Bonjour! The Wisconsin men's basketball team heads to France on a 10-day, four-game trip.
Brandon Harrison, Assistant Director of Brand Communications/Social Media, will be blogging and capturing content throughout the trip.
Here's what you need to know about the team's trip and how to follow along.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Keep tabs on our social media and UWBadgers.com for highlights, photos, recaps and more from France!
WISCONSIN'S INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULE
- Aug. 7-10 | Paris
- Game 1 vs. Paris Towers - WIN, 81-66
- Aug. 11-13 | Lyon
- Game 2 vs. Lyon Towers - WIN, 80-68
- Game 3 vs. Lyon Towers - WIN, 78-47
- Aug. 14-17 | Nice
- Game 4 vs. Azurea Club - WIN, 85-69
Times are listed in Central Standard Time (US)
Dates and times of games are subject to change
FINAL DAY IN FRANCE | TUESDAY, AUG. 16
NICE, France – How do you spend your final day in France? The beach, of course!
The Badgers began by visiting the beaches of Beaulieu-sur-Mer and spent a few hours soaking up the sun and enjoying the water. Some of the group took a guided jet-ski ride down the coast to Monaco and back.
Following time at the beach, the group made the short trip down the coast to Villefranche-sur-Mer and hopped on a boat that took the team down the coastline, into the port of Monaco and back.
After freshening back up at the hotel, the Badgers enjoyed one final meal together as a team in France at a restaurant down on the beach in Nice.
Wednesday, the Badgers begin the long journey back home from Nice, France to Madison, Wisconsin. Leaving the hotel around 9 a.m. local time in France, the team is not scheduled to arrive back at the Kohl Center until around midnight in Madison.
GAME 4 vs. AZUREA ClUB | MONDAY, AUG. 15
NICE, France – Wisconsin finished off a successful tour of France with a 4-0 record by earning an 85-69 win over Azurea Club on Monday night in Nice, France.
Jordan Davis and
Connor Essegian led the way offensively for the Badgers, scoring 14 points each in the final exhibition of the trip. Davis scored 12 of his points in the first half alone.
As he had all tour long, head coach
Greg Gard tweaked lineups and played with rotations throughout the night. Starting for Wisconsin was
Chucky Hepburn, Davis,
Isaac Lindsey,
Tyler Wahl and
Steven Crowl.
Making a form of hockey-line substitutions, the next lineup in was
Kamari McGee, Essegian,
Max Klesmit,
Markus Ilver and
Chris Hodges.
Davis and Essegian stood out right away in the first quarter. Essegian had a stretch where he scored seven straight points, two baskets coming off of him grabbing offensive rebounds.
Wisconsin held a 19-12 lead after the first quarter.
Davis continued to produce offensively for UW in the second quarter, putting together a stretch of three straight buckets toward the end of the frame.
By halftime, the Badgers had built a 42-29 lead.
Gilmore and Crowl carried the load offensively in the third quarter, scoring 5 points each during the period. Crowl flushed an alley-oop dunk off a nice feed from Hepburn. Gilmore was aggressive and got himself to the free throw line, including a nice and-1 finish through contact.
UW held a 63-47 lead after the third quarter.
Azurea didn't go away, however, pulling within 10 points midway through the fourth quarter. But it was Essegian who helped fend off the comeback bid, as the true freshman went on another scoring run scoring seven straight points. One of those baskets was an and-1, which came off of his fourth offensive rebound of the night.
Klesmit also went on a scoring run in the fourth quarter, scoring seven of his 10 points in the final period of the game.
POINT TOTALS:
Davis | 14 pts
Essegian | 14 pts
Crowl | 11 pts
Gilmore | 11 pts
Klesmit 10 pts
Hepburn | 7 pts
Ilver | 7 pts
Wahl | 4 pts
Lindsey | 3 pts
McGee | 2 pts
SIGHTSEEING IN MONACO | MONDAY, AUG. 15
MONTE CARLO, Monaco – Pregame activities for the Badgers look a little bit different during the offseason in France.
Prior to Monday night's final exhibition game in France, the team made the short drive down the coast from its hotel in Nice and crossed the border into Monacao. An independent and sovereign country, Monaco is located on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea and surrounded on land by neighbors France and Italy, which are both just 10 miles away.
The Badgers spent around three hours taking in the sights, stopping for some photo ops, and picking up souvenirs along the way to remember their visit.
Time to lock back in for the final game of the trip. UW tips in Nice at 7 p.m. local time (noon CT) on Monday.
GAME 3 vs. LYON TOWERS | SATURDAY, AUG. 13
LYON, France – Displaying a balanced scoring attack, the Badgers improved to 3-0 on their foreign tour of France with a 78-47 win over Lyon Towers on Saturday night in Lyon, France.
Markus Ilver led Wisconsin with 14 points, eight coming in the second half alone including six straight points to end the game.
Steven Crowl scored 12 points,
Connor Essegian had 10 points, while
Jordan Davis and
Tyler Wahl tallied nine points each to lead scoring for the Badgers.
The third exhibition in France, head coach
Greg Gard yet again mixed and matched lineups. Getting the start tonight for the Badgers was
Kamari McGee,
Max Klesmit, Ilver, Wahl and
Chris Hodges. The next lineup in was
Chucky Hepburn,
Isaac Lindsey, Davis,
Carter Gilmore and Crowl.
Wahl got the scoring started with a 3-pointer from the top of the key. The outside shot was a focus for Wahl this offseason, and his growing confidence from beyond the arc has been evident in France.
After hitting 12 shots from beyond the arc in their first game in France, followed by 13 triples in the second game, the Badgers made just four 3-pointers as a team Saturday night, yet found other ways to produce offensively.
The Badgers built a 38-22 lead at halftime, powered by Wahl scoring all nine of his points in the first half alone – which included one triple.
Also getting the start tonight was
Chris Hodges, who took advantage of his minutes and was active for the Badgers on both sides of the ball. The redshirt freshman finished with five points and a pair of blocks.
Essegian – who hit three triples and scored 11 points in UW's second exhibition – continued to play with confidence. The true freshman finished with 10 points. Essegian continued to score in threes, but on this night he did so with two separate and-1 finishes inside the paint.
By the end of the third quarter, UW's lead had ballooned to 62-29.
Davis was active in the third frame, hitting a pair of 3-pointers and also setting up teammates with two nice assists to create easy baskets.
Ross Candelino,
Isaac Gard and
Luke Haertle made their debuts tonight. Haertle also recorded his first points, hitting a pair of free throws after drawing a foul.
POINT TOTALS:
Ilver 14 pts
Crowl 12 pts
Essegian 10 pts
Davis 9 pts
Wahl 9 pts
Gilmore 6 pts
Hodges 5 pts
Klesmit 5 pts
McGee 4 pts
Haertle 2 pts
Hepburn 2 pts
GAME 2 vs. LYON TOWERS | FRIDAY, AUG. 12
LYON, France – Behind strong shooting from beyond the arc, Wisconsin led from the jump and improved to 2-0 in its French tour with an 80-68 win over Lyon Towers on Friday night in Lyon, France.
Tyler Wahl led the Badgers with 12 points, while
Steven Crowl and
Connor Essegian scored 11 points each, followed by Hepburn with 10 points to round out double-figure scoring.
As a team, Wisconsin made 13 triples, led by three from Essegian. Issac Lindsey,
Markus Ilver and Hepburn made two each from beyond the arc.
Essegian started the game for UW, as head coach
Greg Gard continued to utilize Wisconsin's four-game French tour as a chance to try different lineups. Starting for the Badgers in their second game of the tour was Hepburn, Essegian,
Jordan Davis,
Carter Gilmore and Crowl.
Wisconsin began the game on a 10-2 run and led at the end of the first quarter, 21-8.
UW's second lineup to sub in midway through the first quarter was
Kamari McGee,
Max Klesmit, Ilver, Wahl and
Chris Hodges.
With the Badgers holding a comfortable 43-27 lead at halftime, Lyon turned on the heat over the final two quarters and trimmed UWs lead down to 69-60 with 7:49 left to play in the fourth quarter.
The Towers weren't the only source of heat, as temperatures outside of the gym – which did not have air conditioning – reached 100 degrees during the game.
Wisconsin held off the late rally, however, thanks in part to a big second half from Davis who came on strong and scored all nine of his points over the final two quarters.
The Badgers return to action right away with a game Saturday at 7 p.m. local time (noon CT) in Lyon.
POINT TOTALS:
Wahl 12 pts
Crowl 11 pts
Essegian 11 pts
Hepburn 10 pts
Davis 9 pts
Lindsey 6 pts
Ilver 6 pts
Gilmore 5 pts
Klesmit 5 pts
McGee 3 pts
Hodges 2 pts
SIGHTSEEING IN LYON | FRIDAY, AUG. 12
LYON, France – Waking up for their first full day in Lyon on Friday, the Badgers took in some of the sights that the city has to offer.
Taking a brief bus ride up to the top of the hills surrounding Lyon, the group visited sights like the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière as well as the Teatro Galo-Romano.
Following the brief tour, it was time to lock back in for the second game of the trip. UW tips in Lyon at 6 p.m. local time (11 a.m. CT) on Friday.
PARIS TO LYON | THURSDAY, AUG. 11
LYON, France – Au revoir, Paris!
After spending three nights in Paris, the Badgers loaded up their things early Thursday morning and hit the road for Lyon. Around seven hours on the bus in total, the day was broken up with a couple pit stops, including a lunch break in Beaune, France.
Beaune is a walled town at the center of the Burgundy winemaking region in France. An ancient and historic town on a plain by the hills of the Côte d'Or, the cobbled town is surrounded by some of the world's most famous wine villages.
Once the team finally arrived at its destination of Lyon and checked in at the hotel, the group took an evening walk and enjoyed a welcome dinner in the city
After dinner, the players decided to take exploring the city to another level and each grabbed an electric scooter to ride around the city on.
Friday, the Badgers are back in action for their second game of their French trip. Tip is set for 6 p.m. local time (11 a.m. CT). Bonne nuit!
EIFFEL TOWER | WEDNESDAY, AUG. 10
PARIS – Fresh off a win, the Badgers took one final group trip in Paris to visit the Eiffel Tower at night.
Thursday morning, the team will travel by bus throughout the day to Lyon.
GAME 1 vs. PARIS TOWERS | WEDNESDAY, AUG. 10
PARIS – La victoire! The Wisconsin Badgers tipped off play in their four-game international tour of France with an 81-66 win over Paris Towers on Wednesday night in Paris, France.
Steven Crowl led the Badgers with 13 points,
Chucky Hepburn had 12 points, while
Markus Ilver and
Isaac Lindsey scored 10 points each to round out double-digit scorers.
Head coach
Greg Gard worked with two lineups that he rotated over the course of the game, while working in freshman
Connor Essegian as well.
Starting for Wisconsin was
Chucky Hepburn,
Jordan Davis,
Max Klesmit,
Tyler Wahl and
Steven Crowl, however, Gard emphasized that he will be tweaking and implementing different lineups throughout the four-game French trip.
The second lineup of the night was
Kamari McGee,
Isaac Lindsey,
Carter Gilmore,
Markus Ilver and
Chris Hodges.
The Badgers jumped out to a quick 15-2 lead over the first five minutes of the game, led by Crowl and Hepburn early.
Ilver showed confidence in the first half, stepping into a nice 3-pointer in transition midway through the second quarter. The only thing that could slow Ilver down from distance early was the gym's ceiling, which he actually hit on a high-arching 3-point shot attempt that resulted in a turnover. Ilver would finish with 10 points, going 3-for-5 from 3-point range.
The Badgers shot the ball well from beyond the arc all night, finishing 12-for-27 (44.4%) from the international FIBA distance. In addition to Ilver, Hepburn hit 4 of 7 from deep and finished with 12 points (3 assists, 4 steals), Lindsey knocked down three triples (3-5), scoring 10 points and Davis was 2-for-4 on 3FGs, tallying 8 points.
Crowl and Hodges displayed a number of strong finishes inside as well. Crowl had back-to-back and-1 finishes inside in the first quarter. Hodges had a putback dunk off a rebound, plus a posterizing dunk over a defender in the second half.
Crowl led the Badgers with 13 points, while Hodges had a 7 rebounds and 6 points. Davis led UW with 8 boards
The Badgers will be back in action on the court Friday in Lyon.
SEINE RIVER CRUISE | WEDNESDAY, AUG. 10
PARIS – The Badgers spent the morning on a Seine River boat cruise to take in more sights and landmarks around downtown Paris. The short river ride allowed the team to take in many highlights of the city including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, Notre Dame Cathedral and
Fun note about the Louvre: there is so much artwork within the museum that if a person were to stop and spend seven seconds looking at each item, it would take them an entire year to do so.
DAY AT NORMANDY | TUESDAY, AUG. 9
A bit more recharged from the flight and first day, Tuesday was filled with learning and sightseeing for the Badgers as the team visited Normandy.
From Paris to the beaches of Normandy, it was a three-plus hour bus ride. On the way there, the team watched the movie "Saving Private Ryan" to get a feel and idea for the significance of the place they would be visiting.
The first stop was Arromanches-les-Bains, where the team got its first look at the coastline. After taking in some of the sights, the group walked down the hillside into town for a lunch break on the coast.
Some of the Badgers were more willing to try local dining than others. A handful of those in the group stuck to the classic cheeseburger and fries (at least they're French fries…), while others in the group tried local sandwiches or crêpes.
Following lunch, the group made a stop at Batterie de Longues-sur-Mer to visit old bunkers still left over from the war. Whether it was the large cannons inside, or how some of the bunkers still stood years later after all of the trials, things began to sink in for the group.
One of the final stops of the day, and perhaps the most powerful, was the Normandy American Cemetery. The group observed and even took part in a wreath laying ceremony. After the ceremony, each member of the group was given a small handful of red flowers to place individually at the graves of fallen soldiers from Wisconsin buried at the cemetery. This proved to be one of the more powerful moments of the day, as it allowed each player to individually reflect and pay respects to those fallen soldiers who at the time of their passing were not much older than the Badgers themselves, and in some cases even younger.
Before heading home, the group visited Omaha Beach. There, they had the chance to collect sand from the beach in vials to bring back home with them to commemorate and remember their visit.
Wednesday the team is scheduled to take a Seine River sightseeing cruise, play the first basketball game of the foreign tour, then cap the day by ascending the Eiffel Tower later that night. Wednesday's basketball game will not be streamed or shown live, but we will bring you a recap and social media updates via photos and video highlights.
FIRST DAY IN PARIS | MONDAY, AUG. 8
PARIS — After a three-hour flight delay out of O'Hare Airport, the Badgers hopped on a direct flight to Paris and arrived around 11 a.m. Central European Time in Paris for their first full day in France.
First up was a stop at the Arc de Triomphe, followed by some time to explore the Champs-Élysées Paris and find lunch. Not only did the afternoon activity provide the Badgers their first chance to experience the local culture, it also gave the group an opportunity to begin practicing some French.
Monday's lesson was to practice using four courteous phrases with locals:
- Bonjour! — Hello
- s'il vous plaît — Please
- Merci — Thank you
- au revoir — Good bye
Thanks to an exceptional guide and double-decker bus, regularly scheduled trips around Paris from Point A to Point B are also serving as opportunities for tours of the city and landmarks.
The team ended its eventful first day with a welcome dinner before returning to the hotel for a well-earned nights rest.
Tuesday, the team will travel to Normandy for an entire day's worth of learning and sightseeing.
TRAVEL DAY | SUNDAY, AUG. 7
MADISON, Wis. — Au revoir, Madison!
Today, the Badgers packed up their things and began the journey from Madison, Wisconsin to Paris. The first trip to Europe for many players on the team, for some it marked their first taste of international travel ever. To the delight of
Lindsay Lovelace, Assistant Director of Basketball Operations, all passports were present and accounted for before bus wheels rolled away from the Kohl Center early afternoon on Sunday.
No sleep til Paris! ...literally.
With the team scheduled to fly out of Chicago around 6:30 p.m. Central Standard Time and land in Paris around 9 a.m. Central European Time (2 a.m. CST), no naps on the bus was one of the handful of tips
Jim Snider, Strength and Conditioning Coach, had for the team to reset Circadian Rhythm.
Some of the tips given the day before departure:
- Limit light exposure (including blue light, i.e. cell phones) after 1 p.m. Saturday, and wear sunglasses as much as possible.
- Have your final meal Saturday between 3-5 p.m. After that, stick to carbs only (no protein or fat).
- Get to bed as soon as possible Saturday, then wake up as early as possible Sunday morning (5-6 a.m.) to help sleep on the plane.
- No caffeine.
TRIP INFORMATION
The Wisconsin men's basketball team is set to come together and experience a new culture this summer, as the Badgers will visit France from Aug. 7-17 as part of a 10-day, four-game trip.
College basketball teams are allowed to travel internationally during the summer once every four years, and for Wisconsin the 2022 trip marks the team's first since touring Australia and New Zealand in 2017.
This season, the Badgers welcome a number of new faces into the program with the addition of new freshmen and transfers. The French tour looks to serve as a bonding experience and springboard heading into the 2022-23 season.
WISCONSIN'S INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULE
- Aug. 7-10 | Paris
- Game 1 vs. Paris All-Stars - Aug. 10 (10 a.m. CT)
- Aug. 11-13 | Lyon
- Game 2 vs. Lyon All-Stars - Aug. 12 (noon CT)
- Game 3 vs. Lyon All-Stars - Aug. 13 (noon CT)
- Aug. 14-17 | Nice
- Game 4 vs. Azurea Club de Golfe - Aug. 15 (noon CT)
Times are listed in Central Standard Time (US)
Dates and times of games are subject to change
The Badgers will begin their trip in Paris for four days, which includes their first exhibition on August 10.
From there, Wisconsin will travel to Lyon for a three-day stay during which UW is scheduled to play a pair of games, August 12 and 13.
UW will then head to Nice for the final three days of its trip, where the Badgers will play one final exhibition on August 16.
Wisconsin's trip to France will also feature many sight-seeing tours and opportunities to experience the local culture. Among other things, the itinerary includes ascending the Eiffel Tower, a full-day trip to Normandy, exploring Old Town Lyon, visiting the medieval village of Perouges, a guided tour of Monte Carlo and beach time on the French Riviera.
In addition to the four exhibition games that come with the international trip, the Badgers are also allowed to hold 10 full-team practices throughout the course of the summer in preparation.
Head coach
Greg Gard and his staff are using the time to introduce their system to freshmen
Connor Essegian (Fort Wayne, Ind.),
Ross Candelino (Jacksonville, Fla.),
Isaac Gard (Oregon, Wis.) and
Luke Haertle (Hartland, Wis.), as well as transfers
Kamari McGee (Green Bay) and
Max Klesmit (Wofford).
In addition to UW team staff, Big Ten Network will be sending a camera crew to travel along with the Badgers throughout the trip to document for an upcoming series titled, "The B1G Trip." Stay tuned for more information, including when the series will air on Big Ten Network.
