Wisconsin Basketball: 2018-19 keys for Badgers to beat Maryland at home
3. Wisconsin needs to see Brevin Pritzl go to the line more
Wisconsin has been struggling to not only shoot from the free throw line, but get there in general. The Badgers have gone to the line more than 10 times just twice in the last five games. In the first game against Maryland, Wisconsin only attempted six shots from the charity stripe. Obviously Happ is going to see his share of attempts because teams are fouling him late in the second half. And he’s shooting a career low 47 percent.
One would think that since D’Mitrik Trice and Brad Davison have such a nice stroke that they’d be closer to 80 percent. But both guys are under 79 percent from the line. Khalil Iverson plays around the hoop, but shoots under 60 percent. Nate Reuvers is a very good free throw shooter for being a big, but doesn’t draw the contact.
The best free throw shooter on the team is actually Brevin Pritzl. The redshirt junior is shooting over 90 percent from the line this year. Pritzl though has only attempted 21 free throws though. That’s over half as many as Davison and Trice. Pritzl is playing under 20 minutes per game. But if he adds the willingness to be a driver into his arsenal, Greg Gard may want to play him more.
In the two full seasons with the Badgers, Pritzl has been averaging just over one attempt per game. Last season he shot 47-for-55 from the line to equal 85 percent. His scoring totals are way down from a season ago, but to defend him in that, the Badgers do have more scorers. Pritzl isn’t quite knocking down as many three-pointers either. So why not try and get to the line?
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He shows his ability to drive the ball in the lane from time-to-time. But it’s not consistent enough. That doesn’t make a whole lot of sense when Pritzl has the ability to be a very good free throw shooter. He should want to try and convert the best way possible. Pritzl was recruited to be a sharp-shooter, but the Badgers sometimes need scoring desperately and he can provide that from the line.