In front of a crowd of over 17,000, the UW men's basketball team opened up its 2010-'11 campaign Saturday as 11 players scored en route to a 84-59 victory over UW-LaCrosse.
Despite returning three starters and twelve letter-winners, the focus throughout the pre-season has been on filling the gaps left by the departure of graduated guards Jason Bohannon and Trevon Hughes.
Although Jordan Taylor is a lock to fill one of the vacated guard positions, the exhibition opener was an opportunity for the coaching staff to get an idea of what they have in their arsenal in trying to fill that final spot in the starting lineup.
""I wanted to try and get a look at a lot of people,"" coach Bo Ryan said after the game. ""So [the exhibition game] served its purpose.""
Amongs the potential candidates for that final starting job, senior Tim Jarmusz was put in the starting lineup Saturday,and finished with five points and five rebounds in just 16 minutes.
""He didn't need to get a lot of minutes because he's had more experience,"" Ryan explained. ""Tim was solid.""
With junior Rob Wilson limited to just five minutes due to a strained hamstring, freshman Josh Gasser got an opportunity to get into the mix. He played 20 minutes, scored nine points, grabbed four rebounds and looked nothing like a freshman in his first college action.
""[It] doesn't surprise me that he walked on the court and never changed expressions,"" Ryan said. ""He's the kind of player people are going to enjoy seeing around here for four years. He's a player.""
While the focus in the exhibition opener was obviously on the backcourt, the veteran frontcourt was as solid as expected. Senior Jon Leuer came out strong, putting up 11 points in the first half and 15 overall in a double-double that also included 10 rebounds and two assists in just 27 minutes. Leuer used his size advantage to lead a Wisconsin charge inside that helped the Badgers outscore LaCrosse 32-0 in the paint.
""Our guards and even our big guys did a good job of looking inside,"" Leuer said.
Fellow senior Keaton Nankivil started off cold, missing his first two shots before recovering to finish six for nine from the floor for 15 points to go along with three rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes of action.
The domination inside by Wisconsin led to 15 offensive rebounds, softening the blow especially as the Badgers struggled from the field early on.
""A lot of it is just aggression early on, that's one thing the coaches really try pound in our heads,"" Nankivil said. ""It's a loose ball every time, and when we have players like Mike [Bruesiwitz] and Jon who can really hit the glass hard, and Ryan Evans did a good job tonight. At the same time I think it's going to get a little harder down the road when sizes and that kind of stuff equal out.""
With the regular season looming less than a week away and just one more exhibition contest remaining, the Badgers still have many questions yet to be answered. Still, with a Bo Ryan-coached team, early season questions are nothing new.
