What a week for the Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team. After breaking the school record for wins, the Associated Press ranked UW No. 1 in the country for the first time in school history.
The Badgers (12-1 Big Ten, 26-2 overall) jumped Ohio State, who was No. 2 last week as well as Florida, who dropped to No. 3 after losing at Vanderbilt Saturday. The Badgers received four more first-place votes (35) than the Buckeyes (31). The two teams match up Sunday in Columbus.
Head coach Bo Ryan could not be happier for his players.
""How does it feel to be No. 1? I'm proud of the kids,"" Ryan said. ""I'm proud of the players, what they've done, the perseverance they've shown this year.""
""You don't get that ranking without having done something,"" Ryan continued, ""but then, you know, you can move from there also if you don't keep doing things. But for them, it's a heck of a statement. And for anybody that's ever played here since they started keeping those rankings, it's exciting, for all the fans, which is what the polls are for.""
In the ESPN/USA Today Poll, the Badgers fell seven first-place votes (10) short of OSU's total (17) and finished second.
Wisconsin's win total and winning percentage are tops in the country.
First things first
Before the Badgers square off against Ohio State, they have to play at Michigan State. While the Badgers know what's on the horizon Sunday, the Spartans are at the forefront of their minds.
""We all know what's going on Sunday, but going into Michigan State, that's never an easy place to play and there's no way we can overlook that game,"" senior center Jason Chappell said.
Instead, what the Badgers are focused on is a conference foe who they'll be playing for the first time this season. Ryan is puzzled by the scheduling strategy but said it won't change his strategy for approaching Michigan State.
""I don't know because I've never, in anyplace I've ever coached, this has never happened,"" Ryan said. ""As people will say, it's got to be 40 minutes of basketball with the same 10-foot baskets.""
Michigan State is led by junior point guard Drew Neitzel. The Grand Rapids native seems to be enjoying his role as the leader of the Spartans after guards Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown and forward Paul Davis have all departed from last year's squad. He's leading the team in scoring with 18.1 points per game and complements that with 4.4 assists, second on the team to sophomore guard Travis Walton's 5.3.
Ryan said that Neitzel must be a ""joy to coach.""
""He's a very good guard,"" Ryan said. ""He makes his free throws. He runs the show. He can shoot the three. He's a better defender. He's shown improvement in every area of the game.""
While freshman Raymar Morgan pitches in with 11 points per game, it is his rebounding as well as that of sophomore center Goran Suton and sophomore forward Marquise Gray that make the Spartans dangerous. The trio leads MSU in rebounding and the Spartans are second in the conference with 36 rebounds-per-game. However, the Badgers trail them by only a tenth of a rebound.
""Michigan State is always a physical team,"" Chappell said. ""They try to dominate the glass and start from there. So, you just have to take that away.""
For the Badgers, this next stretch of MSU, OSU and again home for MSU will be the hardest stretch of their regular season. For senior forward Alando Tucker and the rest of UW, there's no specific game plan. They just have to yearn for it.
""It has to be desire and determination. We have to want it. That's plain and simple."" Tucker said. ""We have to go in there and we have to want to take it from them. We have to know that we have a chance to do something special. That has to come from the heart.""
