Let’s look deeper at what the Badgers need to happen in March.
With March Madness right around the corner for the Wisconsin Badgers, I want to examine this year’s squad, A-Z, to hit some of the highlights and try to make some sense out of things.
Y’all seemed to enjoy Part 1 in this series, so let’s get right to Part 2 of our Wisconsin Badgers hoops A-to-Zs in March.
I is for Intensity: This is wildly important for the Badgers. The contests in which they’ve been fully engaged have been a joy to watch. But slow starts and outright clunkers? Not much fun. To win games in March, Wisconsin’s intensity will need to be turned all the way up from opening tip to final whistle.
J is for Janicki and Jones: When Jack Janicki went down with what is probably a season-ending wrist injury, it was immediately clear that his valuable minutes (mostly for defense) were going to have to be absorbed by a committee.
One of those guys, in wildly varying amounts from game to game, has been freshman Hayden Jones. While he remains very much a work in progress and his not getting a lot of run is probably a good sign (e.g., no major foul trouble for others), the fact is that it’s possible Jones will need to step up and offer something in the NCAA Tournament. Will he be ready?
K is for KenPom: Wisconsin used to be KenPom darlings, but Greg Gard’s shift to a significantly more offense-focused style has made his team less attractive in Pomeroy’s algorithm, where the Badgers currently sit at one of their highest slots of the season, No. 25 (No. 18 offense, No. 48 defense). This doesn’t, per se, mean anything in particular, but it’s as close to an objective snapshot of where this team is analytically as there is.
L is for Long Scoring Droughts: For a unit blessed with high offensive efficiency and a robust scoring average, Wisconsin’s offense still has its fair share of stretches where it looks like a Freshman Poli Sci major in calculus class.
The first several minutes of the Maryland game were a perfect example. This squad simply can’t have that happen in the Tournament, although their 3-point shooting ability can quickly carve into deficits in a way that past teams could not.
M is for Making Shots: Yes, it’s basic math that teams who shoot at a higher percentage are more likely to win games, but it feels like Wisconsin is an extreme example of this axiom. Drain those threes and you might beat an elite Michigan team in Ann Arbor. Shoot blanks and you can stumble against sad sack Oregon. Here’s hoping they keep firing and sinking a lot of shots.
N is for Nolan Winter: Besides being concerned for the health and well-being of a certified good dude, when Nolan Winter was felled by a scary injury in the second half of the Maryland game, my heart sank, and my head went back to 2007 when an elite Badger team lost Brian Butch down the stretch and was never the same.
While we await updates on the situation, I’ll put it out there that Winter might be the Badgers’ most valuable player as far as having to replace the unique things that he does, including interior defense. Get well soon, Nolan!
O is for Officiating: This is a game-altering variable that has often seemed not to break in Wisconsin’s favor in the NCAA Tournament. Many of Bo’s teams, which typically boasted a tough and physical defense, were subjected to very different reffing in March than on a Wednesday night in January.
The second half of the 2015 national title game vs Duke is the most extreme example. How this might impact a less physical 2026 version of Wisconsin is anyone’s guess, but here’s to hoping the Badgers draw decent crews.
P is for the Past: As in, flush it. Patterns and history are comfortable things fans love to focus on come March, but the reality is that the ’25-26 Badgers are their own unique animal. So things that happened in 2017, 2019, or 2022 don’t make one bit of difference now. Go in, focus, and win. That’s the formula, and it doesn’t matter one bit what Johnny Davis’ teams did or didn’t do.
Q is for Quad 1 Record: While the Badgers sit at a preposterously low No. 31 in the NET (don’t get me started on how Iowa is somehow ahead of them), it’s impossible to ignore their vastly improved Q1 record, which now sits at 5-7 (Iowa’s, for example, is 3-6). It’s not a stretch to think that Wisconsin will end up on a seed line that’s higher than its NET ranking would suggest.
Category: General Sports
