2017–18 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Badgers were led by third-year head coach Greg Gard and played their home games at the Kohl Center as members of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 15–18, 7–11 in Big Ten play to finish in ninth place. They defeated Maryland[1] in the second round of the Big Ten tournament before losing to Michigan State in the quarterfinals.[2] The Badgers failed to make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998, ending their streak at 19 years.[3]

2017–18 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record15–18 (7–11 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaKohl Center
(Capacity 17,287)
Seasons
2017–18 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 5 Michigan State 16 2   .889 30 5   .857
No. 11 Purdue 15 3   .833 30 7   .811
No. 17 Ohio State 15 3   .833 25 9   .735
No. 7 Michigan 13 5   .722 33 8   .805
Nebraska 13 5   .722 22 11   .667
Penn State 9 9   .500 26 13   .667
Indiana 9 9   .500 16 15   .516
Maryland 8 10   .444 19 13   .594
Wisconsin 7 11   .389 15 18   .455
Northwestern 6 12   .333 15 17   .469
Minnesota 4 14   .222 15 17   .469
Illinois 4 14   .222 14 18   .438
Iowa 4 14   .222 14 19   .424
Rutgers 3 15   .167 15 19   .441
2018 Big Ten tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

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The Badgers finished the 2016–17 season 27–10, 12–6 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for second place. They defeated Indiana and Northwestern in the Big Ten tournament, but lost to Michigan in the championship game. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, their 19th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, as a No. 8 seed in the East region. The Badgers defeated Virginia Tech in the First Round[4] and upset No. 1 overall seed Villanova to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the fourth consecutive year.[5] In the Sweet Sixteen, they lost to 20th-ranked Florida.[6]

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Zak Showalter 3 G 6'3" 185 RS Senior Germantown, WI Graduated
Nigel Hayes 10 F 6'8" 240 Senior Toledo, OH Graduated
Jordan Hill 11 G 6'4" 172 RS Junior Pasadena, CA Graduated; transferred to Seattle
Bronson Koenig 24 G 6'4" 190 Senior La Crosse, WI Graduated
Vitto Brown 30 F 6'8" 235 Senior Bowling Green, OH Graduated

Recruiting classes

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2017 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Kobe King
PG
La Crosse, WI La Crosse Central High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Sep 16, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 81
Nate Reuvers
PF
Lakeville, MN Lakeville North High School 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) May 18, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 83
Brad Davison
PG
Osseo, MN Maple Grove High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jul 11, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 81
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2017 Wisconsin Commitments". Rivals.com.
  • "Men's Basketball Recruiting". Scout.com.
  • "ESPN- Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN.com.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com.
  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2018 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Joe Hedstrom
C
Minnetonka, MN Hopkins High School 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Oct 11, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    RivalsN/A   247Sports:     ESPN grade: N/A
Taylor Currie
PF
Clarkston, MI Clarkston High School 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Oct 31, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: N/A
Tai Strickland
PG
Tampa, FL St. Petersburg High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Mar 27, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: 79
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: NR   Rivals: NR  ESPN: NR
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

New Zealand/Australia trip

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The Badgers undertook trip to New Zealand and Australia where they played five games against New Zealand and Australia professional teams.[7] The 12-day trip began August 12, 2017 and helped determine the roster as the Badgers look to replace four departing seniors from last year.[8] The Badgers won four of the five games they played on the trip. A different player led Wisconsin in scoring in each of the games and none of them was first-team All-Big Ten forward Ethan Happ, who did average 12.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.4 steals.[9] Coach Greg Gard was impressed by the balanced scoring of his team on the trip.[10]

Preseason

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Wisconsin junior forward Ethan Happ was selected as a first team All-American by the Blue Ribbon Yearbook in its annual preseason publication.[11]

Roster

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2017–18 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 D'Mitrik Trice     6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 177 lb (80 kg) So Wayne High School (OH) Huber Heights, Ohio
G 1 Brevin Pritzl 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 197 lb (89 kg) RS So De Pere High School De Pere, Wisconsin
F 2 Aleem Ford 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Fr Archer High School Lawrenceville, Georgia
G 3 Walt McGrory (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Edina High School Edina, Minnesota
G 4 Matt Ferris (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Jr Xavier High School (WI) Appleton, Wisconsin
F 5 Aaron Moesch 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Sr Green Bay Southwest High School Green Bay, Wisconsin
F 11 Andy Van Vliet 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 228 lb (103 kg) Jr Antwerp Giants Antwerp, Belgium
G 12 Trevor Anderson (W)   6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 196 lb (89 kg) So Stevens Point H.S./UW-Green Bay Stevens Point, Wisconsin
F 15 Charles Thomas IV 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Jr River Hill High School Highland, Maryland
G 20 T. J. Schlundt (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 197 lb (89 kg) RS Jr St. John's Northwestern Military Academy Oconomowoc, Wisconsin
G/F 21 Khalil Iverson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Rutherford B. Hayes High School (OH) Delaware, Ohio
F 22 Ethan Happ 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS Jr Rockridge High School Milan, Illinois
G 23 Kobe King     6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Fr La Crosse Central High School La Crosse, Wisconsin
F 25 Alex Illikainen 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 231 lb (105 kg) Jr Brewster Academy Grand Rapids, Minnesota
G 31 Michael Ballard (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 197 lb (89 kg) RS Fr Fenwick High School (IL) Oak Park, Illinois
G 34 Brad Davison 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Maple Grove High School Maple Grove, Minnesota
F 35 Nate Reuvers 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr Lakeville North High School Lakeville, Minnesota
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Australia/New Zealand exhibition trip
Aug 15, 2017*
3:00 am
at New Zealand Breakers (NBL) W 85–75 
 28  Pritzl   11  Happ   3  Tied  Sky City Breakers Complex 
Auckland, New Zealand
Aug 17, 2017*
1:30 am
vs. New Zealand Breakers (NBL) W 87–53 
 14  Van Vliet   7  Van Vliet   5  Anderson  Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre 
Tauranga, New Zealand
Aug 19, 2017*
1:00 am
vs. Hawthorn Magic (Big V) W 75–68 
 18  King   7  Van Vliet   3  Reuvers  Trinity Grammar School (1,000)
Melbourne, Australia
Aug 20, 2017*
12:00 am
vs. Melbourne United (NBL) L 89–90 
 19  Trice   5  Trice   4  Trice  Casey Basketball Stadium 
Casey, Melbourne, Australia
Aug 22, 2017*
5:30 am
vs. Sydney Kings (NBL) W 83–71 
 23  Davison   9  Happ   7  Happ  Bankstown Basketball Stadium (612)
Sydney, Australia
Exhibition
Nov 1, 2017*
7:00 pm, BTN+
Northern Iowa
Team Rubicon benefit exhibition
W 69–38 
 15  King   7  Happ   2  4 tied  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Nov 5, 2017*
4:00 pm, BTN+
UW Stout W 85–56 
 17  King   7  2 tied   3  2 tied  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Regular season
Nov 10, 2017*
6:00 pm, BTN+
South Carolina State
CBE Hall of Fame Classic
W 85–50  1–0
 20  Happ   11  Happ   5  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Nov 12, 2017*
5:00 pm, BTN
Yale
CBE Hall of Fame Classic
W 89–61  2–0
 17  Iverson   11  Happ   3  Iverson  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Nov 16, 2017*
7:30 pm, FS1
No. 15 Xavier
Gavitt Tipoff Games
L 70–80  2–1
 21  Happ   6  Iverson   8  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Nov 20, 2017*
8:30 pm, ESPN2
vs. No. 22 Baylor
CBE Hall of Fame Classic Semifinals
L 65–70  2–2
 23  Happ   13  Happ   5  Iverson  Sprint Center (10,234)
Kansas City, MO
Nov 21, 2017*
6:30 pm, ESPN3
vs. No. 23 UCLA
CBE Hall of Fame Classic consolation
L 70–72  2–3
 19  Happ   9  Happ   5  Happ  Sprint Center (10,160)
Kansas City, MO
Nov 24, 2017*
8:00 pm, BTN
Milwaukee W 71–49  3–3
 19  Davison   8  Happ   5  Ford  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Nov 27, 2017*
8:00 pm, ESPN2
at No. 18 Virginia
ACC–Big Ten Challenge
L 37–49  3–4
 14  Happ   8  Happ   2  Trice  John Paul Jones Arena (13,911)
Charlottesville, VA
Dec 2, 2017
4:00 pm, FOX
Ohio State L 58–83  3–5
(0–1)
 16  Davison   6  Happ   3  Davison  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Dec 4, 2017
6:00 pm, ESPN2
at Penn State W 64–63  4–5
(1–1)
 16  Iverson   10  Happ   3  Tied  Bryce Jordan Center (6,730)
University Park, PA
Dec 6, 2017*
8:00 pm, ESPNU
at Temple L 55–59  4–6
 23  Happ   6  Happ/Iverson   4  Trice  Liacouras Center (6,713)
Philadelphia, PA
Dec 9, 2017*
11:00 am, FS1
Marquette
Rivalry
L 63–82  4–7
 20  Davison   9  Happ   4  Tied  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Dec 13, 2017*
7:00 pm, FS1
Western Kentucky W 81–80  5–7
 17  Tied   5  Ford   6  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Dec 23, 2017*
4:30 pm, BTN
Green Bay W 81–60  6–7
 18  Davison   8  Happ   4  Pritzl  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Dec 27, 2017*
8:00 pm, ESPNU
Chicago State W 82–70  7–7
 18  Happ   12  Happ   6  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Dec 30, 2017*
3:00 pm, BTN
UMass Lowell W 82–53  8–7
 18  Tied   7  Tied   6  Davison  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Jan 2, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN
Indiana W 71–61  9–7
(2–1)
 28  Happ   10  Happ   4  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Jan 5, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN2
at Rutgers L 60–64  9–8
(2–2)
 13  Tied   10  Happ   5  Davison  Louis Brown Athletic Center (5,709)
Piscataway, NJ
Jan 9, 2018
7:30 pm, BTN
at Nebraska L 59–63  9–9
(2–3)
 15  Happ   11  Happ   5  Davison  Pinnacle Bank Arena (13,497)
Lincoln, NE
Jan 16, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN
at No. 3 Purdue L 50–78  9–10
(2–4)
 15  Happ   7  Iverson   7  Happ  Mackey Arena (14,804)
West Lafayette, IN
Jan 19, 2018
8:00 pm, FS1
Illinois W 75–50  10–10
(3–4)
 18  Davison   10  Happ   5  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Jan 23, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN2
at Iowa L 67–85  10–11
(3–5)
 21  Happ   10  Happ   5  Happ  Carver–Hawkeye Arena (11,563)
Iowa City, IA
Jan 26, 2018
7:00 pm, FS1
at No. 6 Michigan State L 61–76  10–12
(3–6)
 23  Happ   7  Happ   4  Tied  Breslin Center (14,797)
East Lansing, MI
Jan 29, 2018
8:00 pm, BTN
Nebraska L 63–74  10–13
(3–7)
 25  Happ   11  Happ   6  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Feb 1, 2018
7:30 pm, FS1
Northwestern L 52–60  10–14
(3–8)
 15  Iverson   9  Iverson   4  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Feb 4, 2018
12:00 pm, CBS
at Maryland L 63–68  10–15
(3–9)
 18  Happ   9  Happ   3  Happ  Xfinity Center (15,810)
College Park, MD
Feb 8, 2018
8:00 pm, BTN
at Illinois W 78–69  11–15
(4–9)
 27  Happ   9  Iverson   8  Happ  State Farm Center (13,062)
Chmapign, IL
Feb 11, 2018
12:00 pm, CBS
No. 20 Michigan L 72–83  11–16
(4–10)
 29  Happ   7  Happ   7  Iverson  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Feb 15, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN
No. 6 Purdue W 57–53  12–16
(5–10)
 21  Happ   12  Happ   3  Pritzl  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Feb 19, 2018
8:00 pm, FS1
Minnesota W 73–63 OT 13–16
(6–10)
 20  Pritzl   12  Iverson   5  Happ  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Feb 22, 2018
6:00 pm, ESPN2
at Northwestern W 70–64  14–16
(7–10)
 19  Happ   7  Happ   6  Davison  Allstate Arena (7,033)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 25, 2018
12:00 pm, CBS
No. 2 Michigan State L 63–68  14–17
(7–11)
 30  Davison   9  Pritzl   2  2 tied  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
Big Ten tournament
Mar 1, 2018
11:00 am, BTN
(9) vs. (8) Maryland
Second round
W 59–54  15–17
 14  Happ   7  Happ   2  Davison  Madison Square Garden 
New York City, NY
Mar 2, 2018
11:00 am, BTN
(9) vs. (1) No. 2 Michigan State
Quarterfinals
L 60–63  15–18
 22  Happ   5  Iverson   5  Davison  Madison Square Garden 
New York City, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Player statistics

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Updated through February 16, 2018

Individual player statistics[12]
Minutes Scoring Total FGs 3-point FGs Free-Throws Rebounds
Player GP GS Tot Avg Pts Avg FG FGA Pct 3FG 3FA Pct FT FTA Pct Off Def Tot Avg A TO Blk Stl
Ballard, Michael 1 0 1 1.0 0 0.0 0 0 .000 0 0 .000 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Davison, Brad 28 24 854 30.5 321 11.5 98 244 .402 49 138 .355 76 94 .809 6 54 60 2.1 66 55 1 35
Ferris, Matt 6 0 8 1.3 2 0.3 1 1 1.000 0 0 .000 0 0 .000 1 2 3 0.5 0 2 0 0
Ford, Aleem 28 17 660 23.6 162 5.8 52 122 .426 39 87 .448 19 24 .792 16 64 80 2.9 22 23 4 6
Happ, Ethan 28 28 851 30.4 512 18.3 211 395 .534 1 11 .091 89 161 .553 69 168 237 8.5 108 81 26 39
Illikainen, Alex 21 0 155 7.4 17 0.8 6 15 .400 5 10 .500 0 3 .000 9 13 22 1.0 10 4 3 0
Iverson, Khalil 28 28 826 29.5 239 8.5 90 168 .536 0 23 .000 59 85 .694 46 91 137 4.9 52 59 28 23
King, Kobe 10 0 190 19.0 52 5.2 21 46 .457 7 21 .333 3 3 1.000 8 6 14 1.4 6 3 2 2
McGrory, Walt 9 0 72 8.0 5 0.6 0 5 .000 0 3 .000 5 7 .714 0 8 8 0.9 4 7 0 4
Moesch, Aaron 22 0 144 6.5 26 1.2 7 9 .778 2 2 1.000 10 11 .909 3 10 13 0.6 7 5 0 3
Pritzl, Brevin 27 17 750 27.8 235 8.7 77 195 .395 40 121 .331 41 49 .837 26 73 99 3.7 31 16 4 20
Reuvers, Nate 23 12 382 16.6 130 5.7 50 125 .400 12 38 .316 18 20 .900 17 33 50 2.2 16 25 23 5
Schlundt, T.J. 22 0 189 8.6 22 1.0 8 36 .222 6 27 .222 0 0 .000 6 9 15 0.7 6 3 2 4
Thomas IV, Charlie 19 0 109 5.7 20 1.1 9 23 .391 0 6 .000 2 5 .400 9 21 31 1.6 4 4 1 0
Trice, D'Mitrik 10 10 315 31.5 94 9.4 35 92 .380 12 40 .300 12 17 .706 2 18 20 2.0 23 13 1 6
Van Vliet, Andy 13 4 94 7.2 44 3.4 13 28 .464 8 15 .533 10 14 .714 4 16 20 1.5 1 3 3 1
Team
Total 28 5600 1881 67.2 678 1504 .451 181 542 .334 344 493 .698 252 619 871 31.1 356 316 98 148
Opponents 28 5600 1865 66.6 681 1476 .461 160 449 .356 343 463 .741 216 635 851 30.4 328 322 103 157
Legend
  GP  Games played   GS  Games started  Avg  Average per game
  FG  Field-goals made  FGA  Field-goal attempts  Off  Offensive rebounds
 Def  Defensive rebounds   A  Assists   TO Turnovers
 Blk  Blocks  Stl  Steals  High  Team high

References

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  1. ^ Stubbs, Roman (March 1, 2018). "In the end, this Maryland basketball season is defined by a bungled inbounds play". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  2. ^ Alter, Marlowe (March 1, 2018). "Michigan State beats Wisconsin, 63-60, in Big Ten tournament quarters". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  3. ^ "NCAA streak ends, but late surge bodes well for Wisconsin". USA Today. Associated Press. March 3, 2018. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  4. ^ Baer, Jack (March 17, 2017). "Recap: Wisconsin prevails against Virginia Tech 84-74 thanks to Bronson Koenig's historic night in 2017 NCAA Tournament". Land of 10. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  5. ^ "Defending champ Villanova bounced by Wisconsin in second round". ESPN. Associated Press. March 18, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  6. ^ Chase, Chris (March 25, 2017). "Buzzer beaters! Florida and Wisconsin trade last-second shots in wild Sweet 16 thriller". Fox Sports. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  7. ^ "Badgers Down Under: what you need to know". University of Wisconsin. July 10, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  8. ^ "College basketball: Wisconsin takes trip Down Under with team in transition". NCAA. August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  9. ^ Temple, Jesse (August 23, 2017). "Wisconsin basketball: 5 things we learned from Badgers' overseas exhibitions". Land of 10. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  10. ^ Polzin, Jim (August 23, 2017). "Badgers men's basketball: Greg Gard says overseas trip was a benefit to his team". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  11. ^ Dortch, Chris (September 18, 2017). "Arizona Tops Blue Ribbon's 37th Annual Preseason Rankings". Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  12. ^ "2017-18 Men's Basketball Cumulative Statistics". University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved February 16, 2018.