There is an obvious reason why, even in a season as hyped as this one, no one was calling for Bo Ryan's head when the seventh-ranked Badgers lost to Missouri State early this season.
No one questions the fact that, even when the Badgers aren't playing well, they're motivated and well-schooled in opponents' strengths and weaknesses. No one has to think twice about Ryan defending his team from suspect officiating. And, perhaps most important, he gives defense the primacy it deserves.
To a similar extent, the same can be said of the coach for the other state entrant in the NCAA Tournament. Too bad we professional fans can't say anything remotely similar concerning what passes for the NBA outfit in these parts.
It took way too long for the Milwaukee Bucks brass to realize that sad fact. When they finally did on Wednesday, the inert era under head coach Terry Stotts mercifully came to an end.
The dismissal in no way mitigates the fact that this should have been done weeks, if not months ago. Unlike Bo Ryan or Tom Crean at Marquette, Stotts seldom evinced emotion from the sidelines, rarely stood up for his players in the media and, in my humble opinion, did not know how to manage a basketball game.
Stotts had the privilege of taking over the Bucks after the team chose a franchise center with the No. 1 pick in the draft. But the ball never went to Andrew Bogut in the post, and despite Stotts' insistence that defense would be top priority, the team never got its act together on that end of the court.
Now the Bucks are on the verge of falling 20 games below the .500 mark. Undeniably, this team has had to contend with injuries all season, but even when Stotts had a full complement of players in the beginning of the year, there was no defensive mindset or philosophy.
What a stark contrast to the team on campus. It's taken for granted every time the Badgers step on the court that they will turn in a take-no-prisoners effort on defense. Comparing the philosophies of these two coaches would be something akin to sizing up the talent differential between... say, the Badgers and Texas A&M-Corpus Chrsti.
To those who say the pros and college are too different to invite comparison, I say that motivation is a universal factor in basketball, irrespective of the level. And that motivation comes directly from the head coach.
In the same building the Badgers are playing in this weekend, Scott Skiles, head coach of the Bulls, preaches defense and presses to get the most out of his team every night. On that same sideline, Bo Ryan will be crouching down and applauding UW for each defensive stop and basket.
Stotts rarely did one and never the other. Part of the reason both these teams are successful this season is their coaching; the hope is that the Bucks took that into account in selecting new coach Larry Krystkowiak.
Terry Stotts apologists may send hate mail to Jon at bortin@wisc.edu.
