BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Whether it was an Elite Game in the Syracuse Carrier Dome or a Final Four semifinal in Lucas Oil Stadium,
D'Mitrik Trice absorbed the "Madness" while watching his older brother Travis Trice Jr. star for Michigan State on the biggest of stages, the NCAA Tournament.
"The atmosphere," D'Mitrik recalled, "was ridiculous."
On March 28, 2015, the younger Trice, then a prep senior in Huber Heights, Ohio, had a game-high 19 points to lead Wayne High School past Westerville South in the Division I tournament finals. Trice celebrated the school's first state championship with his dad, Travis Trice Sr., the Wayne head coach.
The next day, they were in the stands at the Carrier Dome cheering on Travis Jr. and Spartans who beat Louisville to advance to the Final Four. Travis Jr. had 17 points. Combined with the 24 he scored against Oklahoma in the semifinals, he was named the East Region's Most Outstanding Player.
The following Saturday, D'Mitrik Trice got a real taste of the "Madness" in Indianapolis. After Duke blew out Michigan State in the first semifinal, Wisconsin rocked the college basketball world by upsetting previously-unbeaten Kentucky behind Frank Kaminsky's 20 points and 11 rebounds.
In that shining moment for the Badgers, little did Trice know he would wear their jersey one day.
But it came to pass. After one year at IMG Academy, Trice and teammate Aleem Ford committed to the UW. Ford redshirted as a freshman, but Trice played in 37 games (two starts) and got his first exposure to the "Madness" as a college player in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. The memories are still fresh for Trice.
"I remember making my first bucket. It was a three against Virginia Tech."
Trice played 24 minutes and had six points in Wisconsin's first-round win in Buffalo.
"I remember beating Villanova — that was a great experience."
The Badgers stunned the No. 1 overall seed to move into the Sweet 16.
"And then, I remember being in One Shining Moment with that ridiculous 3 Chiozza hit."
That was the last place that Trice wanted to be — in Florida's Chris Chiozza's moment.
"I had a very memorable first tournament experience," Trice said with a sigh.
With four seconds left in overtime, the Badgers took an 83-81 lead over the Gators on two free throws by Nigel Hayes. The ball was thrown into Chiozza, a 5-11 junior guard, who was being defended by Hayes, a 6-8 senior. Trice was subbed into the game to check the point guard Kasey Hill.
"To not let him get the ball," he said of his assignment. As a result, he was face-guarding Hill and had his back turned to Chiozza. "I didn't see the ball get put into play … when I saw him (Chiozza) he had already gotten the ball and was right on my hip. The only thing I was thinking about was, 'Do not foul.'
"As a freshman out there, do not do something stupid that could cost your team and these seniors a chance to move on (to the Elite Eight). So, I was kind of getting out of the way because I really didn't want to do anything dumb and foul. But he still made that crazy shot (a buzzer-beater 3-pointer)."
Madison Square Garden erupted. The UW players slumped over in disappointment.
Considering the Badgers had been playing deep into March on a consistent basis — four straight Sweet 16's, including back-to-back Final Fours — it was understandable if Trice expected there would be many more deep runs in the tournament, many more chances to author his own shining moment.
But he has been back only once in the last three seasons. Some things have been out of his control. He was injured 10 games into his second year and redshirted after surgery. As it was, the Badgers didn't make the tourney. In 2019, they were eliminated in the first round by Oregon.
"I remember it was a tough matchup for us because of their length and they had a really good guard in Payton Pritchard," Trice said of the Ducks. "It was just a matter of who we were playing and when we were playing them. They were one of the hottest teams coming into the tournament."
For Trice, this is his last Dance.
"Having it taken away from us last year, I think it's just a blessing," he said after the 2020 tournament was canceled due to the pandemic. "Every basketball player and kid has a dream of playing at the highest level and seeing their names called on Selection Sunday … being in this moment."
Trice has appeared in four NCAA tournament games, the most on the team. Micah Potter was in two games (10 minutes total) at Ohio State. Nobody else has made more than one appearance. Looking back, Trice credited Hayes, Bronson Koenig and Jordan Hill for readying him as a true freshman.
"The older guys did a pretty good job of doing that," he said. "They knew what I brought to the table. I don't think they needed to say too much to me. But they did a great job of keeping me level-headed and focused on who we are and who I am."
As one of seven UW seniors, Trice can return the favor with a helping hand and encouragement.
"It's definitely important for us older guys to let the younger guys know that this is just another game," he said, eyeing the North Carolina matchup. "It's another opportunity to showcase what we can do. In moments like this, we just have to make sure we get back to playing Wisconsin basketball."
• • • •
After Wednesday night's practice at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana, freshman Jonathan Davis put on headphones and listened to music on the 68-mile return trip to the team's hotel in downtown Indianapolis. The Badgers will open the tournament Friday in Mackey, a familiar venue.
"I liked the practice, the energy was good, and we seem ready go out and compete on Friday," said Davis, who was asked if there was an advantage to playing in the same Big Ten arena where they played Purdue just over two weeks ago. "A gym is a gym really. But I guess playing there when they haven't gives us a little bit of an advantage. But we still have to come out and worry about playing the game … This week is a little different. Now, if we lose, we go home. So, we have to put everything out there."
Potter, a fifth-year senior, obviously has more experience in Mackey than Davis.
"I've played there three times and I've actually gotten a win there (at OSU), which is nice," Potter said. "When there are fans in that arena, it's one of the best venues in the country. It's definitely nice to have played there before and have the familiarity with the gym, the rims, the depth perception."
Sophomore Tyler Wahl was kind of hoping the Badgers would draw one of the Indy venues.
"I wanted to play at a different place, a place where I hadn't been before, like Bankers Life or Hinkle or somewhere historic to Indiana," he said. "But it's not a bad thing that we're playing at a place (Mackey) where we've played at and North Carolina hasn't yet."
Bankers Life Fieldhouse (née Canseco) is home to the NBA's Indiana Pacers and the Big Ten tournament, save for this year when it was staged at Lucas Oil Stadium. Hinkle Fieldhouse, built in 1928, is where Butler University plays and segments of "Hoosiers" was filmed. Trice was pulling for Hinkle.
"That would have been a great place to play," he said, "because my dad played there."
Fact is, Travis Trice Sr. played his first two seasons at Mackey Arena for Purdue icon Gene Keady and his last two seasons at Hinkle with the Butler Bulldogs. He predated his sons in the NCAA tournament — coming off the bench for the Boilermakers in their 1991 opening-round loss to Temple.
Travis Sr. will be in attendance Friday at Mackey. His wife Julie will not be. She will be watching their daughter, Olivia, a sophomore guard, playing for Bowling Green in the WNIT. Travis Jr. won't be at Mackey, either. He's playing professionally overseas in the Turkish Basketball Super League.
Per usual, Travis Sr. has been preparing a scouting report on North Carolina for D'Mitrik.
It's what fathers do. Especially when they're successful head coaches.
"He has watched some of their games and talked to me about what he has seen from them," said D'Mitrik whose focus has been on the Heels' freshmen guards. "We know they're always putting pressure on the rim. They're fast, they're athletic and they get the job done in the paint.
"We'll try to slow those guys down and force them to do some out of character things — whether that's shooting contested shots (at the rim) or shooting contested 3's. We know it's going to be a battle from the jump with their bigs. Keeping the guards out of the paint is a big key."
Freshman Kerwin Walton is North Carolina's top 3-point threat. Walton and Wahl were once on the same AAU team in Minnesota. Walton is from Hopkins High School, Wahl from Lakeville North. "He's always been a great shooter," Wahl said. "Able to dribble and attack the rim a good amount."
In the 2019 Minnesota high school Class 4A state championship game, Hopkins defeated Lakeville North. Walton led his team with 17 points, while Wahl had 19 points and 17 rebounds in a losing effort. Added Wahl on Walton, "It will be a test for us to run him off the line on Friday."
Davis has a working knowledge of North Carolina's starting backcourt, too. He has played AAU against both Walton and Caleb Love, a freshman from St. Louis. Davis crossed paths with another Tar Heels freshman, RJ Davis, who comes off the bench, at the Stephen Curry select basketball camp.
Love, RJ Davis (no relation to Johnny), 6-foot-10 Day'Ron Sharpe and 7-foot Walker Kessler were all McDonald's All-Americans and Players of the Year in their respect states. Such is the depth of the first-year talent pool, however young, that Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams has assembled in Chapel Hill.
Jonathan Davis, for one, doesn't feel like a freshman anymore.
"This is when freshmen become sophomores," he asserted of March. "So, you've got to start playing like it and you've got to have the mindset that, 'I am now (a soph and no longer a frosh).' As of late, I've been playing my best basketball since I've been here. I'm just trying to carry that into Friday."
Davis has scored in double-figures in six of his last 11 games.
"I've talked to Johnny a little bit just to see if he's a little nervous," Trice said. "But, honestly, this is such a different year that the nerves are a little bit different. Playing in a packed stadium is different than playing in front of a near-empty arena with few fans.
"It will just be another game for him. He's already told me that he's not nervous. He's not anything like that. He's just more excited to play against the top tier teams and get out of the Big Ten."
The same applies for Wahl, who will also be making his NCAA tournament debut.
"I would say that it's more excitement than nervousness — when the ball tips off you're playing for something a little bit extra," Wahl said. "You could tell there was a little more energy in everybody (at the Big Ten tournament last week) and it meant a little more than the regular-season games.
"We played really well against Penn State for 35 minutes and we stuck with one of the top teams in the country (Iowa) the last two times we played them. I think we're heading in the right direction. Our confidence is up. Our morale is up. I think we're ready to make a run."
The goal is the same for everyone when February morphs into March.
"A lot of people can attribute March to being one of the greatest times of the year — the March Madness tournament is a focal point of American sports every single year," said Potter, who's of the thinking everybody who grew up on playgrounds dreams about being in One Shining Moment.
"It's definitely something I grew up thinking about and dreaming about being a part of (the video highlight montage that follows the championship game) … like being that guy who hits that shot. Or being that team that makes a run … That stuff is something you think about all the time.
"That's why you come to a place like Wisconsin … so you can have that opportunity to make those runs or make those shots."
Acknowledged Wahl, "That was always a goal of mine to play in March Madness and the NCAA tournament, so that's another thing I can cross off my check list Friday. I'm super excited."
Wahl and Davis will be the face of the Badgers moving forward.
"But I haven't thought too much about it," Wahl insisted. "I'm focused on the right now."
Ditto for Davis who's concentrating on things directly related to success or failure on the floor.
"Everybody has got to crash the glass, we just can't rely on our big men to get the rebound or box out," he said of North Carolina's rebounding strength, especially offensively. "Those guys are really big and really physical so we're going to need everybody to chip in."
Added Wahl, "We're going to have to out-tough them — rebounding is one of those effort stats that wins or loses a lot of basketball games throughout the year. We have to clean up the glass."
That most certainly would be in Pop's scouting report for Trice who didn't have to be reminded that this is his last chance to shine and create his own moment.
"Being able to play in the NCAA tournament as a freshman, playing on the biggest stages, has definitely prepared me," said Trice, one of just eight Big Ten players to account for at least 1,300 points, 400 rebounds and 400 assists over the past decade.
"It's going to be a little different not having a full crowd (at Mackey). But it will still have the same feeling to me … It's every kid's dream to play in this tournament at least once. For me, to be able to be here a couple of different times is extraordinary and, honestly, it's humbling.
"I'm excited. I can't wait to be able to showcase our talents."
The stage awaits.
