Wisconsin: Quest For A No. 1 Seed Starts In Big Ten Tournament

ByAndrew Snyder|

Mar 5, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Bo Ryan looks on during the first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

There has been no match for Wisconsin in the Big Ten this season. Despite two losses, one rather shocking, in the conference season, the Badgers still won the league by two full games.

After storming through the regular season with a 28-3 (16-2) record, some may consider their season a slight disappointment. How can that be? They have only lost three games all year. Their star player, Frank Kaminsky, easily took home Big Ten Player of the year and is one of the favorites to win National Player of the Year. Is it possible that this team actually underperformed?

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Well, that is the danger of high expectations. After a Final Four run last season, Wisconsin was expected to dominate all season. One could argue that they did just that, but an early loss to Duke, a loss to Rutgers without Kaminsky, and an upset at the hands of Maryland has them set to be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament, rather than the No. 1 seed they were expected to be.

But, there is still hope. With Virginia losing their regular season finale, an opportunity has opened up for someone to steal a No. 1 seed from Duke or Virginia, whichever one of them fails to win the ACC tournament. Or possibly from Villanova, if they slip up in the Big East tournament. To do that, Wisconsin has to run the table in Chicago.

Wisconsin’s road to the Big Ten championship starts Friday against the winner of the game pitting Illinois and Michigan. The Badgers easily dispatched the Illini in their only meeting during the regular season, and they outlasted Michigan in overtime.

It is hard to imagine Wisconsin losing unless Spike Albrecht channels Kyle Korver and Michael Jordan, knocks down 15 three-pointers, and hits a contested game-winner in Frank Kaminsky’s face.

With a win there, Wisconsin would be most likely poised to face either Iowa or Purdue. Those two teams provide a significant step up in quality. Iowa has closed the regular season winning six games in a row, and Purdue has Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Rapheal Davis and rim-protecting big man A.J. Hammons to make life difficult on Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker.

Nevertheless, Bo Ryan and company should make it out alive.

That should set up a rematch against Maryland in the final on Sunday afternoon. Wisconsin lost at Maryland on the road and the Terps are the only Big Ten team that has proven they can beat Wisconsin when the Badgers are at (mostly) full strength.

If Dez Wells and Melo Trimble go for 26 and 16 points, respectively, again and Maryland can hold Wisconsin to less than 40 percent shooting, then history has a chance of repeating itself. In that game, Maryland had the emotion of a raucous home crowd behind them, which is something they will not have in Chicago.

Player for player, Wisconsin is the better team and in theory they should come out on top.

However, even if they take care of business and win the Big Ten tournament, Villanova will likely win the Big East tournament, and the selection committee could elect to reward both Duke and Virginia with No. 1 seeds as long as they both make the ACC tournament final.

That would leave Wisconsin with a No. 2 seed, despite continuing to win, but when you really think about it, who cares?

I’ll put on my rational hat for a moment and flesh this thing out. Does it really matter what seed Wisconsin is? They are still one of the best teams in college basketball, with the fourth-best offensive rating in the country, and perhaps the best player in the nation.

It does not change the ability of their players and coaches, and being a No. 2 rather than a No. 1 only makes their path to the Final Four slightly more challenging.

Joe Lunardi currently has them as the No. 2 seed in Kentucky’s bracket, which sounds like a death sentence. However, common sense suggests that to win the national championship this season, a team is going to have to beat Kentucky at some point. What is the difference if you meet them in the Elite Eight instead of the Final Four or national championship game?

If you can beat John Calipari’s seemingly unbeatable Wildcats at all, then you can beat them in any round, as any seed. I’ve admittedly gotten caught up in the seeding hype, I reference the bracketologists more than anyone, but in reality it does not matter. All that matters is that your team is ready to play. As fans and analysts, we get caught up in seeding, regions, and matchups.

But the players and coaches do not care.

I would bet that Bo Ryan doesn’t care if his team is a No. 1 seed or a No. 16 seed, he’s going to have them prepared to bring home the national championship that eluded them in 2014.

Next: Indiana: Back on the Bubble

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