While most UW students will have to brave the bitter cold this weekend, the Badgers will experience some more tolerable outdoor conditions. Wisconsin will be in the U.S. Virgin Islands for this year's Paradise Jam Tournament.
It's obviously a great place to be in the Virgin Islands at this time of year when it's so cold here,"" senior forward Marcus Landry said. ""But for the most part, it's a business trip, and we're there to do business and have fun.
There's some great teams down there so we've got to be ready.""
This year's talented field includes eight teams and three nationally-ranked schools: UConn, Miami (Fla.) and Wisconsin. The field is broken up into two four-team brackets. Wisconsin's bracket includes Iona, San Diego and Valparaiso. The Badgers will face the Iona Gaels in Friday's first-round matchup.
Iona returns just four players from last season - Kevin Willard's first year as head coach. Last year Iona finished with a 12-20 record, good for seventh place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Senior forward Gary Springer returns for the Gaels and was named to the Preseason All-MAAC Second Team.
Springer ranked second on the Gaels in points last season with 10.9 per game and ranked first on the team and fourth in the conference in rebounds with 7.7 per contest.
For Wisconsin's four seniors, this will be a return trip to the Virgin Islands with the Badgers. Wisconsin won the 2005 Paradise Jam Tournament, beating Norfolk State, Eastern Kentucky and Old Dominion to claim the title. This year's field promises to be a lot more challenging, and Landry says the travel experience will be beneficial for the team as a whole.
""It really helps, especially for the younger guys, this being their first trip, being away from school for about a week,"" Landry said. ""Also, it helps them and it prepares them for later on when we get into tournament play, having three or four games in a span of a week or so. It really prepares them, and it prepares them on the academic end to help them know that they can't fall behind when going on a trip like this.""
On the other side of the bracket, UConn will receive a great deal of attention, as the Huskies currently are No. 2 in the nation in both the AP Top-25 and USA Today Polls. In the backcourt, junior guard Jerome Dyson and senior guard A.J. Price have formed a lethal combination, while 7'3"" junior center Hasheem Thabeet has developed into a dangerous post presence down low. UConn will have to fend off LaSalle, Miami (Fla.) and Southern Mississippi in their bracket for an appearance in the tournament's championship game.
While the Badgers may have a chance to take on the Huskies, UW Head Coach Bo Ryan says it's important for the Badgers to take one game at a time.
""What we do is we just deal in the moment, and now we're going down to a tournament where there's just a lot of good teams period,"" Ryan said. ""The caliber of teams in this thing - this might be the toughest one that they've had. We've just got to get down there and mix it up there with those teams and see what happens.""
Tip-off for Friday's contest against Iona is set for 7:30 p.m. EST. If the Badgers advance, they will face the winner of the San Diego-Valparaiso game Sunday.
