Effort on Defense Non-Negotiable for Greg Gard, Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. — Following the most lopsided loss of his coaching tenure, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard made one thing clear about his team’s defense in last Wednesday’s 90-60 loss at then No. 23 Nebraska.

“That better be an anomaly.”

The Cornhuskers shot 54.1 percent from the field against the Badgers. Nebraska made 11 3-pointers, but also generated 44 points in the paint. Operating like a machine, unencumbered all night, the Huskers had 20 assists on 33 made field goals, including 17 dunks/layups. NU also didn’t need a single transition basket en route to their 90 points.

Even with Wisconsin trailing by as many as 33 in the second half, Gard took two timeouts less than a minute apart to try and stop the bleeding. Trailing 72-48, Gard used the first timeout. It was to no avail as Nebraska would score the next five points, prompting Gard to stop the game once again. Gard was seen on the television broadcast ripping into his team, which was on the verge of suffering its third loss of the season, all in uninspiring fashion.

“He’s our leader. When he takes those timeouts, it’s for good reason,” sophomore guard Jack Janicki said. “It was hugely, well-deserved, and the film doesn’t lie.”

“We’d like to cut down on his screaming the rest of the year, but that’s on us.”

In double-digit losses to BYU and TCU, Gard was questioning Wisconsin’s physicality. After Wednesday, it was the effort level.

“Quite frankly, we’ve gotta play harder,” said Gard. “You can solve a lot…if you play harder. When I watched it in person and going over the film, it was obvious. I felt that we needed to play with more fight to us.”

Immediately after the game, Gard made it known to the Badgers, their effort and fight are non-negotiable.

“Coach came in the locker room after the game and told us to lace em’ up and be ready for that next practice,” senior guard Andrew Rohde explained.

Bad Shot Selection Aids the Flurry

Wisconsin did lead by as many as four in the first half, but was unable to keep pace with a red-hot Nebraska team after the first 10 minutes of action. Attacking the paint to start, the Badgers got away from what was working and finished by taking 32-pointers on Wednesday, only able to cash in on seven.

“When you play in transition a lot, which we do both ways — Part of what led into our defensive shortcomings were quick shots offensively,” Gard explained. “The 32 threes we took, 15 of them were bad shots, and that’s the highest, as we’ve evaluated every game all year.

“We got very impatient. We were good the first five minutes, but then, for whatever reason, the last 35, we thought we had a better idea of how to attack, and that that affects your defense.”

At one point, UW attempted 13 consecutive triples, and 15 of their first 20 field goal attempts came from beyond the arc. Needless to say, Thursday’s film session wasn’t all that enjoyable.

“Coach went through every single one of our 3-point shot attempts,” Janicki said. “A bad shot and a long rebound is as effective as a turnover for the opposing team.”

Gard Addresses His Leaders

Thursday morning, Gard called senior guard Nick Boyd and junior guard John Blackwell into his office. According to the 11th-year head coach, that wasn’t routine.

Boyd did finish with 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting, but had three turnovers and went just 2-for-8 from 3-point range, often forcing something quick and off the dribble. Blackwell had one of the most forgettable nights of his career, scoring seven points on 1-for-11 shooting.

As Gard explained, he can live with missing shots. Gard broke down Boyd’s and Blackwell’s “bad” attempts, particularly the contested mid-range jumpers, off the dribble 3’s, and quick 3’s, and showed how Nebraska was able to feast on those the next time down the floor.

“The younger guys and the less experienced guys follow their example,” said Gard. “So, if we’re taking shots that are out of character, if we’re not guarding like we should be, they’re setting examples.”

Another area of emphasis for Gard this week has been getting his group to stop guarding individually, but instead as a team. Against Nebraska, it was rare to see five Badgers on the floor all connected with one another.

Gard mentioned both Rohde and Janicki as two players the Badgers need to lean on defensively going forward. While neither had a particularly great defensive night in Lincoln, Gard mentioned both as being pretty consistent on that end of the floor all season.

“With guys coming in from different programs, it’s about instilling the right mindset as much as the right habits,” said Janicki. “It’s got to be 40 minutes of collective defense.”

Wisconsin Still Finding Its Footing Defensively

Wednesday was the third time Wisconsin unraveled on the defensive end. In the UW’s three losses this season, all away from home, opponents are averaging 87.3 points per game while shooting a combined 49.4 percent, including a 98-70 thumping, courtesy of BYU in Salt Lake City.

“I think a little bit of it was heart, definitely,” Rohde explained. “Being in an environment like that, when you get punched, it’s definitely hard to punch back.”

While Wisconsin has a proud defensive tradition going back to the Dick Bennett era, the days of holding teams to 50-60 points are virtually over. Possessions are higher, shooters are better, and offenses are vastly more complex. Even the Badgers, who for so long aimed to drag opponents through the mud, have adapted. As of Thursday, UW ranks No. 61 in adjusted tempo, easily the highest mark for the program in the KenPom era.

The defensive numbers might not be what they were historically for this program, but Gard isn’t willing to sacrifice the standard.

“That’s definitely something he’s harped on since I first got here,” Rohde explained. “This program is known for its defense. Even with the offense growing over the last couple years, the defensive standard hasn’t changed.

Badgers Get Back to Work

With nine days off, Wisconsin has plenty of time to correct itself ahead of Friday’s non-conference matchup with Villanova (8-2) in Milwaukee. The good news for the Badgers? A lot of what they’re finding has been correctable, starting with their approach to the defensive end of the floor.

In some fiery and competitive practices, UW cited improved energy and communication on defense. Some players even cited new habits beginning to form.

“The mindset has to shift from, ‘How can we outscore teams to how can we lock down teams and use our offense to create separation,” Janicki explained.

Friday will test all of that as Villanova comes to Fiserv Forum, ranked No. 28 in KenPom’s offensive adjusted efficiency and No. 51 in adjusted defensive efficiency. The Wildcats took BYU down to the wire in the season-opener and are coming off a convincing 79-61 home victory over Pittsburgh.

“It’s still early. We’ve got a lot of time to figure things out,” said Rohde. “I really like the way we’ve bounced back since then.”

“I think we’re going to respond in a positive way. Practice has been really intense. I think it will be good for us to get some time to regroup, focus on some things internally, and work on some things as a group so we can be ready for Friday.”