The Camp: Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke sharing reps, new faces on defense, two de-commits
Wisconsin was on the field for practice No. 2 of spring on Tuesday. Zach and Jesse go position-by-position to discuss what they saw in their first look at the Badgers this spring. That included Tyler Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke sharing reps with the first-team offense, some new faces in the front seven of the defense and more. They close with discussion of some recruits de-committing.
Wisconsin loses commitment from 3-star safety in 2025 class
Wisconsin has lost a second commitment in its 2025 recruiting class.
A week after Middleton (Wis.) defensive lineman Torin Pettaway announced he was flipping his commitment from the Badgers to Minnesota, three-star safety Cody Haddad (Cleveland, Ohio) reportedly de-committed from coach Luke Fickell and his staff on Monday.
https://twitter.com/McNamaraRivals/status/1774838256292548660?s=20
Haddad initially committed to Wisconsin in mid-January, but his recruitment kicked up a gear soon after. Ranked as the No. 15 player in the state of Ohio, the 6-foot-1, 175-pound Haddad added a scholarship offer from Ohio State on January 20. He visited the Buckeyes and most recruiting analysts expect Haddad to end up in Columbus.
The de-commitment leaves the Badgers with seven commitments in their 2025 class.
Temple & Heilprin: Latest on AJ Storr, players Wisconsin is targeting in the portal, Chris McIntosh supports Greg Gard
Badger247's Evan Flood sits in for Jesse to talk the latest on AJ Storr's name going into the transfer portal, whether he could come back to Wisconsin, several names that the Badgers are tracking in the portal, AD Chris McIntosh's comments on Greg Gard and a couple things we're looking forward to in spring ball.
The Swing: Connor Essegian in the transfer portal, looking back at the loss to JMU, looking ahead to next season
Connor Essegian is in the transfer portal. Zach and Jesse discuss that news, while also diving into what went wrong against JMU, the uncertainty around AJ Storr, the transfer portal, what success should look like under Greg Gard and more.
Badgers: Connor Essegian has entered the transfer portal
Connor Essegian's time at Wisconsin is done.
The sophomore guard announced his decision on social media Sunday night.
https://twitter.com/CEssegian/status/1772067479017202152?s=20
Essegian was an important piece when he arrived in 2022, averaging 11.7 points per game and shooting 35.9% from beyond the arc on his way to earning a spot on the Big Ten's All-Freshman team. But a back injury early in the season slowed him and he fell out of the normal rotation, going from averaging 27 minutes per game as a freshman to seven this past season. When on the court he was unable to find his rhythm from 3-point range, shooting 30.3% compared to 35.9% in his first year.
The decline in playing time was in large part due to the arrival of freshman John Blackwell, who shot 45.5% on 66 attempts, and continued struggles on defense. Coach Greg Gard was willing to deal with that when Essegian was a freshman, but with better options on that end of the court this season, it led to the Indiana native spending a lot of time on the bench.
Essegian is the first player to enter the portal since Wisconsin's season came to an end on Friday.
(12) James Madison 72, (5) Wisconsin 61: Last word
BROOKLYN — Wisconsin’s season came to a screeching halt Friday night, as the fifth-seeded Badgers fell 72-61 to 12th-seeded James Madison at Barclays Center in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Player of the Game: Terrence Edwards Jr.
It wasn’t a huge day for James Madison’s top scorer, but he was the leader in a balanced attack. Edwards had a team-high 14 points, one of four Dukes that hit double figures against the Badgers. But he was also a major factor in the defensive effort that gave Wisconsin all kinds of problems. Edwards’ length was an issue for AJ Storr and it played a leading role in his 5-for-14 effort from the field.
The good: Max Klesmit
The good was hard to find for Wisconsin in a night it would like to forget, but Klesmit was the bright spot. The junior guard went off for 18 points, including hitting five 3-pointers. It tied his season-high and it kept the Badgers in the game in the second half. In fact, he nearly had his sixth 3-pointer that would have made it a 52-49 game but it rimed out. He got another chance to cut the game to four but a layup through contact didn’t fall. Klesmit finished the season shooting 39.8% from deep.
The not so good: The turnovers
James Madison thought it had a chance to make life difficult for Wisconsin with its pressure and the Dukes were right. They heated the Badgers up and forced 19 turnovers. It was a season-high and the third-most in Greg Gard’s tenure. Thirteen of those came in the first half, including seven on the first 12 possessions. James Madison took full advantage, turning all those Wisconsin mistakes into 27 points for the game.
Stat of the Game: 9-19
That was what Wisconsin finished at the rim. It included just 8-for-18 on layups, many of which were point-blank attempts that need to be finished. It was an extremely rough night for Tyler Wahl. He hit his first shot but didn’t make another on the night, going 0-for-4, all on layups.
In Case You Missed It
— Wisconsin dropped to 1-4 as a No. 5 seed, with all four losses coming by double digits. The loss also means the Badgers will go another year without making it to the second weekend of the tournament, with the drought now dating back to 2017.
— Gard is 6-6 in his six tournament appearances, including 3-3 as the higher seeded team.
— The game marked the end of Wahl’s career. It was his 162nd appearance, the most by a Wisconsin player in school history. He is the lone player on the roster that doesn’t have the option to return for another year.
— Several players were in tears in the locker room after, including Wahl, Hepburn and Klesmit.
— Storr has not decided what his plan for next year is. He would not say that his only options are Wisconsin or the NBA, leaving the possibility that he could decide to transfer again.
What’s next?
The offseason
The Camp: OC Phil Longo joins the show
Zach and Jesse are joined by Wisconsin offensive coordinator Phil Longo. The guys ask about why the offense didn't click in year 1, how things will be different in year 2, what he's seen from Tyler Van Dyke, his philosophy of having the QB under center in short yardage and goal line situations, excitement around CJ Williams and Trech Kekahuna and more.
The Swing: Wisconsin gets its NCAA Tourney assignment, looking back at a great week in Minneapolis
The Badgers know their opening round opponent in the NCAAs. Zach and Jesse talk about the game against James Madison, but also look back at a great performance by the team in Minneapolis and what it means for them in the Big Dance. They close by answering some of your Twitter questions.
Badgers get No. 5 seed in South Region, draw 12th-seeded James Madison
A year after having to play in the NIT and watch the NCAA Tournament on TV, the Wisconsin basketball team is back in the Big Dance.
The 68-team bracket was announced Sunday with the Badgers learning they would be the No. 5 seed in the South Region and face 12th-seeded James Madison on Friday night in Brooklyn with tip set for 8:40 CT. A win would mean taking on 4th-seeded Duke or 13th-seeded Vermont on Sunday at Barclays Center.
https://twitter.com/BadgerMBB/status/1769487586622382375?s=20
The Dukes come into the tournament riding the longest winning streak in the country at 13 and ended up a school-record 31 wins on the year. They finished second to Appalachian State in the Sun Belt Conference during the regular season, but ended up rolling through the conference tournament and beating Arkansas State for the title.
James Madison is led by senior Terrance Edwards who averages 17.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. The 6-foot-6 guard is complimented by two-time transfer forward TJ Bickerstaff's 13.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. South Dakota State transfer Noah Friedel also scores in double figures at 12.1 points per game, while freshman Jaylen Carey gives the Dukes a lift of the bench with 7.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Coached by Mark Byington, James Madison stunned the college basketball world early in the season, taking down top-5 Michigan State on the road in overtime. The three losses consisted of two against Appalachian State and one at Southern Mississippi. The Dukes finished 52 in the NCAA's Net Rankings, one of the data points used by the selection committee to determine which teams make the tournament and those that don't.
Wisconsin and James Madison have just two common opponents -- the Spartans and Arkansas State. The Badgers beat Michigan State twice, while they opened the season by dropping the Red Wolves 105-76. In addition to beating the Spartans, the Dukes beat Arkansas State twice, including by 20 in the conference title game last week.
While many will be picking James Madison in an upset, the Badgers will enter playing some of their best basketball of the season. After losing eight of 11 coming into the Big Ten Tournament, Wisconsin handled Maryland by 31, took down Northwestern, upset top-seeded Purdue and gave Illinois all it could handle before falling.
This will be the fifth time the Badgers have been the No. 5 seed in the tournament. Three of those previous trips -- 1999, 2013 and 2019 -- ended with first-round losses to the No. 12 seed. The other time came in 2003 when they made a run to the Sweet 16 before falling to No. 1 Kentucky.
(5) Wisconsin 70, (4) Northwestern 61: Last word
MINNEAPOLIS -- Fifth-seeded Wisconsin erased an 11-point first-half deficit on its way to a 70-61 win over fourth-seeded Northwestern in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday afternoon.
Player of the Game: AJ Storr
AJ Storr has been Wisconsin’s leading scorer more often than not this season. It’s what led to him pacing the Badgers at 16.7 points per game. But he wasn’t always an efficient scorer. On Friday, that’s exactly what he was in posting a career-high 30 points on just 16 shots to make sure Wisconsin made it to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the first time since 2019. Northwestern had no one that could stay in front of the athletic wing as he got into the lane at will. Once he established his rhythm there, he was able to step outside and knock down three of the five shots he took from deep. The sophomore was also part of a strong defensive effort, limiting the Wildcats to just 37.5% shooting.
The good: Steven Crowl
A day after going 7-for-8 and scoring 17 points in 18 minutes, Crowl put together another strong effort in Wisconsin’s win. He posted 19 points and seven rebounds in 31 minutes, while dishing out three assists. He did a bunch of damage from beyond the arc, too, going 3-for-5 and is now shooting 66.7% in the tournament from deep. It is that aggressive nature that his teammates and coaches have been calling for all season and it’s exactly what the Badgers need from the 7-footer to make noise next week when the NCAA Tournament begins.
The not so good: Injuries
Wisconsin played without point guard Chucky Hepburn as he was battling a knee injury from the previous day. That forced John Blackwell into the game, who promptly injured his right ankle in the first half and spent time in the locker room getting treated before returning. Later in the game, Tyler Wahl bumped knees with a Northwestern player while chasing a guy around a screen and also got treatment.
One good thing out of the game, though, was others stepping up. Kamari McGee, Max Klesmit and Blackwell handled the point guard duties for Hepburn, while Markus Ilver helped lessen the loss of Wahl to the injury and foul trouble.
Stat of the Game: 29
That is how many points Northwestern star Boo Buie had as he torched the Badgers. But 16 of those came in the first eight minutes of the game. After that, Wisconsin did a much better job on Buie, especially Klesmit, who got physical and made a significant effort to deny him the ball. That focus forced the Wildcats to trust others to step up and it didn’t happen. Guys not named Buie went 11-for-38 (28.9%) from the field for the game.
In Case You Missed It
— Coach Greg Gard said he found out about 30 minutes before the game that Hepburn was not going to be able to play. His status for Saturday’s game against Purdue is unclear.
— Wisconsin faced an 11-point deficit just eight minutes into the game. The Badgers answered it with a 14-0 to take a 26-23 lead and never trailed again in the game.
— After one of his 3-pointers, Crowl ran back down the court holding three fingers right in the face of the guy that was guarding him.
-- This is the first time since 2017 that Wisconsin has won multiple games at the Big Ten Tournament. The Badgers have never made it the championship game when they haven't been a top-4 seed.
What’s next?
Wisconsin (21-12) will face No. 1 seed Purdue (29-3) in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon in Minneapolis with tipoff coming at noon.
