Wisconsin Basketball: 5 keys to a successful 2018-19 campaign

Closing guard emerges to win tight games

Wisconsin’s backcourt was extremely thin and inexperienced last season. After losing both Kobe King and D’Mitrik Trice to injury, the depth at guard was extremely shallow and freshman Brad Davison was forced to play a monster role all season long despite dealing with a separated shoulder for much of the year. Because of this, the backcourt was inexperienced and therefore unable to find a true go-to crunch time scorer in the backcourt.

Over the years, Wisconsin has been home for some of the most clutch players in the country. Most notably in recent season, Jordan Taylor and Bronson Koenig thrived under pressure in late-game or late-shot-clock situations. No matter how big the situation, those two guards seemed to always have the ball in their hands with the goal of making something happen.

During this past season, though, the Badgers struggled to close out tight games due to the lack of an experience college guard. While Davison did an excellent job attempting to fill the role, taking on that level of responsibility was a lot to ask out of a first-year player. Heading into this year, a completely healthy Davison, who had shoulder surgery this offseason, could emerge as that go-to player.

If he is not capable of doing so, Coach Gard might have to turn to another guard, such as King or Trice, for the role.

With all of this said, Wisconsin should be in good shape this season in terms of competing for an NCAA Tournament bid. It might be tough for Coach Gard to lead the team back to the Big Dance but it is definitely possible.