October scrimmage hints at good things to come from Badgers
October 23, 2016 | Men's Basketball
Mike Lucas shares his observations from annual men’s basketball Red/White preseason scrimmage
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BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin associate head coach Lamont Paris knelt on one knee in front of his Red team here Sunday afternoon at the Kohl Center.
On the other side of the scorer's table, second-year UW assistant coach Howard Moore knelt on one knee in front of his White team.
Even though it was only an October scrimmage — the first public showing of the Badgers at the Kohl Center — Paris and Moore treated it like a classroom coaching session at halftime.
"Even for the guys who have played a lot," Paris said, "they haven't played in an atmosphere since the end of last year, so it was good to get back in here with the lights on and hearing a crowd roar.
"And it was also good having officials and adjusting to how they were calling it — real officials, not me and coach Moore blowing our whistles during practice."
Moore was on the same page.
"I thought it was good to get the jitters out being in front of a crowd for the first time," he noted. "Some of the newcomers were a little nervous. The older guys knew what to expect.
"There are a lot of things we've got to clean up, a lot of things we have to correct. The execution wasn't great. But it's October 23. I thought the effort was decent and the play was good."
The passing was not always crisp. But the new red threads were sharp.
Opposite the Big Ten logo on the jersey was a patch to honor the memory of Paris' mom, Greg Gard's dad and Ab Nicholas, a former UW player and a well-liked and generous basketball booster.
Some observations from the scrimmage:
- Bronson Koenig was consistently pushing the tempo. The only time he walked it up the floor was late in the second half when his team was trying to protect the lead.
- Koenig, who may be in the best shape of his basketball life, also attacked the rim and delivered a beautiful no-look pass to Alex Illikainen for an easy basket.
- As expected, Koenig had the ball for end of the half and end of the game situations. He lost a behind the back dribble on one and missed a layup on the other. It's October 23.
- There were a handful of possessions where the teams used full-court pressure; something Gard did last year at select times with positive success in turning over the opponent.
- It worked only once Sunday and it was 7-foot Andy Van Vliet who had the mid-court steal. Van Vliet's length is extraordinary and a real asset on defense in altering or blocking shots.
- On one lane line possession, Vitto Brown beat Van Vliet off the dribble, a positive development for Brown who then stepped out and drained a shot from his comfort zone, the arc.
- Van Vliet's shooting range is noteworthy. He banked back-to-back 3-pointers.
- Former Big Ten official Eric Curry and Zak Showalter had a few friendly conversations on foul interpretations. Showalter had a five-point run to rally the Red team in the closing minutes.
- Ethan Happ scored the winning points from the free throw line — what should be his home away from home given his undeniable presence in the paint and around the rim.Â
- Happ looked in mid-season form on a couple of reverse layups.
- Khalil Iverson stood out in multiple ways, especially rebounding. His floor vision was awfully good, too, in finding open teammates. He should be a factor in any pressure defense situations.
- Iverson and Nigel Hayes were matched-up at the start of the scrimmage, which underlined the flexibility of both players to guard different positions, if necessary.
- Hayes, like Happ, should be among the Big Ten leaders in free throw attempts. Iverson also draws contact with his game, which he's trying to extend to 18-feet.
- Illikainen looked more comfortable on the offensive end. So did Charlie Thomas. They didn't rush. They let the play come to them. And they made some plays. So did guard Jordan Hill.
- Freshman guard D'Mitrik Trice plays with quickness and a smile.
- Trice had a mohawk. Brevin Pritzl had a pony tail. The Kohl Center crowd had a blast.
- It's only October 23.Â
- But it's only human nature to wonder what this team might look like in March.
