Wisconsin's Johnny Davis to Enter 2022 NBA Draft, Will Forgo Eligibility, Hire Agent
Mar 31, 2022
Wisconsin's Johnny Davis (1) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Penn State Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin won 51-49. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)
Wisconsin guard Johnny Davis declared for the 2022 NBA draft Thursday after the Badgers' second-round exit from the NCAA tournament.
"After taking some time off and discussing everything with my family and coaches, I have decided to pursue a lifelong dream by declaring for the NBA draft with the intent of hiring an agent," Davis told ESPN's Jonathan Givony.
Davis averaged 19.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists in a breakout sophomore season, winning Big Ten Player of the Year and earning consensus All-American status.
Breaking the mold of a typical Wisconsin guard, Davis was given freedom to regularly attack with pace and create for himself off the dribble outside of the team's offensive ecosystem.
"He was incredible," fifth-year senior guard Brad Davison told reporters. "Time and time again, he goes out on the floor and not only shows the league but shows the country how dynamic he is. I have no problem saying he's the best scorer in the country and one of the best players in the country. I get to see it every day in practice and every time in games. When he's rolling like that, I try to give him space. I'll make a couple of shots and give him more space."
Davis is arguably the best NBA prospect Wisconsin has produced since Devin Harris in 2004. Givony has him ranked as the No. 9 overall prospect in the 2022 class and the third-ranked guard behind Purdue's Jaden Ivey and Kentucky's Shaedon Sharpe.
Teams targeting Davis will be attracted to his rebounding from the guard spot and defensive versatility. He has the length and athleticism to defend both guard spots and can be fine against most 3s.
"I think NBA teams can learn that the path to the NBA is not the same for all players," Davis said. "I wasn't highly ranked in high school and I went to Wisconsin to change the narrative surrounding our program. My dad always told me that production will always trump potential and to keep my focus on playing hard and winning and that has stayed with me."
Davis could slot in the middle of the lottery as teams attempt to find a combo guard who can create for himself and others. There's some possibility Davis will become a better player with NBA-level spacing.
No Wisconsin player has been selected in the NBA draft since 2015. Frank Kaminsky is the only Badger currently in the NBA.
It's difficult to draw up a more crushing loss than the one the Wisconsin Badgers experienced Sunday. The No...
Wisconsin Bans Fan Caught on Video Making Anti-Asian Gesture at Northwestern Fans
Jan 20, 2022
EVANSTON, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 18: Johnny Davis #1 of the Wisconsin Badgers is fouled driving against Pete Nance #22 of the Northwestern Wildcats in the first half at Welsh-Ryan Arena on January 18, 2022 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
The University of Wisconsin announced Thursday that a fan who made a racist anti-Asian gesture toward the Northwestern student section during a men's college basketball game between the teams at Evanston's Welsh-Ryan Arena has been banned from all future events.
The fan was ejected after making the gesture and made it again as he was escorted away from his seat:
We join with @UWBadgers and all #Badgers in condemning the abhorrent anti-Asian actions of an attendee at the Northwestern game this week. We applaud NU for removing him.
He is no longer welcome at UW Athletics events – we are barring him from buying tickets on our platform.
"We are deeply disturbed by this behavior and find it abhorrent and disgusting," the Wisconsin Badgers Twitter account added in a statement. "This is no representation of what it means to be a Badger. We denounce any acts of racism or discrimination. We applaud Northwestern for removing this individual. His actions have no place at our events."
"The actions by an individual at Tuesday's men's basketball game towards the Wildcats student section were unacceptable and a violation of our fan code of conduct," Northwestern said in a statement of its own. "We appreciate those who spoke up and brought this behavior to our attention so event staff could take the appropriate steps to remove him from Welsh-Ryan Arena."
It is unknown if the man who made the racist gesture is a Wisconsin student. The school has reportedly been in contact with Northwestern and is further investigating the incident.
The No. 8 Badgers won the meeting between the teams 82-76 behind Johnny Davis' 27 points.
Johnny Davis, Wisconsin Beat Saint Mary's to Win 2021 Maui Invitational
Nov 24, 2021
Wisconsin guard Johnny Davis drives on St. Mary's guard Logan Johnson (0) in the first half during an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Wisconsin handed Saint Mary's its first loss of the season with a 61-55 victory in the final of the Maui Invitational in Las Vegas. Johnny Davis had 20 points and Tyler Wahl added 18 points to lead the Badgers as they improved to 5-1.
The win concludes a strong run for Wisconsin in the early-season tournament. The Badgers edged No. 12 Houston on Tuesday to reach the final.
The Gaels fell to 6-1 with the loss. Alex Ducas had a team-high 13 points.
Notable Player Stats
G Johnny Davis, Wisconsin: 20 points, 7 rebounds
F Tyler Wahl, Wisconsin: 18 points, 4 blocks
G Alex Ducas, Saint Mary's: 13 points
F Dan Fotu, Saint Mary's: 11 points
Davis, Wahl Take Over in Second Half to Spark Badgers
Wisconsin struggled to gain momentum throughout the game, but the team had an ace up its sleeve in Johnny Davis.
The sophomore combo guard scored 11 of his 20 points in the second half to secure the win. Davis' three-pointer with 4:54 to go gave the Badgers their first lead since early in the first half, and they never looked back.
Heeeeere's Johnny.
A stone cold triple by Johnny Davis gives the #Badgers their first lead since it was 8-6.
But Davis wasn't alone. Tyler Wahl had 12 of his 18 points after halftime. He did a great job on defense as well, providing some much-needed rim protection and making the Gaels think twice about their drives to the basket. Wahl finished the game with four blocks.
Tyler Wahl with the block.
Junior forward has been huge here in Vegas.#Badgers
Davis came into the game averaging 20.3 points. He will need his teammates to produce consistently if the Badgers hope to be successful this season. Wahl came in averaging 7.6 points and proved that he's capable of more with Wednesday's performance.
Wisconsin has a chance to make some noise in the Big Ten this year. Davis will continue to lead the team but he can't do it all, so the contributions from his teammates will be key to its success.
Gaels Pound The Ball Inside Early, Fall Apart Late
Both teams are known for playing physical games, but it was the Gaels who outmuscled the Badgers inside to start the game.
Saint Mary's made it a point to get to the rim early and often. Whether it was post-ups by the big men or strong drives by the perimeter players, the Gaels made their living close to the basket. Saint Mary's motion offense also made for some easy looks after hard cuts to the rim.
The Gaels had 20 of their 31 first-half points in the paint and shot 13-of-25 (52 percent) from the field. It was a sound strategy for Saint Mary's that carried them throughout the tournament.
But Wisconsin's defense picked up in the second half and limited the easy opportunities for the Gaels. The fouls started picking up, and Saint Mary's couldn't hold onto its lead. The team's 16 turnovers didn't help as the Badgers stormed back.
Saint Mary's finished the game with 34 points in the paint, surpassing their total against Notre Dame (28) and matching their performance against Oregon (34).
The Gaels should look to continue to outmuscle and overpower teams inside consistently instead of getting away from that strategy, as they did in the second half on Wednesday.
What's Next?
Wisconsin will have a week off and will return to action on Wednesday, Dec. 1, in a road matchup vs. Georgia Tech. Saint Mary's will look to bounce back on Monday at home against UC Riverside.
Wisconsin Seniors Confronted HC Greg Gard in Secretly Recorded Meeting
Jun 22, 2021
IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 7: Head coach Greg Gard of the Wisconsin Badgers with forward Aleem Ford #2 and forward Nate Reuvers #35 before the match-up against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 7, 2021 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)
A Feb. 19 meeting between the seven seniors on the 2020-21 Wisconsin men's basketball team, head coach Greg Gard and his coaching staff was secretly recorded and sent to the Wisconsin State Journal.
"I just feel like, coach, we don't have a relationship," starter Nate Reuvers said on the recording, per Jim Polzin of the Wisconsin State Journal. "In my mind, it's too late for that. I personally don't think or feel like you care about our future aspirations. I can't talk to you. I just don't want to talk to you. After this, coach, I don't know what type of relationship we're going to have, if we have one."
On Tuesday, Gard and Wisconsin's athletic director Barry Alvarez responded to the situation:
Polzin reported that the 37-minute audio file was sent to the newspaper via an anonymous email.
The general theme of the meeting echoed Reuvers' comments, that the players didn't feel like Gard was behind them, that he cultivated a culture where coaches and players pointed fingers rather than taking accountability and that some players felt like they couldn't even speak to Gard.
"Coaches have to be able to respond to adversity, just like players do," one of Wisconsin's seniors told Polzin. "They have to try different things, and that's what coach Gard did. Is it something that us players reacted well to? No. And that's why we confronted him about it."
But that same player said he felt the meeting was productive.
"[Gard] sat there, he listened and there was not one dry eye in the entire room at the end of everything," he said. "The biggest thing that he did at the end was he apologized again and he was in tears and he said, 'It’s not your fault, it's my fault.'"
Just one of the players, Brad Davison, is returning next year (the senior class was granted an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Reuvers, Aleem Ford, Micah Potter and D’Mitrik Trice are attempting to turn pro, while Trevor Anderson (Valparaiso) and Walt McGrory (South Dakota) transferred to different schools.
Assistant coach Alando Tucker was also replaced with another former Badgers player, Sharif Chambliss, on Gard's staff.
Davison said he was disappointed that the edited conversation was made public, calling the locker room environment a "sanctuary."
"Every locker room that you are in, you are with individuals that you've cried with, that you've bled with, that you've sweat with and that you've worked with," he said. "When you have tough conversations, the reason why you have tough conversations in the locker room is because you care for the people in the locker room and because you love them and want what's best for them and ultimately you want to grow with them."
Wisconsin's Micah Potter (11) blocks a shot by North Carolina's Caleb Love (2) during the first half of a first-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament Friday, March 19, 2021, at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. (AP Photo/Robert Franklin)
No. 9 seed Wisconsin is onto the round of 32 after knocking off No. 8 North Carolina 85-62 in the first round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament Friday.
The Badgers (18-12) struggled to win at Purdue's Mackey Arena during Big Ten play but made the trip to West Lafayette, Indiana, worth it by eliminating a UNC team that had won six of its last nine games heading into the tournament.
It's the first time Wisconsin has advanced to the second round under head coach Greg Gard since his first full season in Madison in 2016-17. The Tar Heels (18-11), meanwhile, are heading home after one game for the first time since a two-point loss to No. 13 Weber State in 1999. It's the first Roy Williams-coached Carolina team to exit the tournament without a victory and the first time Williams has failed to advance out of the first round in his career.
The Badgers will face the No. 1 seed in the South Region, Baylor, on Sunday.
Armando Bacot, F, North Carolina Tar Heels: 15 points, 4 rebounds
Garrison Brooks, F, North Carolina Tar Heels: 10 points, 10 rebounds
Davison Dominates Tar Heels
Brad Davison came into the NCAA tournament averaging 9.4 points per game this season. The senior finished one point off his career high of 30 in the first round against UNC.
A 6’4” guard from Minnesota, Davison seemed to get whatever shot he wanted Friday, shooting 10 of 15 from the field with as many three-point makes (five) as the Tar Heels knocked down total. He also added six rebounds.
After taking a 40-24 halftime lead, it was the play of Davison and D’Mitrik Trice that allowed the Badgers to hold onto their lead. Both shot 50 percent or better from the floor and ensured Wisconsin would stick around in Indiana for at least two more days.
The fact that UW had consistently struggled with top teams over the latter half of the season made Friday’s performance all that more impressive.
Wisconsin lost its last nine games against ranked programs this year with its most recent victory coming over No. 21 Minnesota in December. That might’ve made this a good matchup against a poor-shooting North Carolina club that overachieved late in the year to reach the tournament.
The Badgers shot 50.8 percent from the field, out-rebounded UNC 37-34 and won the turnover battle 10-7 without trailing at any point Friday.
Davison led the way from start to finish.
North Carolina’s Early Exit
Nothing about the 2020-21 season went as planned for the Tar Heels.
After opening up 3-0, UNC dropped back-to-back games against ranked opponents, then dropped two more to unranked foes shortly after. Before Williams could correct course, the Tar Heels were outside the Top 25 and trying to find any way to survive.
The game plan the team settled on featured playing through forwards Garrison Brooks and Armando Bacot and hoping they could keep the contest close enough. Anything less than that, and UNC was in trouble.
As the Badgers stormed out to a 23-point lead, there was little UNC could do to turn the momentum in its favor. A lack of outside shooting (five of 13) left the Heels unable to go on any prolonged scoring runs even as Brooks and Bacot began heating up in the second half.
Bacot scored all 15 of his points in the second half after missing his lone shot in the first frame. Brooks didn’t fare much better, going one of seven from the field before halftime.
That led to the Tar Heels finishing with at least 12 losses for the second time in as many years and failing to reach the second round for the first time this millennium.
What's Next
Wisconsin will return to Mackey and prepare to face No. 1 Baylor on Sunday. A tipoff time has not been announced as of Friday.
No. 6 Wisconsin Upset by Unranked Maryland; Eric Ayala Drops 17 in Win
Dec 28, 2020
Maryland guard Eric Ayala works the floor against Rutgers during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in College Park, Md. Rutgers won 74-60. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
The unranked Maryland Terrapins lost three of their past four games before they traveled to face No. 6 Wisconsin, but 17 points from guard Eric Ayala led them to victory Monday and improved them to 6-3 on the season.
Ayala, who also had four rebounds and two assists, was one of three Terrapins to score at least 12 points, with guard Aaron Wiggins finishing one rebound shy of a double-double while scoring 15 points. Forward Donta Scott tallied 12 points with four rebounds and two assists.
Wisconsin was led by guard D'Mitrik Trice, who dropped 25 points with four rebounds and three assists. Guard Aleem Ford was the only other Badger to score in double digits, having added 10 points and six rebounds.
What a win for @TerrapinHoops Played with a whole lot of passion. Happy it was rewarded.
With the win, the Terps earned their first victory over a team ranked in the Top 10 since January 2016.
Wisconsin, which dropped to 8-2 on the season, led by four points at halftime.
The Terrapins capitalized in the second half, scoring 46 points on 64.0 percent shooting from the field and 42.9 percent from three, up from 37.0 from the field and 30.0 percent from beyond the arc in the first half. They outscored Wisconsin 7-0 on fast-break points and added eight points off turnovers.
Wisconsin was whistled for 10 personal fouls in the second frame, and the Terrapins made the most of the opportunity, hitting 11 of their 12 free throws.
As the two teams kept trading the lead late as the clock ticked under 10 minutes, Maryland hit 11 of its last 12 field goals and three of its last four attempts from three to steal the victory on the road.
The Badgers entered Monday on a five-game winning streak, having suffered their lone loss of the season to Marquette, 67-65, on Dec. 4. They beat then-No. 12 Michigan State, 85-76, on Christmas Day.
The Terps are a rare outlier in the Big Ten, which was well represented in the AP Top 25 poll with nine teams ranked and Indiana receiving votes, but they've shown that they'll be able to fight for wins in a tough conference.
Up next, they'll face some of the toughest competition in the Big Ten, with games against No. 16 Michigan, Indiana, No. 10 Iowa and No. 15 Illinois on tap over the next two weeks.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin will host No. 21 Minnesota followed by Penn State and Indiana, and then heads into a stretch of four games against ranked opponents before meeting Maryland again Jan. 30.
No. 4 Wisconsin Upset by Marquette on Justin Lewis' Buzzer-Beating Tip-In
Dec 4, 2020
The Marquette University basketball court logo with the Big East logo behind it during a time out against Savannah State during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Dec. 15, 2012, in Milwaukee. The seven Big East schools, including Marquette, that don't play FBS football have decided to leave the conference and pursue a new basketball framework. The other schools are: Georgetown, St. John's, Villanova, DePaul, Seton Hall and Providence. (AP Photo/Tom Lynn)
The Wisconsin Badgers became the third Top Five team to lose this season thanks to Justin Lewis' buzzer-beater that gave Marquette a 67-65 victory on Friday at Fiserv Forum.
With the score tied at 65 with 0.9 seconds remaining, Lewis tipped in D.J. Carlton's missed free throw as time expired:
Wisconsin entered the game ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press Top 25 and had a 3-0 record, though its victories came against Eastern Illinois, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Green Bay.
Marquette is the first significant test the Badgers have faced to this point. It was clear in Wisconsin's performance, as the team set season lows in points (65) and shot 37.5 percent overall, including 7-of-24 from three-point range.
The Golden Eagles were coming off a 70-62 loss against Oklahoma State on Tuesday. Head coach Steve Wojciechowski got his team back on track thanks to Lewis' career day. The freshman led the team with 18 points off the bench and grabbed eight rebounds, including the biggest one of the game in the final second.
Friday's victory is Marquette's first time knocking off a team ranked in the AP Top Five during the regular season since Jan. 24, 2017 (No. 1 Villanova).
Wisconsin joins Villanova and Illinois as Top Five teams to lose through the first two weeks of the men's college basketball season. Illinois was beaten by No. 2 Baylor on Wednesday, while Villanova, which opened the season ranked No. 3, was upset by Virginia Tech on Nov. 28.
The Badgers will look to turn things around Wednesday at home against Louisville. Marquette will host Green Bay on Tuesday.
Wisconsin Director of Strength and Conditioning Resigns over Alleged Racial Slur
Feb 6, 2020
MADISON, WI - JANUARY 02: A detail view of the Wisconsin Badgers logo during the game between the Wisconsin Badgers and Indiana Hoosiers at the Kohl Center on January 2, 2018 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images). (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The University of Wisconsin announced Thursday strength and conditioning director Erik Helland has resigned after being placed on administrative leave Monday for allegedly using a racial slur in the presence of Badgers men's basketball players.
Brian Hamilton of The Athletic provided the Wisconsin athletic department's full statement:
Wisconsin director of strength and conditioning Erik Helland resigns, the school says. Relating to using "a racial epithet in the presence of multiple Wisconsin men’s basketball student-athletes." pic.twitter.com/v05oNTCmhD
Jeff Potrykus of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Wednesday the school was "investigating an allegation that a racial epithet was directed at [Badgers guard] Kobe King by a UW staffer."
Per the department's statement, it found no evidence that Helland directed the slur at a specific player. However, it did confirm that he "used a racial epithet in the presence of multiple Wisconsin men's basketball student-athletes" while telling a story about his time working in the NBA.
Helland was in his seventh season as the strength and conditioning coach for the men's basketball team and was promoted in June 2015 to oversee the strength and conditioning programs of all the Badgers' teams.
The Wisconsin native is a graduate of UW-Eau Claire. Before arriving at Wisconsin, he spent 25 years with the Chicago Bulls on their strength and conditioning staff starting in 1988.
