If Wisconsin coach Greg Gard had his way, teams in Big Ten final wouldn’t play NCAA tournament games until Friday

INDIANAPOLIS – For Wisconsin men’s basketball coach Greg Gard, the glass was half full.

Rather than worry about not getting a chance to play the first weekend of the NCAA tournament in Milwaukee, Gard focused on the positive. His team received a No. 3 seed in the field, which ties for the highest of his tenure as coach.

Wisconsin (26-9) will face Montana (25-9) in a first-round game at 12:30 p.m. Thursday in Denver.

“This group has had a heck of a year,” he said. “We were picked to finish 12th in the Big Ten and now if you look at the seed lines, we’re in the top 12 in the country. To win 26 games with the schedule we played. They left it all on the floor all year long and they know they have a lot of basketball left in them. We can do some damage here in the next few weeks.”

Playing on Selection Sunday can be a burden

That was the tenor of his comments after the Badgers’ spot in the bracket was revealed. His one request would be that teams that play in the Big Ten final don’t play until Friday.

At the time he spoke with reporters, Gard knew the day his team was playing. The tip-off had not been announced.

“That’s a bigger issue,” Gard said. “Michigan got a Thursday game, too, right? That is a bigger issue that we’ve brought up with the conference because we’re the last game on Sunday. Regardless of who was going to be in it, that’s always been my conversation with the league on that. Whoever is playing here on Sunday should try to get a Friday (game day).”

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Greg Gard looks on the bright side of playing Thursday

Gard spoke to reporters about an hour after his team suffered a 59-53 loss to Michigan in the conference championship game. The Badgers led by as many as 11 in the second half but were outscored 21-8 during the final 7½ minutes.

The game was a stinging defeat.

“A quick turnaround might be what’s good for us,” Gard said. “You turnaround quick and go play.”