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Three Key Takeaways.
- Coastal Carolina was not your typical #16 seed. The Chanticleers put up a decent fight in the first half on the offensive end, shooting 52 percent from the field while making 5-of-6 three-pointers, but they still trailed Wisconsin by 15 at the break. Coastal Carolina made plenty of athletic plays, with Shivaughn Wiggins and Josh Cameron combining for 21 of their 32 first half points. Seth Davis even said Coastal Carolina would have been a #15 seed in the 64-team format, making them a better-than-normal #16 seed. The Chanticleers went 24-9 this season, winning their conference tournament and dropping in at #141 in KenPom – four spots higher than fellow mid-major and #15 seed North Dakota State. Their decent play isn’t surprising, but neither is Wisconsin’s throttling of them either. All credit is due to the Badgers, who seem to have five legitimate play-makers on the court at the same time.
- Wisconsin’s entire roster is made up of shooters. Every Badger in the starting lineup nailed a three-pointer in the first half, and Wisconsin totaled 11 treys over the course of the win. Along with those shooters, almost every player is a threat to drive as well, forcing Coastal Carolina to respect each player on the ball, off the ball, in the post, on the perimeter, on the bench and on the bus. Wisconsin made it look easy in passing the ball around the perimeter and being maddeningly patient with its shot selection. And when Wisconsin doesn’t turn the ball over, they’re incredibly hard to beat. Add in the Badgers’ 36 total rebounds to the Chanticleers’ 25 and you’ve got a recipe for a classic Wisconsin beatdown. Coastal Carolina wasn’t the first and won’t be the last team to get pummeled by the Badgers’ fantastic shot selection and efficient rebounding.
- Coastal Carolina’s ability to get shots should concern Bo Ryan. If you were in CenturyLink Arena a couple hours before Wisconsin’s win, you were treated to a much sloppier shootout between Oregon and Oklahoma State. The Ducks emerged victorious, and despite turning the ball over 12 times, Joe Young and Elgin Cook regularly found open looks from both long range and in the paint. If Coastal Carolina can find good looks, rest assured that Oregon can too. And the Ducks won’t have only two scorers on the floor at once like Coastal Carolina – they’re a fully functioning scoring machine, albeit with a turnover problem, but they’re definitely apt to put up a ton of points.
Star of the game. Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin. Frank the Tank went 10-of-14 from the field, doing his usual thing by scoring both inside and outside. The National Player of the Year candidate went for 27 points, 12 rebounds and four assists in leading his team to another NCAA Tournament victory.
Sights and sounds. Early in the first half, Wisconsin’s pep band and cheerleaders began a three-second countdown with approximately seven seconds left on the shot clock for Coastal Carolina. Josh Cameron promptly pulled up at NBA range and drilled a three-pointer.
Quotable.
- “They don’t have only flaws offensively, and defensively, they’re long.” – Coastal Carolina head coach Cliff Ellis.
- “He’s an All-American. He hits you so many ways. We wanted to force him to hit the three-point shot tonight, and he did.” – Ellis, on Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky.
- “Overall, I think it was a pretty efficient night offensively. But I think we can do better.” – Wisconsin’s Sam Dekker.
- “I think it’s for publicity, it’s for conversation. … It sells, it sells, it sells.” – Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan on the publicity of a #16 seed potentially beating a #1 seed.
What’s Next? The Badgers move on to face #8 Oregon in the round of 32 on Sunday following Kansas vs. Wichita State.