2019–20 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team

The 2019–20 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Badgers were led by fifth-year head coach Greg Gard and played their home games at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin as members of the Big Ten Conference.

2019–20 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 19
APNo. 17
Record21–10 (14–6 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaKohl Center
(Capacity 17,287)
2019–20 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 17 Wisconsin146 .7002110  .677
No. 9 Michigan State146 .700229  .710
No. 12 Maryland146 .700247  .774
No. 21 Illinois137 .6502110  .677
No. 25 Iowa119 .5502011  .645
Penn State119 .5502110  .677
No. 19 Ohio State119 .5502110  .677
Rutgers119 .5502011  .645
Michigan1010 .5001912  .613
Purdue911 .4501615  .516
Indiana911 .4502012  .625
Minnesota812 .4001516  .484
Northwestern317 .150823  .258
Nebraska218 .100725  .219
Note: The 2020 Big Ten tournament was canceled prior to the second round due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rankings from AP poll

With a win over Indiana on March 7, 2020, the Badgers earned a share of the Big Ten regular season championship.[1] They finished the season 21–10, 14–6 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for first place. Their season ended following the cancellation of postseason tournaments due to the coronavirus pandemic.[2]

Previous season

The Badgers finished the 2018–19 season 23–11, 14–6 in Big Ten play to finish in fourth place.[3][4] In the Big Ten tournament, the Badgers defeated Nebraska in the quarterfinals[5] before losing to Michigan State in the semifinals.[6] They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 5 seed in the South Region, their 24th trip to the NCAA Tournament. They were upset in the First Round by No. 12-seeded Oregon.[7]

Offseason

Moore family car accident

In the early morning hours of May 25, 2019, assistant coach Howard Moore and his family were involved in a car accident near Ann Arbor, Michigan that claimed the lives of his wife Jennifer and daughter Jaidyn. Moore was hospitalized for several weeks with severe burns while his son Jerell escaped with minor injuries.[8] After a setback in his home and subsequent stint in the ICU, 46-year-old Moore was moved to a long-term care and rehab facility in July.[9]

On July 31, 2019, Wisconsin named all-time leading scorer Alando Tucker an interim assistant coach to fulfill Moore's coaching duties for the 2019–20 season.[10] Tucker had been serving as the athletic department's director of student-athlete engagement. "Do Moore. Be Moore. 4 Moore" became the 2019-20 team's motto.[11]

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Tai Strickland13G6'2"172FreshmanTampa, FLTransferred to Temple
Charles Thomas IV15F6'8"250SeniorHighland, MDGraduated
Khalil Iverson21G/F6'5"217SeniorDelaware, OHGraduated
Ethan Happ22F6'8"237RS SeniorMilan, ILGraduated/Undrafted 2019 NBA draft
Taylor Currie33F6'8"226FreshmanClarktson, MITransferred to Mott CC

2019 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Tyler Wahl
SF
Lakeville, MN Lakeville North High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jun 21, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN grade: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2019 Wisconsin Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  • "Men's Basketball Recruiting". Scout.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  • "ESPN- Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2020 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Lorne Bowman
PG
Detroit, MI St. Mary's Preparatory 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Nov 16, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: 81
Johnny Davis
SG
La Crosse, WI La Crosse Central High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Jun 15, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: 79
Jordan Davis
SF
La Crosse, WI La Crosse Central High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jun 15, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: N/A
Steven Crowl
C
Eagan, MN Eastview High School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sep 17, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: N/A
Ben Carlson
PF
Woodbury, MN East Ridge High School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sep 18, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN grade: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

2019–20 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 0 D'Mitrik Trice 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)184 lb (83 kg) RS JrWayne High School (OH) Huber Heights, Ohio
G 1 Brevin Pritzl 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)204 lb (93 kg) RS SrDe Pere High School De Pere, Wisconsin
F 2 Aleem Ford 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)217 lb (98 kg) RS JrArcher High School Lawrenceville, Georgia
G 3 Walt McGrory (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)205 lb (93 kg) JrEdina High School Edina, Minnesota
G 4 Carter Higginbottom (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)187 lb (85 kg) RS FrSt. Ignatius College Prep (IL) Chicago, Illinois
F 5 Tyler Wahl 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)214 lb (97 kg) FrNorth High School Lakeville, Minnesota
F 11 Micah Potter 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)248 lb (112 kg) RS JrMontverde Academy/Ohio State Mentor, Ohio
G 12 Trevor Anderson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)200 lb (91 kg) RS JrStevens Point H.S./Green Bay Stevens Point, Wisconsin
F 15 Courtland Cuevas (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)190 lb (86 kg) JrMadison East H.S. Madison, Wisconsin
F 20 Samad Qawi (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)195 lb (88 kg) JrWilliam Horlick H.S. Racine, Wisconsin
G 23 Kobe King 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)205 lb (93 kg) RS SoLa Crosse Central High School La Crosse, Wisconsin
C 30 Owen Hamilton (W) 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)266 lb (121 kg) RS SoPrescott H.S. (WI)/Northern Illinois Prescott, Wisconsin
G 31 Michael Ballard (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)204 lb (93 kg) RS JrFenwick High School (IL) Oak Park, Illinois
C 32 Joe Hedstrom 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)240 lb (109 kg) RS FrHopkins High School Hopkins, Minnesota
G 34 Brad Davison 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)206 lb (93 kg) JrMaple Grove High School Maple Grove, Minnesota
F 35 Nate Reuvers 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)235 lb (107 kg) JrLakeville North High School Lakeville, Minnesota
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Season Notes

Micah Potter's eligibility

A month before the season opener, the NCAA denied Wisconsin's waiver request to allow Micah Potter to compete during the fall semester, arguing he had not sat out a full year after enrolling at Wisconsin. Potter did not play during the 2018–19 season, but stayed in classes at Ohio State before transferring to Wisconsin for the spring 2019 semester.

"I don't understand why I am being punished additionally for doing what is encouraged of a student-athlete," Potter said in a statement released by UW.[12] "The penalty of a third semester to what I have already sat out seems unjust."

Wisconsin continued to appeal Potter's case throughout November. After the final denial, Gard called the situation "unprecedented" and expressed frustration with the NCAA's inconsistency on transfer rulings. "I was hoping common sense would prevail in this," Gard said. "Unfortunately, it didn’t."[13]

Potter made his Badger debut on December 21, 2019 against Wisconsin-Milwaukee after missing the first 10 games of the season.

Circumstances surrounding Kobe King transfer

On January 25, 2020, the day after a humbling loss to Purdue in which he was held scoreless, sophomore Kobe King informed coaches and teammates via text message that he intended to leave the team.[14] At the time, King was Wisconsin's leading scorer (12.6 ppg) and second in minutes (28.9 mpg) in Big Ten games. King did not travel with the Badgers to Iowa City for the team's next game and publicly announced his decision to transfer two days later, citing unhappiness with the program.[15] King originally committed to Bo Ryan and Wisconsin on September 16, 2015 and reaffirmed his commitment after Gard was hired.

In the aftermath of King's announcement, strength and conditioning coach Erik Helland self-reported an incident in which he repeated a "repugnant word" in front of several players while telling a story from his days on the Chicago Bulls training staff.[16] King admitted mentioning the incident with UW officials during a January 31 meeting. Helland resigned on January 6, 2020 after an investigation by the university.

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
November 1, 2019*
7:00 p.m., BTN Plus
Wisconsin–La Crosse W 82–53 
 15  Reuvers  8  King  5  King  Kohl Center (17,147)
Madison, WI
Regular season
November 5, 2019*
8:00 p.m., ESPNU
vs. No. 20 Saint Mary's
Sioux Falls Showcase
L 63–65 OT 0–1
 22  Reuvers  6  Reuvers  3  Trice  Sanford Pentagon (3,301)
Sioux Falls, SD
November 8, 2019*
7:00 p.m., BTN Plus
Eastern Illinois W 65–52  1–1
 18  King  14  Reuvers  4  Davison  Kohl Center (17,106)
Madison, WI
November 13, 2019*
6:00 p.m., BTN
McNeese State
Legends Classic campus-site game
W 83–63  2–1
 24  Davison  4  Reuvers  4  Anderson  Kohl Center (16,816)
Madison, WI
November 17, 2019*
12:00 p.m., FS1
Marquette
Rivalry
W 77–61  3–1
 15  Tied  13  Pritzl  4  King  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
November 21, 2019*
8:00 p.m., BTN
Green Bay
Legends Classic campus-site game
W 88–70  4–1
 19  Reuvers  8  Trice  7  Trice  Kohl Center (16,837)
Madison, WI
November 25, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPN2
vs. Richmond
Legends Classic semifinals
L 52–62  4–2
 17  Reuvers  7  Tied  5  Trice  Barclays Center (6,812)
Brooklyn, NY
November 26, 2019*
4:00 pm, ESPN2
vs. New Mexico
Legends Classic
L 50–59  4–3
 16  Reuvers  7  Trice  2  Tied  Barclays Center (6,420)
Brooklyn, NY
December 4, 2019*
9:15 p.m., ESPN2
at NC State
ACC–Big Ten Challenge
L 54–69  4–4
 13  Ford  8  Wahl  4  Trice  PNC Arena (16,035)
Raleigh, NC
December 7, 2019
3:30 p.m., BTN
Indiana W 84–64  5–4
(1–0)
 24  King  5  Tied  4  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
December 11, 2019
6:00 p.m., BTN
at Rutgers L 65–72  5–5
(1–1)
 18  King  5  Tied  3  King  Louis Brown Athletic Center (6,361)
Piscataway, NJ
December 21, 2019*
4:00 p.m., BTN
Milwaukee W 83–64  6–5
 31  Trice  5  Tied  5  Davison  Kohl Center (17,030)
Madison, WI
December 28, 2019*
12:30 p.m., CBS
at Tennessee W 68–48  7–5
 21  Trice  7  Reuvers  3  Tied  Thompson–Boling Arena (21,678)
Knoxville, TN
December 31, 2019*
6:00 p.m., BTN
Rider W 65–37  8–5
 15  Reuvers  7  Potter  7  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
January 3, 2020
6:00 p.m., FS1
at No. 5 Ohio State W 61–57  9–5
(2–1)
 17  Reuvers  9  Reuvers  2  Tied  Value City Arena (19,049)
Columbus, OH
January 8, 2020
8:00 p.m., BTN
Illinois L 70–71  9–6
(2–2)
 21  King  9  Potter  4  Trice  Kohl Center (16,108)
Madison, WI
January 11, 2020
1:15 p.m., BTN
at No. 20 Penn State W 58–49  10–6
(3–2)
 24  Potter  13  Tied  4  King  Bryce Jordan Center (10,139)
University Park, PA
January 14, 2020
8:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 17 Maryland W 56–54  11–6
(4–2)
 17  Reuvers  5  Reuvers  4  Trice  Kohl Center (16,157)
Madison, WI
January 17, 2020
6:00 p.m., FS1
at No. 15 Michigan State L 55–67  11–7
(4–3)
 19  Reuvers  7  Reuvers  4  Tied  Breslin Center (14,797)
East Lansing, MI
January 21, 2020
8:00 p.m., BTN
Nebraska W 82–68  12–7
(5–3)
 14  Davison  10  Trice  7  Trice  Kohl Center (16,856)
Madison, WI
January 24, 2020
6:00 p.m., FS1
at Purdue L 51–70  12–8
(5–4)
 11  Potter  4  Davison  4  King  Mackey Arena (14,804)
West Lafayette, IN
January 27, 2020
7:30 p.m., BTN
at No. 18 Iowa L 62–68  12–9
(5–5)
 16  Trice  9  Trice  6  Trice  Carver–Hawkeye Arena (12,566)
Iowa City, IA
February 1, 2020
12:00 p.m., FOX
No. 14 Michigan State W 64–63  13–9
(6–5)
 15  Reuvers  7  Pritzl  5  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
February 5, 2020
8:00 p.m., BTN
at Minnesota L 52–70  13–10
(6–6)
 14  Reuvers  15  Potter  6  Trice  Williams Arena (11,389)
Minneapolis, MN
February 9, 2020
12:00 p.m., CBS
Ohio State W 70–57  14–10
(7–6)
 19  Pritzl  9  Ford  8  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
February 15, 2020
1:15 p.m., BTN
at Nebraska W 81–64  15–10
(8–6)
 30  Davison  10  Ford  5  Trice  Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,864)
Lincoln, NE
February 18, 2020
6:00 p.m., ESPN
Purdue W 69–65  16–10
(9–6)
 19  Ford  7  Ford  5  Trice  Kohl Center (17,042)
Madison, WI
February 23, 2020
12:00 p.m., BTN
Rutgers W 79–71  17–10
(10–6)
 18  Potter  9  Potter  9  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
February 27, 2020
6:00 p.m., ESPN2
at No. 19 Michigan W 81–74  18–10
(11–6)
 28  Trice  8  Ford  4  Tied  Crisler Center (12,707)
Ann Arbor, MI
March 1, 2020
5:30 p.m., BTN
Minnesota W 71–69  19–10
(12–6)
 20  Davison  7  Davison  6  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
March 4, 2020
8:00 p.m., BTN
No. 24 Northwestern W 63–48  20–10
(13–6)
 11  Reuvers  8  Tied  4  Trice  Kohl Center (17,287)
Madison, WI
March 7, 2020
11:00 a.m., ESPN
No. 24 at Indiana W 60–56  21–10
(14–6)
 17  Reuvers  11  Potter  5  Trice  Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222)
Bloomington, IN
Big Ten tournament
Canceled
NCAA tournament
Canceled
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
— = Not ranked. RV = Received votes.
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
APRVRVRVRVRVRVRV241817
CoachesRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV241919

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

Player statistics

Individual player statistics (through 3/07/2020)
Minutes Scoring Total FGs 3-point FGs Free-Throws Rebounds
Player GP GS Tot Avg Pts Avg FG FGA Pct 3FG 3FA Pct FT FTA Pct Off Def Tot Avg A Stl Blk TO
Anderson, Trevor 30 0 369 12.3 54 1.8 18 47 .383 7 25 .280 11 14 .786 6 33 39 1.3 37 4 1 16
Ballard, Michael 10 0 10 1.0 4 0.4 1 1 1.000 0 0 - 2 2 1.000 0 1 1 0.1 0 0 0 0
Cuevas, Courtland 6 0 6 1.0 1 0.2 0 1 .000 0 1 .000 1 2 .500 0 0 0 0.0 0 1 0 0
Davison, Brad 29 29 893 30.8 290 10.0 90 225 .400 45 124 .363 65 77 .844 15 109 124 4.3 55 23 0 25
Ford, Aleem 30 30 758 25.3 261 8.7 94 214 .439 40 117 .342 33 47 .702 37 98 135 4.5 33 15 12 30
Hedstrom, Joe 6 0 14 2.3 2 0.3 1 2 .500 0 0 - 0 0 - 1 1 2 0.3 0 0 0 1
Higginbottom, Carter 9 0 9 1.0 0 0.0 0 1 .000 0 0 - 0 0 - 0 1 1 0.1 0 0 0 1
King, Kobe 19 19 538 28.3 190 10.0 73 159 .459 7 28 .250 37 55 .673 22 32 54 2.8 30 10 6 29
McGrory, Walt 14 0 59 4.2 15 1.1 5 13 .385 2 7 .286 3 4 .750 2 7 9 0.6 5 1 0 1
Potter, Micah 20 3 359 18.0 205 10.3 73 137 .533 23 49 .469 36 42 .857 30 95 125 6.3 7 7 19 32
Pritzl, Brevin 30 7 807 26.9 240 8.0 79 203 .389 48 129 .372 34 40 .850 24 88 112 3.7 20 17 7 21
Qawi, Samad 7 0 7 1.0 0 0.0 0 1 .000 0 0 - 0 0 - 0 1 1 0.1 0 0 0 1
Reuvers, Nate 30 30 783 26.1 392 13.1 141 313 .450 30 87 .345 80 100 .800 34 103 137 4.6 18 15 56 46
Trice, D'Mitrik 30 30 960 32.0 289 9.6 99 264 .375 53 143 .371 38 51 .745 7 109 116 3.9 125 23 4 52
Wahl, Tyler 30 2 453 15.1 77 2.6 32 73 .438 6 26 .231 7 17 .412 32 43 75 2.5 31 20 5 31
Total 30 - 6025 - 2020 67.3 706 1654 .427 261 736 .355 347 451 .769 242 769 1011 33.7 361 136 110 300
Opponents 30 - 6025 - 1859 62.0 697 1687 .413 185 548 .338 280 410 .683 267 757 1024 34.1 333 152 85 333
Legend
  GP  Games played   GS  Games started  Avg  Average per game
  FG  Field-goals made  FGA  Field-goal attempts  Off  Offensive rebounds
 Def  Defensive rebounds   A  Assists   TO Turnovers
 Blk  Blocks  Stl  Steals  High  Team high

References

  1. Journal, Jim Polzin | Wisconsin State. "Instant classic: Wisconsin Badgers storm past Indiana Hoosiers late to secure share of Big Ten title". madison.com. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  2. "2020 NCAA Tournament canceled due to growing threat of coronavirus pandemic". CBSSports.com. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  3. "Wisconsin Badgers Stats 2018–19". ESPN. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  4. Potrykus, Jeff (March 10, 2019). "UW 73, Ohio State 67: Badgers escape with an OT victory and earn a double-bye in Big Ten tournament". Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  5. "No. 19 Wisconsin tops Nebraska 66-62 in Big 10 tourney". ESPN. Associated Press. March 15, 2019. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  6. "Winston, Goins lead No. 6 Michigan State into Big Ten final". ESPN. March 17, 2019. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  7. "Run for Happ, Badgers ends with 72-54 loss to Oregon". Fox Sports. Associated Press. March 22, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  8. Journal, Jim Polzin | Wisconsin State. "Badgers assistant Howard Moore seriously injured, wife and daughter killed in multi-vehicle crash". madison.com. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  9. Journal, Jim Polzin | Wisconsin State. "Badgers men's basketball program seeks 'normalcy' after Howard Moore tragedy". madison.com. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  10. Potrykus, Jeff. "Badgers turn to Alando Tucker to fill the shoes of Howard Moore for 2019-'20 season". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  11. Potrykus, Jeff. "Do Moore, Be Moore, 4 Moore: UW players remind their fans they're thinking of assistant coach". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  12. "NCAA: Badgers' Potter must sit out fall semester". ESPN.com. October 10, 2019. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  13. Potrykus, Jeff. "UW coach Greg Gard lashes out at the NCAA after it denies the final appeal of UW transfer Michael Potter". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  14. Journal, Jim Polzin | Wisconsin State. "Kobe King says frustration was building with coach Greg Gard since early in Badgers career". madison.com. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  15. Potrykus, Jeff. "Redshirt sophomore Kobe King announces he is leaving the UW men's basketball program". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  16. "Erik Helland, strength and conditioning coach for Badgers men's basketball team, resigns after using racial epithet in presence of multiple players | Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball | madison.com". madison.com. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
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