NCAA Basketball: 10 teams that will exceed expectations in 2019-20
Wisconsin Badgers
2018-19 Record: 23-11
There are two main reasons why most people are saying Wisconsin will not be very good this season.
- The Ethan Happ era is now over
- Their 2019 recruiting class is almost nonexistent
Let’s address reason #1. Over the past four seasons, almost all of Wisconsin’s offensive possessions involved Ethan Happ. Over the course of his career, Happ averaged 15.3 ppg and was without a doubt, the best center in the Big Ten during that time.
Not having Happ may certainly be a lot for Badgers because they are just not used to running an offense without his presence. Don’t let that fool you, there are certainly some other strong offensive links for the Badgers. More guys are going to have to step up, but together, Wisconsin can still threaten offensively.
Wisconsin has an excellent Point Guard in Junior D’Mitrik Trice. He averaged 11.6 ppg a season ago, and with Happ gone, the backcourt may have to pick up some frontcourt slack. I expect to see Trice and fellow guard, Brad Davidson, take over games this year. As for filling in down low, 6’11 forward Nate Reuvers is certainly capable of getting the job done.
In addition to Reuvers, 7’0 center Owen Hamilton is now eligible after transferring from Northern Illinois and sitting out last season. With this duo, there is no shortage of big men, and I expect to see the frontcourt very active once again this year for the Badgers.
As for the recruiting class issue, the Badgers have lots of returning depth and some new faces that are now eligible that will force this to not be a very big problem. I really feel like Wisconsin’s will get things figured out, be competitive in the Big Ten, and get into the NCAA Tournament yet again.