With St. Louis and the Final Four just seven points out of reach, head coach Bo Ryan and the Badgers saw the clock tick down in Syracuse. Despite an 88-82 loss to the No. 1 seed North Carolina Tar Heels, the Badgers had shocked the country.
After defeating Northern Iowa, Bucknell and North Carolina State, few thought Wisconsin could compete with the fast paced powder-blue offense. However, Big Red proved them wrong. For every Sean May jump hook there was an Alando Tucker turn-around. For every Raymond Felton jumper, there was a Clayton Hanson three. The Badgers played every step of the way with North Carolina, and maybe played their best game all year.
So, here we are. Another year and a new cast of characters. Five seniors have graduated and five new young men will don Badger jerseys. The question has to be asked, though: How do a group of a young men collect themselves after surpassing so many expectations? Is it easy to ground this team after such a high? For Ryan, that's really not an issue.
\Highs, lows, it's all part of being a teacher and a coach,"" Ryan said. ""I look forward to every season with the same mental approach that I'm responsible for developing young men into being players and making them better.""
Those young men have changed. Exit Mike Wilkinson, a consensus All-Big Ten first team selection, and a proven leader of this Wisconsin squad. Into that leadership role, enter Alando Tucker.
It all started for Alando with that tip in against Indiana at the buzzer last year. Then there was that magical half-court heave against Iowa in the Big Ten tournament. But the real display of the ability to guide his team by example was put on show in the Elite 8 game, where Tucker fought his way for 25 hard-earned points. After Grateful Red from around the country turned off their television sets that afternoon, they knew the Badger team was in good hands the next year.
""Tucker has put himself into a leadership position, because of how hard he works in conditioning, in the weight room, in the hill, all the drills. Because of his personality, he works hard all the time,"" Ryan said. ""But he also knows that this gets done as a team, and he has his responsibilities that he needs to handle.""
With five new faces on the court this year for the Badgers, Tucker's role as a leader will extend to the title of teacher and motivator.
""Him being a leader returning means that he's going to influence other young men into having better years they might not have otherwise,"" Ryan said.
If Tucker is to motivate the younger players, he certainly has a lot to work with. Six new freshmen (including redshirt shooting guard DeAaron Williams) will work their way into the mix this year. That list includes forward Marcus Landry, guard Morris Cain, forward Mickey Perry and Joe Krabbenhoft.
Krabbenhoft, the top recruit for the Badgers, is still recovering from a stress fracture that kept him from being a McDonald's All-American at the conclusion of his high school career in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Ryan says that the 6'7' forward with the smooth jump shot is making good progress.
""He's worked his way back into where he can do some things in practice,"" Ryan said. ""The next couple of weeks will tell a whole lot.""
And while as Badgers fans, its easy to get excited about a freshman crop with so much potential, Ryan refuses to rush the new guys. He does not care to have their development be ""pressurized in any way.""
""What I like to do is have the freshman mature, blend in, maturate at a pace that they're comfortable with,"" he said. ""Not me, as a coach, forcing something on them.""
On Nov. 5, when the Badgers welcome UW-River Falls for an exhibition game at the Kohl Center, the season will officially be underway. Where the team goes from there is uncertain. They could end their year early, or go deep into March. Despite how well the team plays, Ryan wants his fans to know that this team will provide 100 percent effort whenever they step out on the floor.
""There's a lot that goes into it now, and I never know from year to year how good we're going to be as far as record and everything else,"" Ryan said. ""But I just know that these guys are working every bit as hard as any group I've ever coached.\
