Wisconsin's Stats Note Badgers' Best Lineup, High-Impact Player
The Wisconsin Badgers will take a six-day break into Saturday’s road game against Indiana, but not without an impressive 92-82 home win against Ohio State this past weekend. After a rough stretch of hoops from late November to early January (5-5 record), Greg Gard and company have turned things around with high-octane offense and some incredible moments.
After losing to Purdue on Jan. 3, the Badgers have gone 7-1, averaging 84.1 points per game. Their most recent victory over the Buckeyes broke the school record for the most 90-point games in a season (nine). Keep in mind, there are still nine regular-season games left.
While the defense has been up and down, Wisconsin’s scoring has made up for most of it. The one-two punch between Nick Boyd and John Blackwell has become one of the best guard duos in the country.
Despite some concerns in the frontcourt, the Badgers have five floor-spacers at all times (with the exception of bruising big man Will Garlock), which forces opponents to constantly rotate and allows players to operate with decent room. It’s a big reason why Wisconsin ranks 46th in the nation in offensive efficiency. When they’re hitting shots, they’re nearly unstoppable.
But when have the Badgers been most effective, in terms of personnel? There’s no doubt that Boyd and Blackwell have taken them to new heights, but who have they worked best with?
According to CBB Analytics, Wisconsin’s best five-man group is actually one of the most efficient in the country. Gard’s lineup of Boyd, Blackwell, Braeden Carrington, Aleksas Bieliauskas and Nolan Winter has an absurd +42.9 net rating, which ranks sixth among Power Five teams with a minimum of 50 possessions.
Boyd and Blackwell are easily the biggest catalysts of this team, with a +13.6 net rating across 537 minutes of action. The two are averaging a combined 38.5 points per game, the highest-scoring guard duo in the Big Ten.
However, Carrington is arguably the most underrated piece for the Badgers this season. Coming off the bench, has been the definition of an effective 3&D wing, notching some highlight performances in big wins.
The Minnesota native is averaging seven points and 2.4 rebounds this season, but has been one of the team’s biggest risers in big moments. Carrington has elevated his stats to 11.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, 0.7 blocks and 0.5 steals on the road. The eye test matches the production.
Carrington has posted a positive box plus-minus in his last seven games, dating back to the team’s upset win over Michigan on Jan. 10. The senior was a major two-way contributor in that victory. It sparked what has been a dramatic increase in trust from the coaching staff.
From Dec. 10 to Jan. 6, Carrington was playing single-digit minutes, but since then, he’s averaged 23.2 per game, with stats of 10.9 points and 4.1 rebounds on 43.2% shooting from three.
The 6-foot-5 wing has been in the right spots at the right times as of late. He isn’t always going to drop nearly 20 points on high-volume shooting, but in big-time games, he has shown up consistently.
