NCAA Basketball: ACC struggles, Gonzaga dropping, and more takeaways
By Brian Rauf
5) Micah Potter’s impact on Wisconsin
Micah Potter does not have anywhere near the same kind of impact as Ramsey, but he has given Wisconsin the kind of boost the Badgers needed. The Ohio State transfer has appeared in four games for the Badgers, and they’ve won them all – including road games against Tennessee and Ohio State.
Following the win over the Buckeyes, head coach Greg Gard discussed how his team progressed.
"“We’ve had to grow and experience some growing pains as we’ve come through November and December. Really proud of the effort. (We) just kept battling and kept finding a way, obviously getting contributions from a lot of different places.”"
Many of those contributions have come from Potter. He hasn’t been overly impressive from a box score standpoint – he has only scored eight points combined in his last three outings – but he does all the little things. Potter is a good rebounder and shot-blocker who can also pass out of the post and stretch opposing defenses from the perimeter.
More importantly, Potter is simply another quality big man for the Badgers. Prior to him becoming eligible, Nate Reuvers was pretty much all by himself on the inside. Unsurprisingly, Reuvers has had some of his most productive – and efficient – games with Potter on the court.
His presence has opened up Wisconsin’s offense a bit more while boosting their defense with his rim protection. Expect Potter’s role to continue to grow.