Wisconsin

3 quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s Red-White scrimmage

Published

2 months ago

October 20, 2024

3 quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s Red-White scrimmage

The Wisconsin Badgers hosted their annual Red-White scrimmage on Sunday, as they split their team up into two teams and competed for two 20-minute halves.

Here is how the teams lined up, with the starters in bold.

White: Max Klesmit, John Tonje, Camren Hunter, Carter Gilmore, Nolan Winter, Chris Hodges, Isaac Gard, Daniel Freitag

Red: John Blackwell, Kamari McGee, Jack Janicki, Xavier Amos, Steven Crowl, Riccardo Greppi, Jack Robison, Markus Illver, Aidan Knopp

Here are three quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s Red-White scrimmage, where the White Team beat the Red Team 64-43.

Shot takers emerge

Wisconsin has a new-look team this year, with six new faces that could be a part of the rotation this year.

As the open practices have gone on, there have been some trends starting to unfold when it comes to the main shot-takers on the team, and that continued on Sunday in the Red-White scrimmage.

On the Red team, Blackwell was one of the clear leaders on offense, as he looked to find his spots with the midrange, taking on more of an on-ball approach as a ball-handler.

He led all players with 13 points on 6/13 shooting, hitting 1/2 of his threes, which came dribbling off a screen into the shot with the clock winding down to end the first half.

Blackwell also led the Red team with four assists, while mainly taking midrange jumpers and driving to the basket in a productive day for the sophomore guard.

Steven Crowl had his shots as well, scoring 10 points on 5/9 shooting, while missing his lone three. Crowl got a lot of touches in the paint as a focal part of the offense, and had a solid enough day, rolling well on a couple of plays to get open buckets at the rim. He also had three assists, which included a nice pass to a cutting Blackwell for a layup early in the first half.

Interestingly, Kamari McGee took 12 shots on the day, scoring 11 points while being more aggressive in hunting his opportunities attacking the rim. McGee really started to settle in during the second half, having a tough double-clutch layup and a catch-and-shoot three. He’s been the most steady point guard thus far, and would be the top player on the depth chart as of now.

On the White team side, Max Klesmit was clearly looking to hunt his shot, taking 15 shots on the day, while scoring 10 points on 3/15 from the field. Klesmit was really looking for his threes, both on and off-the-ball, but didn’t connect at a high rate, shooting 2/9 from deep.

While the senior guard had a few forced shots, Klesmit was taking good looks for the most part, and has been hot in practice over the past few weeks, so the efficiency shouldn’t be too much of a concern. Still, it’s clear that he’ll take a bigger role this year, potentially seeing more on-ball chances leading the offense.

The Newcomers

Much of the attention was on the newcomers on Sunday, as it was the first look for the public on the six new players.

John Tonje, Camren Hunter, Daniel Freitag, and Riccardo Greppi were all on the White team, and played various roles.

Tonje, who has emerged as one of the bigger scorers through the open practices, had 12 points on the day, leading the White team. He shot 3/7 from the field and 2/4 from three, knocking down a few jumpers from deep, including a stepback three and a nice shot off the dribble off a screen with a defender in his face.

Tonje also looked to attack the basket, getting fouled twice, and hitting four of his five free throws. While it’s unclear how many minutes he’ll play, given his past injuries, the transfer should have a big role in the offense this year.

Hunter was quieter on Sunday, scoring just four points in 29 minutes, while mainly playing in an off-ball role. With Klesmit and Freitag taking most of the on-ball chances, Hunter didn’t get as many opportunities, missing his lone three off a kickout. He did have a few nice defensive plays, including a block on a drive from Kamari McGee.

Freitag looked to assert himself offensively, taking control with the ball in his hands and ending with nine points, hitting 4/7 of his shots and 1/3 of his threes. Freitag’s shot is still developing, but he worked the pick-and-roll well, making a nice pass to a rolling Riccardo Greppi, while hitting a few midrange jumpers and attacking the rim as well.

Greppi had one of his better days, as he showed off some of his potential with his passing, making a sweet no-look behind-the-head pass to a cutting Markus Illver, while also moving the ball well elsewhere. The touch and feel for the game is still coming, but he got fouled twice, while having a few good defensive plays, including a sweet block on a Kamari McGee drive.

On the Red team, Xavier Amos and Jack Robison were both there, playing complementary roles. Amos started, playing 20 minutes, and had five points on 2/6 shooting, while missing both of his three-point attempts.

Amos drove more than he’s done in the practices, looking to attack, but he played more in an off-ball role, serving as a screener and roller in the offense.

Robison came off the bench and played 20 minutes, hitting a pair of threes for six points, while also bringing down six rebounds. It’ll take some time as Robison continues to add on weight, but he’s got a solid profile as a scorer offensively that could round out well for Wisconsin.

Sleeper rotational piece

One player that has really started to pick up steam is redshirt freshman Jack Janicki, who came in as a walk-on and sat out last year.

Janicki, a 6’5, 200-pound wing, has a sweet shooting stroke and a competitive nature on both ends of the court that just meshes well with Wisconsin’s style.

Janicki scored eight points on Sunday, shooting 3/7 from the field and 2/5 from three, but impacted the game in a lot of ways. He had a number of nice passes, setting up layups for Steven Crowl, while hitting a few jumpers, both from midrange and from deep.

Defensively, Janicki worked well against a bigger John Tonje on a drive, forcing a turnover and making another “winning” play.

It’s unclear how the wing fits into the picture this season, given how much depth Wisconsin has across the board. But, it wouldn’t surprise me if the redshirt freshman finds a way to earn minutes in head coach Greg Gard’s rotation, as he’s a great fit with the culture and plays a style that can help the Badgers win.

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Wisconsin

Preview: Wisconsin Closes Nonconference Schedule Hosting Detroit Mercy

Published

55 minutes ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Preview: Wisconsin Closes Nonconference Schedule Hosting Detroit Mercy

Detroit Mercy (5-8, 1-2 Horizon League) vs. Wisconsin (9-3, 0-2 Big Ten)

Date/Time – Sunday, December 22, 1 p.m.

Arena – Kohl Center (16,838)

Watch – Big Ten Network (Jeff Levering and Brian Butch)

Radio – Badgers Radio Network (Matt Lepay and Charlie Wills), Sirius 119 or 195, stream online on iHeartRadio.

Series – Wisconsin leads 3-0 (Wisconsin leads 3-0 in Madison)

Last Meeting – Wisconsin won, 68-42, on December 6, 2003, in Madison

Follow Online: The Badgers’ Den

Twitter: @Badger_Blitz

Betting line: Wisconsin -29.5

Projected Starting Five (Wisconsin)

Player to Watch: After averaging 2.4 points per game last season, Winter has improved to 10.6 ppg this year after scoring a career-high 20 vs. Butler. He leads UW in rebounds (5.6), offensive rebounds (23) and field goal percentage (.598).

Projected Starting Five (Detroit Mercy)

Player to watch: Leading the Titans with 16 points in Wednesday’s loss at Northern Kentucky, Lovejoy has been in double figures in nine of UDM’s 13 games. He leads the team in scoring, rebounding, assists, and steals (1.9).

Series Notes

Wisconsin’s average margin of victory in its three prior meetings with UDM is 18.3 points.

The last time Wisconsin and Detroit Mercy met was Dec. 6, 2003, when UW claimed a 68-42 win. Devin Harris and Freddie Owens led the Badgers with 13 points, with Harris adding nine assists.

Wisconsin is 72-4 all-time against teams in the Horizon League. Under head coach Greg Gard, the Badgers hold a 9-0 all-time mark vs. Horizon teams.

The Titans are 30-123 all-time against the Big Ten Conference – 12-81 on the road – and have dropped 18 in a row against the league. The last win was at Michigan State, 68-65, on Dec. 13, 1997.

Wisconsin Notes

Wisconsin is 79-23 (.775) in regular season, non-conference games under Gard.

Wisconsin is 9-1 in non-conference play this season and has the chance to post double-digit out of conference wins for the first time since going 11-2 in 2016-17. The Badgers have tallied four non-conference wins over Power 5 teams, their most since 2018-19.

Wisconsin ranks 11th in the nation with an adjusted offensive efficiency of 120.1 per KenPom – through games played Dec. 18. This year’s adjusted offensive efficiency rating of 120.1 ranks as the school’s third-highest mark since KenPom began tracking in 1999.

UW is averaging 15.2 assists per game, its most since 1993-94, while turning the ball over 9.6 times per game. UW has never had a season in which it has averaged 15+ assists per game while remaining below 10 turnovers per contest.

Wisconsin leads the NCAA in free throw percentage, 84.8% FT (234-for-276) at the line. UW has nearly made more FTs (234) than its foes have attempted (237) this season.

Detroit Mercy Notes

With 11 new players on the 15-man roster, the Titans returned just 14.2 percent of their scoring, 12.9 percent of their rebounding, and 18.0 percent of their minutes played from last season.

The Titans snapped a 22-game road slide with a win at Ball State on November 20.

UDM posted four wins in November, the most in the month since going 4-3 at the start of the 2017-18 season

Detroit Mercy has owned the glass this year, outrebounding its opponents in nine of its 13 games. The Titans are 52nd in the country with 13.2 offensive boards and 74th in DI with a +5.4 rebounding average.

UDM has a 173-107 margin on second-chance points on the season.

Prediction

Calling out a play that involves Crowl getting an early shot attempt in the low post is nothing new for Gard. Off the top of his head, he estimates that getting the ball to Crowl in the low post within Wisconsin’s first three offensive possessions happens 90 percent of the time.

But after being publicly called out by his coach and pushed to be more aggressive by his teammates, Wisconsin intentionally made a call to get Crowl the ball near the low block on the first possession. Seeing him convert by being physical with his back to the basket, unleashing a spin move for an easy bucket was the positive response the staff was looking for.

Crowl’s season-high 18 points against Butler were a catalyst in breaking a three-game losing skid. He did it playing aggressively and in short spurts, playing in just 17 minutes (second-fewest of the season) and going 7-for-10 from the floor (second-most attempts of the year).

“It’s a credit to him,” Gard said. “The 17 minutes that he had, he took full advantage of those.”

The renewed play of Crowl and the growth of Nolan Winter could give Wisconsin a punch to the offense it hasn’t had through the first two months of the season. Crowl and Winter had only reached double figures in the same game once until last Saturday. The duo combined for 38 points and their play helped Wisconsin outscore Butler, 40-to-24, in the paint, its third-highest total for the season and the second-highest paint-scoring differential.

“They play and have pride in playing for what’s on the front of the jersey, knowing that the back of the jersey will get taken care of,” Gard said. “You really get individual accolades through team success. I don’t see a lot of MVP awards being handed out to an 8-25 team.”

Getting to 8-25 would be a huge step forward for Detroit Mercy, which opened last season with a 26-game losing streak and finished 1-31, the worst record in Division-1. Hiring Michigan State assistant Mark Montgomery, who has coached with Tom Izzo on two different occasions, the Titans run some patterns similar to the Spartans in addition to executing three-quarters court pressure and zone.

The Titans also have a good player in Lovejoy, as the transfer from Eastern Michigan is one of 10 Division 1 players who averages 13.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.9 steals per game. Detroit ranks 54th nationally in rebounding, averaging just under 40 per game. The problem the Titans are facing is health, as the Titans have three rotation players averaging at least 8.9 ppg out with injuries. The Titans played 10 student-athletes at NKU, six of those were freshmen who accounted for 101 of the 200 minutes as well as 38 of the 60 points and 22 of the 34 boards.

Wisconsin should handle an undermanned unit, as long as the Badgers aren’t overly rusty from finals week.

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Wisconsin former four-star quarterback Mabrey Mettauer appears headed for transfer portal

Published

9 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Wisconsin former four-star quarterback Mabrey Mettauer appears headed for transfer portal

MADISON – It appears that the Wisconsin football team will have almost a completely new quarterback room next season.

Mabrey Mettauer, the last scholarship player left at the position on the roster from this season, is expected to enter the transfer portal, according to 247sports. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound true freshman from The Woodlands, Texas, was a consensus four-star recruit coming out of high school.

This season he served as the top backup to Braedyn Locke after Tyler Van Dyke suffered a season-ending knee injury against Alabama. Mettauer appeared in one game and completed his only pass attempt.

He maintained his redshirt status and will have four years of eligibility remaining.

Mabrey’s departure was the last domino to fall from the firing of Phil Longo as offensive coordinator. Like Van Dyke and Locke, Mettauer came to Wisconsin with the idea that he would play in Longo’s pass-friendly offense.

Locke’s brother, Landyn, a member of the 2025 recruiting class, was also recruited by Longo. Landyn Locke has been released from his letter of intent and has re-opened his recruitment.

After 247sports broken the news of Mettauer’s expected departure he reposted the post on his X and Instagram accounts.

The loss of Mettauer means Wisconsin has three scholarship quarterbacks plus walk-on Milos Spasojevic on the roster for next season:

* Billy Edwards Jr., who started this season at Maryland and threw for 2,800 yards. He has one year of eligibility left.

* Danny O’Neil, who started at San Diego State as a true freshman and threw for 2,000 yards this season. He has three years of eligibility remaining.

* Carter Smith, a four-star prospect from Florida, will enroll early and participate in spring practice.

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14-year-old killed in Wisconsin school shooting shared gifts of music and art with many, friends say

Published

16 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Press Room

MADISON, Wis. — Rubi Patricia Vergara was a talented young teenager who often handcrafted gifts for others and shared her musical talents with many, family friends recounted at funeral services held Saturday morning.

14-year-old killed in Wisconsin school shooting shared gifts of music and art with many, friends say

Vergara, 14, was a student at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where she was shot and killed by a fellow student Monday. Teacher Erin West, 42, was also killed in the attack.

“She was a quiet, gentle spirit who cared deeply for others,” City Church lead pastor Tom Flaherty said. “But Rubi also had a faith beyond her years.”

Vergara’s services were held at City Church, which is adjacent to the school. West’s funeral is set for Monday at Doxa Church in Madison, according to her obituary.

Two other injured students remained hospitalized Saturday in critical condition but were stable, UW Hospital said.

A family friend, Dawn Moris, spoke about Vergara’s compassion and empathy. Vergara made personalized birthday cards for loved ones with digital artwork, origami and had started crocheting. Moris showed those in the congregation a small crocheted smiley face potato crafted by Vergara.

“She applied a caring and creative approach to everything she did,” Moris said.

Vergara played keyboard in a family worship band and could hear a song and pick it up on the piano, Moris said. As a singer, she had a special talent of harmonizing and “sang like an angel,” Moris said.

Vergara’s aunt played her niece’s favorite song, “Shoulders” by for King & Country, on the guitar during the service. Her uncle, Andy Remus, thanked the people of Madison for supporting his family this past week.

Police say the shooter, 15-year-old student Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow, shot herself at the school and died at a Madison hospital. Police have said she was in contact with a man in California who authorities say was planning to attack a government building. Rupnow’s motivation for the attack remains a key part of their investigation.

Volmert reported from Lansing, Michigan.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.

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