Wisconsin Basketball: Keys to success against Saint Mary’s in 2019-20

2. Draw fouls and convert at the line.

Wisconsin was one of the nation’s worst foul shooting teams in the country last season. The Badgers rarely drew contact on drives and therefore exhibited a low free-throw attempt rate as well as one of the worst efficiency rates at the charity stripe as well. Looking ahead to this campaign, the team will need to be significantly improved in that area.

Wisconsin’s system does not usually yield a ton of free-throw attempts, but this is still an area for improvement. Ethan Happ’s departure will likely raise the team’s free throw percentage as he shot just 46.6% but he also nearly led the team in FTAr.

Considering Wisconsin’s returning starting core of D’Mitrik Trice, Brad Davison, and Nate Reuvers, it is reasonable to assume that the team improves at the stripe this season, at least from an efficiency point of that. That, though, did not appear to the case during the Badgers’ preseason exhibition as the team shot just 13-for-26 (50.0%) from the stipe against UW-La Crosse.

Saint Mary’s boasts its fair share of frontcourt size with Fitts (6-foot-8) and Aaron Menzies (7-foot-3) presumably holding down the starting lineup while Jock Perry (7-foot-1) could be a primary reserve. Wisconsin will need to find a way to attack the paint, though, and potentially draw some fouls. The Gaels ranked just 308th in the country last season in bench minutes percentage as their starters seemingly dominated the total playing time on the team.

Wisconsin getting to the free-throw line and converting would have a two-fold effect on this battle. The Badgers would force Coach Bennett to turn to his reserves for more playing time while also potentially taking advantage of “free” points.