5CRNyy88i
— Ryan (@BrewPackOnYT) March 23, 2024
The last time Wisconsin came into the NCAA Tournament as a 5-seed they were also upset in the first round by 12-seed Oregon. This loss seems worse because Wisconsin never looked comfortable in this game and Gard never made changes to fix it.
If you want Greg Gard back you enjoy losing basketball
— Dmize (@dmize22222) March 23, 2024
It’s genuinely depressing what Greg Gard has done to Wisconsin basketball. I wasn’t a fan during the Bo Ryan era but there was a level of excellence that was expected. Just a complete dumpster fire now.
— Hoodie Maybin (@HoodieMaybin) March 23, 2024
Gard took over for Bo Ryan midseason when he surprised everyone with his retirement announcement. Ryan was one of the best if not the best coach in Wisconsin basketball history and clearly fans feel that legacy is now tainted with Gard at the helm.
Not sure if I have ever heard a coach say that he has to do a better job talking to the officials in a mid-game interview. But Greg Gard just did it. pic.twitter.com/NG8hPokJIG
— Noel Thompson (@N0ELTHOMPSON) March 23, 2024
The refs seemed to be the least of Wisconsin's problems, especially when they could not take care of the ball. The Badgers ended the game with 19 turnovers compared to the Dukes' 12 and James Madison stole the ball 14 times from the Badgers. You can't score if you never have the ball. That should have been Gard's focus, not the refs.
If Greg Gard is the head coach of Wisconsin Next week the future is ruined
— Dawson Feyen (@FeyenDawson) March 23, 2024
I don’t care how this game turns out. Greg Gard should be fired immediately after this game concludes. He refuses to have a team ready to play in the tourney and can’t recruit Wisconsin based kids.
— Shane Wissink (@S_wissink5) March 23, 2024
Recruitment starts in your own backyard and if Gard can't even get guys from Wisconsin to want to play at Wisconsin, maybe changes should be made.
Greg Gard when reporters ask him how he’ll fix the team for next season pic.twitter.com/xZWLMM4OsC
— Blake R. Weiner (@BlakeWeiner) March 23, 2024
Fire Greg Gard.
— Tyler Perkovich (@tperkovich10) March 23, 2024
Keeping it plain and simple to close this one out. The results speak for themselves and after this loss, Gard probably feels his seat warming up.
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