MIKE LUCAS Senior Writer Related Content • Varsity Magazine

BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer

MADISON, Wis. — After Sunday's Red/White scrimmage at the Kohl Center, Trevor Anderson was the first player off the floor, the first player in the locker room and the first player in the training room.

Anderson was on a mission to ice down his surgically repaired knee.

He wasn't the first player (nor the last) to realize how much he loves the game after it's taken away. As it was last November in the Big Ten opener when he sustained the season-ending injury.

It does explain why Anderson had some butterflies before Sunday's scrimmage.

"I was getting to do what I love again," he said, "and it was awesome."

Starting on the White team along with D'Mitrik Trice, Brevin Pritzl, Aleem Ford and Micah Porter, Anderson played a little over 12 minutes and missed his only shot attempt.

"Missed it short," he said. "I'm just getting my legs back and getting this quad stronger so I can get the ball there. The biggest thing that has to come next is going by people (off the dribble).

"I don't think I'm quick enough yet. But that's going to come with strength and just getting comfortable out there … I was a little bit (nervous), but I just feel blessed to be back."

Badgers Back in the Building Thanks to the 4,000+ fans that came out to support and cheer on our guys today at the Kohl Center Red/White Scrimmage Scenes 📸 👇

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) Oct. 13, 2019

Anderson, a 6-foot-2 guard, credited trainer Henry Perez-Guerra and strength and conditioning coach Erik Helland with helping him get through the arduous rehab following ACL surgery.

"Henry and I always look at it as a week-to-week, day-to-day process," said Anderson, a redshirt junior from Stevens Point, Wisconsin. "By November 5, I'll be more than ready to go."

That's when the Badgers open the season against Saint Mary's in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Anderson wore a bulky-looking brace on his right knee during the intra-squad contest.

"It's more of a mental game when you have a big surgery like that — anybody who has dealt with a knee knows what I'm talking about," said Anderson, a freshman starter at UW-Green Bay in 2016.

"My knee is fine. I've proven it to myself through the last two weeks of practice. I can stop on a dime and plant and cut and do all that stuff."

Reflecting on what it meant Sunday to play again in front of a crowd, he said, "First step, check the box. Henry told me a month ago he wanted my first live action to be against Iowa State."

The Badgers and Cyclones will scrimmage in a couple of weeks. Obviously, Anderson could be invaluable in the backcourt taking some of the ball-handling pressure off Trice and Davison.

"So, I'm ahead of schedule," Anderson said. "I've just got to keep plugging away."

Kohl Takes

• Potter held a basketball (aka Simba) high above his head to the accompaniment of walk-up music from the "Lion King" during the player introductions. Ford came out to "Baby Shark."
   
• Matched against freshman Tyler Wahl, Ford drew a foul and scored the first points of the scrimmage from the free throw line (where he was 9-of-10 overall). Twice got fouled on 3-pointers.
   
• Wahl didn't do anything to separate himself from the vets. But he didn't look out of place either. While seeing limited action (14:53), he made his only shot and pulled down three rebounds.
   
• Although he probably feels more comfortable on the wing, Ford appears more physically equipped now to handle the 4-assignment. Especially until Potter becomes eligible in late December.
   
• Potter showed variety in his attack, including a make from the lengthened 3-point line, a put-back off his own miss, a left-handed bank and a couple of hard drives to the rim drawing contact.
   
• Potter ran the court with urgency for someone 6-10. Should translate into transition baskets. Looks to rebound and push. He would later share with reporters his excitement about playing in front of a crowd. "Oh my goodness, it's been a long time coming. I've been waiting for a year to play and even though it was against ourselves, it still felt really good to get out here on the main floor in the Kohl Center and perform."
   
• At halftime, Pritzl, Trice and Brad Davison were matched with two fans in a shooting contest that entailed making a free throw, a 3-pointer and a halfcourt shot. Trice hit two shots from just inside 47 feet and his team won both matchups.
   
• Animated assistant coach Alando Tucker spent halftime sharing some pointers (mimicking a ball fake and swing through among other things) with Ford, Potter and Joe Hedstrom on the bench.
   
• In Potter's absence, it will be interesting to see if Hedstrom, a 7-foot redshirt frosh, will have a role in the rotation, and to what extent. Can he earn some minutes if he rebounds and plays defense?
   
• After whistling Davison for traveling, Big Ten official Eric Curry explained the violation to him during a subsequent timeout. Chris Beaver and Rob Kueneman rounded out the zebras.
   
• Shooting in the Kohl Center for just the second time this fall due to the arena being in hockey mode, the Red and White teams combined for 3-of-24 from beyond the new 3-point arc (22 feet, 1 ¾ inches). The Badgers went 15-of-68 (.221) from the old line (20-9) in three games last postseason.
   
• Davison was the most talkative player on the floor during the scrimmage. When he wasn't chewing on his mouth guard, he was exhorting teammates on screening, movement and the Swing.
   
• Neither the Reds (9-of-27) nor Whites (6-of-28) shot well from the field. Combined they were 13 of 16 from the free throw line. Combined they also had 16 turnovers (11 players had at least one each.)
   
• On his way back to the defensive end, Davison was overheard yelling encouragement to Nate Reuvers, "Nice shot, Nate. Good shot." It was a "keep shooting" when you get a "good look" message.
   
• Kobe King had a slick spin and finish on the glass. Plus, he scored in the paint with a pure power move. It's only October, but he still looms as a critical piece on how this team falls into place by March.