It’s time for Inside the Hall’s team-by-team breakdown of the Big Ten Conference. Today: The Wisconsin Badgers.
I think we can all agree by now that anyone who doubts a Bo Ryan-coached team does so at his own peril. Not unlike T-Pain and Cameron Newton, all he does is win.
Ryan is into his 10th season in Madison now. The previous nine ended in the NCAA Tournament. Given his track record and the return of all-action forward Jon Leuer, there’s no reason to think that this season will play out any different.
And, as has been pointed out ad nauseam by now, he does it in a very Bo Ryan-esque manner. Wisconsin under the slick-haired, hard-faced coach will simply play almost mistake-free basketball. The Badgers are always at or near the top of the Big Ten in turnover margin (third in 2010) and assist-to-turnover ratio (second). Their turnover percentage last year was an impeccable 14.9 percent, easily tops in the conference.
The Badgers also led the conference in scoring defense, allowing less than 57 points per game, a rather absurd number even in the nose-to-the-grindstone Big Ten.
The other thing that makes Ryan’s Wisconsin program so special is that it never wavers. A slew of solid players have passed through the program since Ryan took over in 2001, including Brian Butch, Trevon Hughes, Alando Tucker, Devin Harris and Kammron Taylor. Every time one departs, we assume his loss will somehow negatively impact the next season’s squad, and yet it rarely ever does.
Thus far this season, it’s Leuer and Jordan Taylor carrying the program on. Leuer was expected after a stellar if not injury-shortened season last year. Taylor was a back-up last year, but had solid stats, particularly in the assists category, something that’s translated to the beginning of this season.
The real revelation (and we’re talking just two games, but it’s still impressive) is freshman guard Josh Gasser. Officially listed as a point on his Rivals page, Gasser was an unranked three-star according to the recruiting service. Through the first two games of his college career, Gasser is averaging 14 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
Big Ten power rankings: Week 10
(Photo via AnnArbor.com on Flickr)
The waters have begun to settle around the Big Ten contenders and pretenders, both in terms of conference title credentials and NCAA aspirations.
Michigan might have played its way in down the stretch if not for a trademark Wisconsin bank shot to win at the buzzer. Illinois and Michigan State stand on precarious ground, but could be in with strong respective finishes. Penn State is almost surely out, and poor Minnesota — for whom nothing ever seems to go as planned — is probably done as well. *sigh Tubby Smith*
So let’s rock and roll:
Inside the Hall Big Ten power rankings: Week 10
I Think This is the Final Stop at No. 11. Indiana – NR; 12-17, 3-13; 33 total points
It’s easy to tell where things have gone wrong for the Hoosiers after an impressive run of play in the middle of the conference schedule. The problem is simply that it would take too much time. The incessant fouling is one glaring problem. That’s a good start, but it’s hardly the end of the list of this team’s flaws as currently constituted.
It’s The Same Old Song At No. 10: Iowa – NR; 10-18, 3-13; 30 total points
There’s definitely a case to be made for a brighter future in Iowa City. We just can’t really make it right now. Fear not, Hawkeyes fans: Spring football begins soon. But then maybe that’s not exactly the most exciting proposition either.
Still On the NIT Bubble at No. 9. Northwestern – NR; 16-12, 6-1; 27 total points
It always comes back around to this for Northwestern, doesn’t it? Bill Carmody’s Big Ten finishes: 11th, seventh, 10th, tied for fifth, eighth, tied for eighth, 10th, 11th, ninth, seventh, which comes to an average of right around 8.5. So this seems about average.
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