Wisconsin Badgers Basketball Preview Final Essay

Travis Marcou

12/15/2010

Sheila Allard

Losing to Cornell in the second round of the NCAA Tournament was a huge disappointment for the Wisconsin Badgers, and for the people who had picked Wisconsin to make a deep run in their March Madness bracket. However, with head coach Bo Ryan still in at the reigns, the Badgers are poised to yet again make the tournament field and be a potential threat. However, this year the expectations are low—Wisconsin only returns three key contributors—as college basketball analysts are picking the Badgers to finish only as high as fifth in the Big Ten although Wisconsin has never finished worse than fourth under Coach Ryan.
            It's clear that the talents of Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon will be dearly missed—as Hughes almost seemed to carry the entire team at times and Bohannon went through periods of never missing a shot—which begs the question: Who will want the ball in the final seconds when the game’s on the line? Junior Jordan Taylor is the guy that will be thrown into that roll. Last year Taylor led the Big Ten with a three assist-to-turnover ratio, which was also good enough to be third best in the entire country. Taylor also averaged 11.1 points per game in Big Ten play, a time when points become vital because of how much defense is stressed in the Big Ten. Now an upperclassman, Taylor has the maturity to carry the team on his shoulders when the going gets tough.
            Another guy who is able to take over games is Senior Forward Jon Leuer.  Often over looked by many, Leuer only needs 245 points this season to join Wisconsin's 1,000-point club, a club that only a select few have been able to join. He averaged 15.4 points per game in 2009-2010, and this season he looks to keep his reign as the Badger's leader in points, rebounds and blocks per game despite missing nine conference games last season due to a fractured left wrist. The high production out of Leuer in 2009-2010 earned him a spot on the John Wooden Preseason Top-50 list, a very prestigious honor in which only the best collegiate basketball players in the country are even mentioned in along with numerous pre season all conference teams. A healthy John Leuer for the entire season and the Badgers may find themselves being crowned conference champions and Leuer could be among the candidates for the All American teams.   
            The final key contributor from last season is Senior Forward Keaton Nankivil. Nankivil averaged a solid 8.1 points per game, along with the team's most offensive rebounds.  Keaton is a streaky shooter, as shown in the Purdue game—hitting seven out of eight three pointers—and his teammates are able to get him the ball when he’s on.
            The Badgers will rely on players like Ryan Evans, Tim Jarmusz, and Mike Bruesewitz to step up and fill the shoes of Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon. If they can combine to produce what Hughes and Bohannon did for the Badgers last season, then success can easily be achieved under Bo Ryan.  Bruesewitz will be the guy inserted into the starting lineup solely on his size and defensive ability.  His game play is reminiscent of big man Jason Chappell from 2007 but you can easily distinguish them as Breusewitz rocks his signature red afro.  Meanwhile, Jarmusz and Evans will get solid minutes providing the bench spark that teams need in order to be successful.    

A freshman that not too many people knew about coming into this year was Josh Gasser.  Gasser received a scholarship from Wisconsin after Vander Blue, now with Marquette, abruptly decommitted from Wisconsin.  Badger fans everywhere can be thankful for this after seeing Gasser score 21 points off the bench in his first game ever at the collegiate level.  Gasser’s play has earned him a spot into the starting lineup and he only continues to improve.  He has already proved that he can handle the bright lights and big time play of college basketball for being only 18 years of age.
            Catch the Badgers opening up the Big Ten regular season against rival Minnesota on December 28^th and with no doubt the Kohl's Center will definitely be rocking.  A place where the Badgers went 16-1 last season with wins over Duke and Marquette.  However, Wisconsin has to travel to the confines of Columbus, Ohio in what could have the Big Ten regular season title on the lines.  The Big Ten is head and shoulders above the rest of the conferences and that can only help the Badgers as they prepare for the NCAA Tournament.  ON WISCONSIN!!!!

Nobel Prize Essay

            Ernest Miller Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899 in a Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Illinois.  Hemingway attended Oak Park High School where he served as editor of the high school newspaper and was involved with football and boxing.  When an eye injury would not allow Hemingway to enlist to fight in World War I, he moved to Kansas City where his writing career would soon take off.  Being only 17 at the time, Hemingway had to lie about his age in order to become a reporter for the Kansas City Star.  However, his job at the Kansas City Star would only last a few months as Hemingway, still wanting to serve his country. left to serve as a volunteer ambulance driver in Italy.  For is services in Italy, Hemingway was awarded the Italian medal al Valore Militate. 

            Upon Hemingway’s return to the United States, he made his way back to journalism finding a job with the Toronto Star along with the Chicago Tribune.  Hemingway would marry Hadley Richardson, and the couple moved to Paris with Hemingway working as a foreign correspondent.  In 1923, while in Paris, Hemingway published his first piece of work: Three Stories and Ten Poems.  However, it was not until 1926 when one of his publications were praised publicly being his second novel: The Sun Also Rises. 

            When Hemingway’s father, Clarence, committed Suicide in 1928, Ernest wrote A Farewell to Arms to collaborate on the disparity of death and life struggles.  To get away from it all, Hemingway traveled to Africa where he would turn his experiences there into three short stories later on in life from 1961 through 1963. 

            When the Spanish Civil War broke out, Hemingway took action in an effort to raise over $40,000 to buy ambulances.  World War II rolled around, and Hemingway wanted to be a part of it like in the first World War.  He became a correspondent for the United States First Army.  Using these wars as a writing block, Hemingway completed For Whom the Bell Tolls in 1940.  Although the novel experienced great success, Hemingway was fearful that he had burned out and had nothing else of importance to write.  While in his anxiety phase, Hemingway published Across the River and Into the Trees and it turned out to be his worst publication of his career.  Hemingway would not go out that way as he learned in boxing to “never stay down”.

            In 1952, Ernest Hemingway’s greatest piece of work was published.  The Old Man and The Sea chronicled the life of an aging Cuban fisherman caught up in a battle with a giant marlin.  The story opens on the eighty-fourth day since the old man Santiago, the main character, has caught anything.  Much time is spent with Santiago and Manolin, a young boy who assists Santiago, reminiscing about the happy times they have experienced.  In many ways the book reflects Hemingway’s consistent use of everyday language, yet also his creativity.  Hemingway was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 for the novel.  This was only the beginning in the accolades Hemingway would receive. 

            In 1954, Ernest Hemingway was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.  He received the prize for his mastery of the art of narrative, most recently demonstrated in The Old Man and the Sea, and for the influence that he has exerted on contemporary style.  The fact that Hemingway was only nominated by four people and went on to win the award shows the impact his work had once given the chance.  One of the nominees, Per Hallstrom, wrote this of Hemingway in his nomination: “In general, from an artistic point of view, he is remarkable for his alert and quick view on earthly things and his ability to express them in words that make them immediate experiences for the reader. He has a kind of appetite and a sort of primitive wildness. It leads the thought to generations from the west who created the great country and who have been the nerve in peoples’ energy.”  Hemingway however, was unable to be attend the Nobel Banquet at the City Hall in Stockholm, December 10, 1954, and his speech was read by United States Ambassador, John C. Cabot.

            Ernest Hemingway eventually called it quits and retired to his home in the mountains of Ketchum, Idaho with his fourth wife Mary.  Retirement was not as fulfilling to Ernest as he was diagnosed with high blood pressure and depression.  On the night of July 2, 1961, Hemingway committed suicide ending the life of one of the greatest writers the world will ever know.

Irving Is the Real Deal

A game after Duke senior Kyle Singler put up 30 points against Oregon in Portland, freshman Kyrie Irving stole his thunder.  Irving scored 31 points, setting his career high in the first half with 18, in a 84-79 win over a very talented and six ranked Michigan State Spartans.  Irving has been the best player on the court against both of Duke's biggest opponents, Kansas State and Michigan State.  The freshman had 17 points and six assists along with a stellar defensive effort on Jacob Pullen in Duke's 14-point win over Kansas State last week.  In addition to his 31 points Wednesday, Irving also recorded six rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks, and converted 13 of 16 free throw attempts.  For only an 18 year old freshman, Irving is playing like a senior leading Duke and is the point guard they have been lacking to give them a complete team in recent years.  Irving, a two-time ACC freshman of the week, became just the third freshman in Duke history to score at least 30 points in one game.

Heading into the locker room and down 38-34, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo told ESPN's Doris Burke that he liked the way his team was playing but that they couldn't afford to be committing silly turnovers.  The Spartans had committed 12 turnovers by halftime and tallied 20 for the game. Duke is forcing opponents into an average of 19.1 turnovers per game and capitalizing on those turnovers scoring 30 points off turnovers in the Michigan State game.

Michigan State cut its deficit to two points five minutes into the second half. After that point, however, Duke went on a 12-2 run with the help of four turnovers and two missed shots by Michigan State and an intentional foul which led to two Kyle Singler three-pointers in three possessions.  Duke was 2-9 from behind the three-point line in the first half, but hit five of its first six threes in the second half.  Duke's lead was cut to five points twice in final minute of the game, but prevailed to improve to 7-0 on the season.

Nolan Smith scored 17 points, Kyle Singler added 15 and Mason Plumlee posted 10 points and 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.  

Michigan State out-shot Duke from the field and from behind the three-point arc. But the difference in the game was Duke's ability to get to the free throw line. The Spartans committed 25 fouls in the game, which led to 38 free attempts-making 38-for Duke compared to just 15 for Michigan State.

Duke plays Butler at 3:15 p.m. ET Saturday at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J. The Blue Devils topped the Bulldogs in the 2010 National Championship Game when Gordon Hayward’s half court prayer clanked off the rim.  Michigan State falls to 5-2 on the season and hosts Bowling Green on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET

800 and Counting

Duke Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski won his 800th game on Tuesday night, as his top-ranked Blue Devils beat No. 4 Kansas State, 82-68, in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic championship game in Kansas City.  Krzyzewski, who ranks first all-time in NCAA Tournament wins and most 30-win seasons, became just the fifth head coach to win 800 or more games at one Division I school.  Krzyzewski now has 873 career wins, just 29 behind his mentor Bob Knight for most all-time in Division I.

Senior captain Nolan Smith and freshman sensation Kyrie Irving led the Blue Devils with 17 points and five rebounds each.  Irving added six assists and two steals and limited Kansas State's preseason All-American, Jacob Pullen, to just four points on 1-of-12 shooting and forced the senior into four turnovers.  Andre Dawkins contributed 11 points on 3-of-3 three-point shooting in 19 minutes off the bench for Duke.

Turnovers and poor free-throw shooting troubled the Wildcats as Kansas State shot just 11-of-23 from the free-throw line and committed a horrendous 21 turnovers in the loss.  Duke on the other hand, was 24-of-31 from the charity stripe.  The loss dropped Kansas State 3-14 all time against No. 1 teams and 3-1 for the season.  Duke improves to 5-0 this season and has now won 27 consecutive games in November.

Duke travels to Oregon to face their first true test before hosting perennial powerhouse Michigan State on Wednesday, Dec. 1, as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. No. 2 Michigan State lost to Connecticut, 70-67, Tuesday. Duke and Michigan State appeared in the Final Four last season.  Then, Duke travels to East Rutherford, N.J. for a national title game rematch against Butler on Saturday, Dec. 4.  The Blue Devils beat Butler, 61-59, in the National Championship in April for their fourth title in school history.  Picked by many to repeat as National Champs this year, the Blue Devils have a ton of firepower, which includes the best bench in the country.    

Is Ohio State For Real???

At the beginning of the season, I questioned the Ohio State Buckeyes and how effective Jared Sullinger would be.  On Tuesday night, I learned a lot as the Buckeyes went into Gainesville and made a statement against the Gators. They came into this game a three-point underdog, but left a sold out Stephen C. O’Connel Center stunned as the Buckeyes walked away with a 93-75 win and showed the nation they have once again been reloaded with firepower.

Freshman of the Year candidate Jared Sullinger is an anchor on both offense and defense and continues to be that presence in the paint that the Buckeyes didn’t have last season and haven‘t had since Greg Oden left for the NBA. Sullinger finished the night with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and came alive in the second half when Ohio State needed him the most. The true freshman has had two consecutive double-doubles to open the season. Sullinger is putting together a case for National Player of the Year and an early trip to the NBA.

One of last year’s All American’s in Evan Turner will be hard to replace, but William Buford said before the season he was up to the task. He backed up his words against Florida finishing with 16 points and eight assists. His progression on offense will directly correlate to how well Ohio State does this season.

The sharp shooting Jon Diebler entered his senior season as the all-time leader in three pointers made at Ohio State. He continues to distance that lead and poured in four more on his way to finishing with 14 points on the night. When a big shot is needed, the ball always seems to find Diebler and he doesn’t disappoint.

David Lighty has been an unsung hero for the Buckeyes for several seasons now. Tuesday night he got another chance to bury some of the skeletons from the 2007 championship game loss to Florida three seasons ago. He finished the night with 26 points on the Gators' home court. If Lighty can continue to lead the Buckeye’s charge, Columbus should have no reason to worry about not going far in March.

Lighty’s leadership, along with Buford and Sullinger’s continue progression, are keys for Ohio State this season. They enter a soft part in the schedule before heading back down to Florida, this time to take on Florida State on November 30^th. Big Ten play will be a tricky road to navigate, as every team can beat any team on any given night-especially at home-but that will only make the stronger and more experienced come tournament time.

P.S. I really really really hate Ohio State with a passion and the only reason I wrote about them is because of how surprised I am with how well Jared Sullinger has done so far this season. I didn’t expect him or Ohio State to roll over Florida so easily.
ON WISCONSIN!!!!

Thursday Night Football

Tomorrow night, the Baltimore Ravens will take on the Atlanta Falcons in the Georgia Dome in what is being whispered as a possible Super Bowl preview.  With both teams at 6-2 and claiming the best records in their respective conferences, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed take their ninth-ranked defense up against Matt Ryan and Michael Turner’s fifth-ranked offense.
Last week against Tampa Bay, the Falcons' defense did not allow Josh Freeman to engineer one of his late game drives, stopping the Buccaneers on fourth down near the goal line to seal the 27-21 victory.  The Ravens on the other hand, had no problem shutting down the Dolphins en route to a 26-10 win.
The intriguing part about this matchup is how both teams are similar in many ways coming into this week's game.   Besides the 6-2 record, starting quarterbacks Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan are both former first-round picks, who are in their third season as starters and continue to make strides in their young careers-both quarterbacks led their team to the playoffs in their rookie year.  Running Backs Michael Turner and Ray Rice are two young running backs who have obtained the starting role for two seasons now and are in no danger of losing it anytime soon. Anquan Boldin and Roddy White-who says he will play-are the go to receivers for each team and are the guys Flacco and Ryan count on to help get out of a jam.  Head coaches Mike Smith and John Harbaugh each enter their third season with their respective teams and have turned heads since their arrivals in 2008.
The game could be in favor of Atlanta, only because the Falcons have been money at home. Quarterback Matt Ryan is 17-1 all-time at the Georgia Dome, winning his last 13. The Falcons as a team have averaged 30.8 points in their four home games in 2010.  However, the Ravens defense will not roll over easily-they have held opponents to under 20 points in six of eight games-and now that future Hall of Famer Ed Reed has returned from injury, Baltimore’s defense is even feistier against the run and pass. 
A key match up to look forward to is the Falcons running game against the Ravens run defense. Miami found success running the ball early in the game last week with Ronnie Brown. The Falcons' Michael Turner has a similar skill set and he has rushed for over 100 yards in back to back games.  If Turner can get going early, Atlanta should have no problem sending the home fans home happy. 
Overall, the NFL did a great job in kicking off Thursday night football with such a good matchup.  The game is going to be fun to watch and most likely will come down to the wire.  I think Matt Ryan will improve to 18-1 lifetime in the Georgia Dome, but he’s definitely going to have to earn this one. 
Final score: Baltimore 23 Atlanta 34.

Wisconsin Badger Football

Coming off huge wins over Ohio State and Iowa, Wisconsin enjoyed a much-needed bye last weekend and is now rested and ready to finish off 2010 on a strong note.Nick Toon and Lance Kendricks are both healthy and expected to play on Saturday, while James White is still recovering from his sprained knee, although coach Bret Bielema believes he may be ready to go as well.
With a record of 7-1 (3-1), Wisconsin is tied for first in the Big Ten with many people expecting them to run the table the rest of the way. If they can do that, they should hold the Big Ten tiebreaker, which is based based the Bowl Champions Series(BCS) Poll in which they are the highest ranked Big Ten team. However, although they should be favored in every game from here on on out, they will still need to play well.
Anyone is capable of beating anyone in the Big Ten. With four games remaining in the conference schedule, I’ll break down those final four games and give you a good understanding of why you’ll be seeing the Badgers in Pasadena, California this January.

Sat. November 6, @ Purdue
At 4-4 (2-2), Purdue is by no means a great team. But they are a dangerous team—especially in West Lafayette. Despite losing both starting quarterback Robert Marve and star wide receiver Keith Smith to season-ending injuries, the Boilermakers are still fighting for a bowl berth and would love nothing less than to spoil Wisconsin's season.Rob Henry has stepped in nicely for Marve under center, while running back Dan Dierking is averaging six yards a carry. Illinois and Ohio State had their way with the Boilermakers in beating them by a combined 83 points the last two games. Look for Wisconsin to run the football right down their throats.

Sat. November 13, vs. Indiana
Although Indiana is dead last in the Big Ten at 4-4 (0-4), they could still be fighting for a bowl berth when they come into Madison in a couple weeks.The Hoosiers are in no way in the Big Ten race. However, they only need two more wins to become bowl eligible, so they may actually have some motivation when they take on the Badgers. Behind quarterback Ben Chappell (2,445 yards, 18 TD, 7 INT, they're averaging over 29 points a game and could certainly pose some problems for a Badger "D" that has struggled somewhat against the pass. Chappell is used to throwing the ball fifty times a game so it should be no surprise when he tries to exploit Wisconsin’s overrated cornerbacks. On the other hand, Indiana's defense doesn't do the offense a whole lot of favors. They're giving up close to 30 points a game and won't come close to stopping the Badgers. Camp Randall Stadium should be rocking early and often, and a blowout could be in store for Indiana.

Sat. November 20, @ Michigan
This will be by far the toughest game remaining for the Badgers. Michigan is struggling as of late (losers of their last three), but if there is one place Badger fans hate seeing Wisconsin play, it's at Michigan Stadium in the Historic “Big House“. No matter how good Wisconsin is, they just struggle to find ways to win in that place.Thus, the Badgers have to be very, very careful about this one. Quarterback Denard Robinson is still one of the most dangerous players in the country and could potentially gash the Badger "D" for huge yards both through the air and on the ground.Wisconsin shouldn't have a lot of trouble moving the ball, but stopping it will be a whole different story. Wisconsin will look to run the clock to keep the ball out of Robinson’s hands and should find themselves coming out on top.

Sat. November 27, vs. Northwestern
Northwestern 6-2 (2-2) haven't really beaten anyone yet (their two conference wins were against Minnesota and Indiana), but they are still a very dangerous team. Just ask Michigan State, who needed two touchdowns in the final minutes to hold off the Wildcats two weeks ago.Behind the arm and legs of one of the most efficient quarterbacks in Dan Persa (2,062 passing yards, 12 TD, 360 rushing yards), Northwestern is averaging almost 27 points a game. Plus, unlike the other teams Wisconsin faces in November, the Wildcats actually play a some defense, allowing only 20.3 points a game. However, they'll be facing a Badger squad playing their final home game of the season—not to mention a Rose Bowl berth may be on the line. Don't expect an upset here. Besides Northwestern is already bowl eligible and out of the Big Ten race so they don’t have much to play for anyway.