The Wisconsin men's basketball team heads into a match-up against No. 24 Wake Forest (5-1) tonight with a full head of steam after their dominant 92-54 victory over Coastal Carolina Saturday night at the Kohl Center. Playing their first contest of the season in an opposing team's home area, the Badgers (4-0) will have to be on top of their game to take down the Demon Deacons, as both teams participate in the seventh annual Big Ten-ACC Challenge. Winning in Winston-Salem has proven to be no easy task for opponents, as the Deacons will look to Lawrence Joel Coliseum to protect their 20-game winning streak, the fifth-longest in the country.
Wake Forest is led by their trio of senior guards Justin Gray and Trent Strickland and senior center Eric Williams, all of whom are averaging over 16 points per game.
'The thing is Wake Forest has outside shooters. They've got scorers. They really don't have a weakness,' said Badger head coach Bo Ryan.
'They have some talent no doubt about it,' sophomore guard Michael Flowers said following practice Sunday. 'I expect it to be real difficult. It's gonna be a challenge but we are gonna go out and follow our game plan.'
Williams will likely pose the biggest problem for the Badgers as he stands 6'9' tall and weighs an imposing 280 pounds. The Deacons center is far and away the most talented big man the Badgers have had to face and will provide a stiff test to their young frontcourt. After flirting with the NBA last June, Williams decided to return to polish his game and has been rewarded thus far by enjoying his finest season to date.
'Williams can displace the best of them in the post. He can move people. He can post up anybody,' said Ryan. 'He's just a good, solid post player who's extremely strong, uses his body well, and we're going to have to make him work for every shot he gets'and not let him get second and third shots.'
While Strickland surprisingly leads the team in scoring with 17.8 points per game, his running mate Gray is the more feared of the two. The All-American candidate and sharp-shooting point guard has had turnover problems this season, but his ability to score at will should provide a stiff test to any Badger who is called to defend him.
Wisconsin will be looking to avenge two prior defeats to Wake Forest in the Challenge. The Big Ten will also be looking for a little revenge, as they have yet to win a Commissioner's Cup in six prior attempts. While finally getting a win for the Big Ten would be good for the conference, it is not something the team is looking to accomplish.
'I mean it would be nice, but we are just worried about Wisconsin right now,' said Flowers. 'We just want to go out there and get a win.'
