March Madness kicks off this weekend and, as a delicious appetizer, the Badgers begin their Big Ten tournament Friday against Ohio State.
Just two years ago, Wisconsin and Ohio State found themselves battling in the Big Ten title game. Now the Badgers head into the tournament as the fourth seed and Ohio State follows as the fifth. The Big Ten enjoyed a significant increase in competitiveness from top to bottom over the last couple months, and every team, especially this year, has a shot at the championship.
The Badgers' 85-61 victory over Indiana last Sunday showed a surprising outburst of offense, which could prove useful against the Buckeyes. In their only meeting this season, Wisconsin crawled to a 24-23 lead over Ohio State at half and managed to hold them off in the second half, winning 55-50.
Although Wisconsin allowed Ohio State to shoot 55 percent from the field, they managed to keep the Buckeyes' scoring down. A key to the game for the Badgers was forcing 19 turnovers. Assistant coach Gary Close said they don't focus on creating turnovers, but heads-up interior defense can put pressure on the other team.
""We just go in trying to play our game and hope that results in [turnovers], we're not a team that tends to turn people over a lot, although we have at times,"" Close said. ""It's not something you can plan on. You just hope it might happen by playing good, solid defense.""
Wisconsin also dominated the Buckeyes on the offensive glass, out- rebounding them 15 to 3. Senior forward Marcus Landry, who led the Badgers with 17 points, and Joe Krabbenhoft each pulled down four.
The Buckeyes are led by sophomore guard Evan Turner, who emerged as one of the best players in the conference this year. He averaged 16.9 points and 6.9 rebounds and was a unanimous All-Big Ten team selection by both the coaches and media.
He dropped 23 points, almost half his team's total, on the Badgers in mid-February and did it with one of Wisconsin's best defenders, Joe Krabbenhoft, guarding him.
""He did a really good job against us,"" Krabbenhoft said. ""He killed me with his right hand. I have to just try to take things away from him and force tougher shots. Not many people have been able [to stop him] this year, so it's going to take a collective effort.""
Additionally, the Badgers need to worry about freshman guard William Buford, who took home the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award, and freshman center B.J Mullens, who won the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year award.
When the Badgers take the court against the Buckeyes tomorrow afternoon, focusing on Ohio State needs to be their only concern. Experienced players like Landry and Krabbenhoft know it can be tough to play three games in three days, but looking too far ahead can send the team home after the first day. As a leader and the reigning MVP of the Big Ten tournament, Landry wants to go into the game showing his teammates the importance of confidence.
""You have to go in there with a mindset that I'm going to get the job done and I'm going to take it upon myself to make sure my team comes out with a victory,"" he said.
The game will begin at 1:30 p.m. Friday on ESPN following Michigan State against Minnesota or Northwestern.
