BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Nigel Hayes has shared the story before but it was worth retelling after Wisconsin's "point forward" almost notched the second triple double in school history during Tuesday's convincing 77-60 win over Syracuse here at the Kohl Center.
Point forward was not a misnomer, either.
Hayes was on point with everything that he did against the vaunted 2-3 Orange zone.
That included 11 rebounds, 10 assists and 9 points.
Operating as a facilitator within the zone, deftly working between the elbows, lane line to lane line, Hayes carved up the Syracuse defense with his court vision, ball-handling and delivery skills. Hayes insisted afterwards that he has always had a passion for passing, a love that developed at an early age.
"When I was in the fifth and sixth grade, elementary school, I could score the ball," Hayes recounted. "But my mom (Talaya Davis) told me then that I needed to pass the ball to the other kids because their parents were telling her, 'Nigel is shooting all the time.'"
Talaya is a special woman with a special influence over an obedient son.
"That year, in the fifth grade, I passed the ball every time I touched it. I would have a wide-open lay-up and I would just turn and throw it to another kid," said Hayes who also had a moral to his story, a predictable one at that. "I developed a love for passing the ball."
That was on display against the 'Cuse.
"The one thing that probably gets overlooked and doesn't get talked about enough is his ability to pass and his vision," said Wisconsin coach Greg Gard. "He did a very good job, for the most part, of making good decisions… He made a difference and that was the plan coming in."
The Badgers executed that plan to perfection in their half-court offense with one-touch passing that involved all five players. The ball never stopped moving – and rarely touched the floor save for a well-timed bounce pass – from elbow to block; block to wing; wing to point; point to elbow to block.
You get the idea. It was a clinic orchestrated by maestro Hayes.
The main beneficiary was Ethan Happ who dunked many of Hayes' dimes.
"It's Nigel, that's what it is really," praised Happ who made 10-of-12 shots and finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds. "If you watch the tape, it's him getting me the ball. The first time we played Syracuse, I should've had more (points) than I did just because I didn't finish around the rim."
Happ had 18 points (8-of-15) and 15 rebounds in last year's overtime win at the Carrier Dome.
"In order to beat the 2-3, you have to attack it from the middle and distribute and facilitate from there," Hayes said of his role in breaking down the defense and getting the ball to the open man. "I did a good job of getting it to my teammates and they did a better job of finishing.
"That's how it's supposed to go with a zone. Teams get in trouble when they try to dribble through it and try to create and play one-on-one. Guys in space are guarding open areas and they don't know what's behind them or around them."
Expanding on that theme at the postgame press conference, Hayes said, "The only reason I'm able to catch it in there so easily is because I'm surrounded by great shooters. Vitto (Brown), Ethan…"
Hayes paused. Looking at Happ, who was seated next to him, he said, "Sorry not you."
Happ is shooting 69 percent on the season. But his scoring is coming at the rim.
Hayes meant the shooters on the arc. Brown, Bronson Koenig, Zak Showalter.
"Everybody knows they can shoot the ball extremely well," Hayes went on. "When you can pull the top two guys out of the zone away from the center that allows for an easier pass. The two guys on the bottom still have to get to the corner and that leaves Ethan and me to play two-on-one in there.
"I think we won the battle today."
Conclusively.
As for the triple-double.
Wisconsin's first and only one was registered by former guard Josh Gasser who had 10 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists against Northwestern on Jan 23, 2011.
How hard are they to come by?
Consider all the great players, the "one-and-done" players at Kentucky.
On Monday night, freshman De'Aaron Fox had a triple-double against Arizona State.
It was only the second one in school history. Chris Mills had the first in 1988.
Hayes had a chance to put his name in the UW record book with 39 seconds left Tuesday.
But he missed a free throw, the front end of a one-on-one.
Over 120 previous games, he was shooting 70 percent from the line.
"I'm going to take a long walk with myself," he said, "and think about that missed free throw."
While he's walking the walk, here are some observations from the Kohl Center:
•   During the first half, Syracuse's Andrew White got into a shooting rhythm and knocked down four shots from beyond the 3-point arc. With his size and length, he was a tough cover for Showalter. White, a graduate transfer from Nebraska, had 35 points against Penn State last season. In the second half, Hayes checked White and held him scoreless. He went 0-for-6 from the field.
•   Showalter had a signature playmaking flurry over a handful of possessions. On the offensive end, he ripped a rebound away from 6-9 Tyler Lydon, drew a foul and made both free throws. Moments later, he made a nice backdoor cut and scored on a feed from Happ. At the opposite end, Showalter stole the ball from freshman guard Tyus Battle, drew a foul and again made both of his free throws. That six-point Showy run extended the lead to 28-17.
•   Coincidence or not? Showalter's flurry came after a timeout during which UW football players Leo Musso, Sojourn Shelton, Corey Clement and Dare Ogunbowale were introduced to the crowd. Showalter and Ogunbowale are not only good friends. But they're former roommates. Walking off the floor, Ogunbowale, who played hoops at Milwaukee Marquette, shot an imaginary jumper.
•   Did you notice? As the result of a defensive switch, Wisconsin freshman D'Mitrik Trice was matched against Syracuse freshman Taurean Thompson. Trice fought Thompson for position in the paint. Thompson never got the ball on a post-up. Trice is listed at 6-foot. Thompson is 6-10.
•   Coming into the game, Koenig had made only one of his last 11 shots from 3-point range. Koenig told reporters on Monday that the slump was temporary and not a distraction. R-E-L-A-X. True to his word, Koenig ended up with 20 points and matched his career high with six triples. He was 6-of-9 from distance. He also had six triples against Xavier (6-of-12) in the NCAA tournament. You may remember one of them.
