2/14 Update: The Badgers took care of business with a workmanlike effort against the Nittany Lions last night to secure their team record 21st victory of the season.
Here are the game grades:
Andy Kowske: D-
Kowske began the game by playing pretty decent physical defense against Booth. However, as the game went along, he was guilty of a charging foul, an illegal screen, and a silly push foul which basically ended his game when he sat down with foul trouble after 13 minutes. He never returned as the other 3 forwards continued to produce. For the game, he went scoreless with only 1 rebound and 2 turnovers.
Charlie Wills: A
Wills again was on the court at crunch time due to his overall strong play. And, once again, he delivered in crunch time with some big buckets and some big free throws. Overall, he finished with a career high 14 points, hitting on 4 of 5 shots from the floor and all 6 from the line. He also secured 3 rebounds and played within his capabilities in his 14 minutes of action. Outstanding production off the bench for Charlie. He was also very effectively defensively against Booth, forcing him away from the basket for many of his shots and doing a good job of keeping him off the offensive boards.
Sean Mason: C-
Same old song and dance for Mason. It looked like he was going to get off early, but then things went south again for him as he just couldn't knock down many of his open shots. Still, he did finish with 15 points (on 5 of 15), 4 assists, and 3 steals (on outstanding ball hawking) and he remains a factor that the opposing defenses must account for. Once again, there also were a few turnovers (3) that were due to some sloppy ball handling.
Ty Calderwood: C
Calderwood's shot was also missing for most of the evening (onle 2 of 7). However, as he always seems to do, he hit 2 clutch 3 pointers down the stretch. 4 rebounds and 5 assists added to his game profile. Ty was able to penetrate on more than one occasion, yet failed to finish or deliver the proper pass, leading to his 3 turnovers. Also a nice job on the perimeter pressuing the ball.
Mike Kelley: A-
Kelley contained Danny Earl for most of the game, until Earl made some nice driving shots late in the game over some really tough defense to boost his numbers. Still, he really prevented Earl from getting involved early in the PSU offense and forcing him into 5 turnovers and 4 steals for Kelley. Kelley also added 7 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists without a turnover.
Jon Bryant: B
Steady game for Bryant, who hit his shots when he had them on his way to 8 points and overall steady play. Like the other guards, did a nice job of getting into the passing lanes and getting his hands on some balls defensively.
Mark Vershaw: A
Unlike much of the season, Vershaw was a force offensively despite going up against a defensive intimidator inside (Booth). He simply was too nifty for Booth on many occasions and scored in a wide variety of ways, including some face up jumpers from the baseline a step or two beyond where he usually likes to shoot them (including a near 3 pointer from the corner). Vershaw finished with a team high 16 points on just 11 shots. While still not terribly effective on the defensive boards, Mark added 3 big offensive rebounds to give him 5 overall for the game which is plenty when he has his offensive game working. Defensively, Bennett tried to keep him off Booth, but Vershaw generally did a decent job of hustling for position when he did draw that matchup. 3 assists, a block, and a steal with only 1 turnover rounded out his evening.
Maurice Linton: B
One of Linton's more active games, Maurice finished with 4 rejections and 6 defensive rebounds. His offensive looks were limited but he did have one nice finish underneath for 4 points overall. Throw in the fact that he didn't turn the ball over and it was one of Linton's better games.
Hennssy Auriantal: B
I thought Auriantal provided a nice defensive lift in the first half with some outstanding ball pressure. Hennssy knocked down his only shot, added an assist and a steal, and continued to be a valuable weapon in his limited time, giving the starting 3 guards a break while managing to turn the heat UP on the offensive ball handler. His play in the second half was more eratic, though not out of lack of effort.
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