NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Illinois of last decade

6. Ethan Happ – Wisconsin

At the tail end of Bo Ryan’s Hall of Fame coaching career, along came this 6’10 forward from Milan. Happ arrived on campus at Wisconsin in 2015, hoping to recharge a program that had just made consecutive Final Four’s but was losing a ton of talent. Happ would spend his entire four-year career not just with the Badgers but in the starting lineup, becoming a dynamic piece of the frontcourt.

Happ was a vital piece for the Badgers, becoming one of the best interior offensive players in the Big Ten. His numbers were impressive from the beginning aside from his pedestrian free throw shooting. As a senior, he averaged 17.3 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 4.5 steals per game, with a sea of double-doubles throughout a successful career. He played in seven NCAA Tournament games, having a personal-high 21-points in a heartbreaking Sweet Sixteen loss to Florida.

Important to Wisconsin’s success, Happ was named All-Big Ten First Team each of his final three seasons, an extraordinary accomplishment. He was on the Big Ten’s All-Defense team on multiple occasions, ranks among the conference leaders in all-time points scored, rebounds, steals, and field goals. Undrafted in 2019, he’s spent the last few seasons playing overseas, but it’s impossible to deny the things he accomplished at the collegiate level.