The way I see it, the best approach to determine the demeanor of the men's basketball team before its showdown with Illinois tonight is to explore the minds of two completely different individuals. We'll examine the soft-spoken farm boy from Blue Mound, Wis., and the colorful Kiwi who will walk onto the Kohl Center floor one last time. Two diverse personalities, but both play a crucial role in Wisconsin's Big Ten title hopes.
If Mike Wilkinson and Kirk Penney are any indicators, the Badgers are ready to hoist another fist and add one more win to their resum??.
\It's not as big as everyone's making it out to be,"" Wilkinson said after practice Monday. ""For us it's just another conference game.""
""Any emotions will be saved for after the game,"" Penney said. ""It's just a matter of taking care of business. We really haven't won anything yet.""
That kind of attitude has worked 21 times for UW this season. It has hammered the likes of Michigan, Minnesota and Penn State at the Kohl Center.
If only it were that simple.
Unfortunately, flooding the court at the end of regulation and raising havoc on State Street through the midnight hour is not a certainty. Remember, UW is 0-4 against top 25 opponents this season, including a 90-80 home loss to Wake Forest. In fact, UW's most impressive victories are at the expense of teams on the NCAA bubble. Both Minnesota and UW-Milwaukee are quality teams but in no way guaranteed a tournament spot.
Now enter Illinois and 6'10"" forward Brian Cook, who feasted on UW's lack of size in their first meeting, scoring 31 points and grabbing nine rebounds. His counterpart, 6'10"" freshman forward James Augustine, added 17 points and eight rebounds. It will be crucial that Wilkinson stay out of foul trouble, not only for a defensive presence but because of his late season offensive prowess.
Wilkinson said form and confidence have nothing to do with his recent hot streak. He even denied being struck by lightning. Since halftime at Carver Hawkeye Arena, Wilkinson has shot 68 percent from the field, including 6-9 on three-pointers. UW will need every bit of Wilkinson's firepower to pull out a victory against Illinois.
""It's just a conference game,"" Wilkinson reiterated. ""If we start treating it any different, then that's not who we are and that's not how we've been preparing all year.""
Let's hope it is just another game. Although it would be nice to hoist another trophy this time.
wrcooney@wisc.edu.
