Wisconsin happy to be close to home with Sears Centre game
Hoffman Estates may not seem to be a glamorous locale when compared to college basketball holiday destinations such as Maui, Cancun or Puerto Rico.
But in some ways, Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan is glad to be playing at the Sears Centre this weekend.
“In these economic times … I’ve had people say, ‘Oh, am I glad you’re going to Chicago, because I couldn’t go to the Bahamas. I couldn’t go to Maui. I couldn’t go to Orlando,” Ryan said this week. “But two games here …”
So Wisconsin is hoping to bring some fans to town for the 6th Chicago Invitational Challenge. The final leg of the tournament, which began on campus sites, features four games both Friday and Saturday, highlighted by Wisconsin vs. Bradley on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
The No. 11 Badgers lost all-Big Ten forward Jon Leuer, but return point guard Jordan Taylor. So far they haven’t been tested, beating Kennesaw State, Colgate, Wofford and Missouri-Kansas City by an average of 41 points.
“It just shows we’re coming out sharp,” forward Mike Bruesewitz said. “We’re making sure we’re stepping on throats early and letting them know they’re not going to come in here and outwork us.”
Taylor, Bruesewitz and guard Josh Gasser have been able to lay low so far. Wisconsin’s top scorers are 6-foot-10 junior Jared Berggren (13.5 ppg), who averaged 2.4 points last season, and 6-2 guard Ben Brust (13.0 ppg) from Mundelein, who played a total of 45 minutes last year as a freshman.
Frank Kaminsky, a 6-11 freshman from Benet Academy, also has gotten on the floor during the blowouts.
Next week the Badgers visit North Carolina for the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, then host Marquette. But first they’ll take on Bradley, which doesn’t match up well based on comparative scores.
Wisconsin beat Wofford by 36 points, while Bradley lost to the same squad 70-66 on Tuesday in Peoria.
The Braves (3-1) are led by first-year coach Geno Ford, who won consecutive regular season MAC titles at Kent State. Their top scorers are 6-6 senior Taylor Brown (18.0 ppg) and 6-3 junior Dyricus Simms-Edwards (16.5).
Another matchup Friday features Brigham Young (3-1) against Nevada (2-2) at 5 p.m. The winners and losers of the two evening games will face off Saturday.
Friday’s early games are Longwood vs. Prairie View A&M at noon, followed by Wofford vs. Missouri-Kansas City.
The second contest includes a couple of familiar names. Six-foot-6 freshman Lee Skinner from Glenbard East is playing heavy minutes for Wofford.
UMKC, meanwhile, features the youngest of the four Korver brothers. A 6-7 sophomore, Kirk Korver is averaging 6.2 points. This might be a good chance for older brother Kyle to catch a game while the Bulls are on indefinite hiatus.