For those of you that dont have ESPN's Insider info
MONTANA SCOUTING REPORT
http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-col...12-ncaa-bracket-projections-montana-grizzlies
Offensive Preference Montana thrives in a faster-paced game, scoring 70 or more points 16 times this season (including 85 in the Big Sky title game). Their backcourt is their bread and butter -- led by conference defensive player of the year Will Cherry.
Defensive Philosophy You've heard that defense wins championships. The Big Sky champs serve as a prime example. The Grizzlies take away the 3-point line and play excellent switching man-to-man and help defense, holding opponents to just under 62 points per game.
Secret Strength Unless you live in Big Sky country, you probably haven't heard of Mathias Ward. You'll likely remember him after this appearance in the Big Dance. Ward has an inside-outside combo that most guys his size don't possess and will benefit from an opponent's scouting report that focuses elsewhere.
Achilles' Heel Stat-wise there aren't a whole lot of things the Grizzlies don't do well. The biggest drawback with Wayne Tinkle's club lies not in how they've played but rather who. A weak non-conference schedule suggests that Montana hasn't been tested enough to pull an upset.
Will Lose When ... Its back court has a bad night. Cherry and Kareem Jamar account for more than 40 percent of the Grizzlies' scoring. Montana will likely draw a BCS school with guards that can at the very least neutralize the two. Its front court as a whole won't produce enough against a more physical opponent.
Famous Last Words The Grizzlies enter the NCAA tournament having won 20 of their last 21. They're one of the nation's top defensive teams but haven't seen anything on their schedule that's close to their first round opponent. Expect them to compete for a half but too much depth and athleticism on the other side will end their season.
Player statistics are for the regular season only.
THE PLAYERS
Starters
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
1 Kareem Jamar
(6-5, 210 pounds, JR) 34.9 mpg 13.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg 3.7 apg 2.2 tpg
Comment: Jamar has good bounce in the lane and served as the steady hand in the conference title game, converting three big second half 3-pointers. He and Cherry rival any mid-major back court in the country.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
2 Will Cherry
(6-1, 177 pounds, JR) 33.8 mpg 16.0 ppg, 3.9 apg 2.6 spg 2.8 tpg
Comment: The Big Sky's leader in steals, Cherry creates a lot of his offensive opportunities by forcing turnovers and scores well off the dribble and from the outside. The ball will be in his hands if Montana needs a big basket.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
3 Derek Selvig
(6-4, 195 pounds, FR) 30.3 mpg 9.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg .435 3PT 2.2 tpg
Comment: It's a source of pride in the Selvig family to play at Montana. Mom and dad are both former Grizzlies and his younger sister plays for the women's team. Big brother is skilled both around the basket and the outside with 37 3-pointers.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
4 Art Steward
(6-4, 210 pounds, SR) 29.1 mpg 9.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg .525 FG 1.4 tpg
Comment: Steward plays much bigger than his size and can bang with more physical players down low. He often doesn't get the credit he deserves as the team's fourth leading scorer.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
5 Mathias Ward
(6-7, 236 pounds, JR) 26.2 mpg 11.1 ppg, 4.0 rpg .545 FG 0.9 tpg
Comment: Before the conference tournament, Ward hadn't led the team in scoring since before the new year. He's stepped up his game in March, taking that distinction the last two games.
Rotation
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
F Shawn Stockton
(6-1, 195 pounds, SR) 15.6 mpg 3.6 ppg, 1.3 rpg .410 FG .241 3PT
Comment: The nephew of NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton gives the Grizzlies some depth and a change of tempo at guard. If they get any bench production, it will likely come from him.
F Keron DeShields
(6-2, 177 pounds, FR) 6.1 mpg 1.8 ppg, 0.3 rpg .381 3PT .349 FG
Comment: Deshields battled adversity in high school, dealing with the murder of a former teammate. Far away from the mean streets of Baltimore, he's found a home in Missoula.
SEASON NOTES
High point A February 18 matchup with future Mountain West member Hawaii sandwiched in the middle of its conference schedule seemed a little odd but proved to be Montana's most productive game of the season. The Grizzlies shot 56 percent from the field and won their ninth of what is now 14 straight games.
Lowlight On the road at Oregon State in early December, Wayne Tinkle's squad shot a season-low 31 percent and got blown out 71-46 for its worst loss of the season.
Most Revealing Moment Down five at the half in the Big Sky title game, Montana responded with eight 3-pointers in the final 20 minutes. The Grizzlies punished Weber State with a 54-point second half and walked away with the conference's automatic bid.
Did You Know? The Grizzlies 15 conference wins are the most for Tinkle since taking over the job in 2006. Tinkle has averaged 11 Big Sky victories a year in his six seasons as Montana's head coach
WISCONSIN SCOUTING REPORT
http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-col...12-ncaa-bracket-projections-wisconsin-badgers
Offensive Preference In Wisconsin's "swing" offense, the Badgers spread the opposition out, set ball-screens galore and even invert their sets all in an effort to create mismatches. Late in the shot clock, the Badgers come out of the swing and let All-Big Ten point guard Jordan Taylor operate off high screens.
Defensive Philosophy You can't spell Badgers without "D." Wisconsin, primarily a man-to-man defensive team, was first nationally in both scoring defense (51.9 ppg allowed) and 3-point percentage defense (.276 allowed). Wisconsin is really adept at limiting opponents' 3-point attempts (just 387 3-point tries in 31 regular-season games).
Secret Strength Bo Ryan conducts his offense at one of the slowest paces in the country. This makes opponents in today's microwave age -- where we need everything, including quality shots, right this instant -- extremely uncomfortable. Opposing coaches compare facing Ryan's teams to facing a root canal. Enough said.
Achilles' Heel The Badgers have a truly special point guard in Taylor, but there's not a lot of firepower on this team. The Badgers were 264th nationally in scoring offense (63.8 ppg). So if the score creeps up above the high-60s, Wisconsin is in trouble.
Will Lose When & They run into a patient, well-coached team with a defensive-minded point guard equipped to at least slow down Taylor and with athletic big men capable of getting Jared Berggren and Mike Bruesewitz in some foul trouble.
Famous Last Words Ryan's teams are always tough to eliminate from one-and-done tournaments because they play killer D, they don't turn the ball over and their style is hellish to prepare for. In 2012 it'll be no different as long as foul-prone starters Josh Gasser, Berggren and Bruesewitz don't get whistled too often.
Player statistics are for the regular season only.
THE PLAYERS
Starters
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
1 Jordan Taylor
(6-1, 195 pounds, SR) 35.8 mpg 14.6 ppg, 4.1 apg 3.8 rpg .403 FG
Comment: Taylor's shooting and scoring numbers are down, but he's one of the best on-court leaders in the college game. The "coach on the floor" type treats the ball like it's his firstborn (126 assists vs. 48 turnovers during the regular season) and is tough to stop in pick-and-roll situations.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
2 Josh Gasser
(6-3, 190 pounds, SO) 34.2 mpg 7.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg .444 3PT 3 foul-outs
Comment: Worked overtime to improve his 3-point aim this offseason, and it paid off (.302 3PT in 2010-11; .444 3PT this year). An absolute pit bull on defense and blessed with high basketball IQ. Coaches plead with him to shoot more often.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
3 Ryan Evans
(6-6, 210 pounds, JR) 30.4 mpg 10.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg .747 FT .200 3PT
Comment: A late bloomer, he was cut from his high school team as a sophomore, but is now a double-figure scorer in the Big Ten. Never shies away from a tough defensive assignment.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
4 Mike Bruesewitz
(6-6, 220 pounds, JR) 26.3 mpg 5.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg .706 FT .389 FG
Comment: Human floor burn plays with a NASCAR-like motor. Has been somewhat inconsistent offensively (.389 FG, .280 3PT) as he's adjusted from off-the-bench player his first two seasons to 25-to-30-minute guy this winter.
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
5 Jared Berggren
(6-10, 235 pounds, JR) 27.6 mpg 10.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg 1.6 bpg 1.4 tpg
Comment: Took on a much larger role in 2011-12 after being an understudy to Jon Leuer and Keaton Nankivil the past two seasons. Dangerous pick-and-pop shooter (.371 3PT) for his size and is battle-tested after guarding the Zeller brothers, Meyers Leonard, Jared Sullinger and Draymond Green this season.
Rotation
Pos. Player Min. Basics Good Bad
G Ben Brust
(6-1, 190 pounds, SO) 22.6 mpg 7.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg .833 FT .396 FG
Comment: Originally committed to Iowa, but became a Badger after Todd Lickliter was canned. Provides instant offense and boundless energy off the bench.
G/F Rob Wilson
(6-4, 198 pounds, SR) 10.7 mpg 3.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg 0.5 apg .388 FG
Comment: Cleveland native knows the Ryan gospel inside and out. Allows starting wings to get five-minute rests in each half.
F/C Frank Kaminsky
(6-11, 230 pounds, FR) 8.0 mpg 2.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg 0.4 bpg .423 FG
Comment: His dad played pro ball in South America, so he owns a nice package of post-up moves, but needs to improve his arc work (.290 3PT) to star down the road in Ryan's system.
SEASON NOTES
High point Despite breaking in three new starters (Evans, Berggren and Bruesewitz), the Badgers finished 12-6 in the Big Ten, just one game behind tri-champions Michigan State, Michigan and Ohio State.
Lowlight A three-game losing streak at the start of league play -- to Iowa, Michigan State and Michigan -- had folks in Madison seriously wondering if the Badgers' 13-year NCAA tournament appearance streak would end in 2012.
Most Revealing Moment Wisconsin wiped out an eight-point second-half deficit to stun Ohio State 63-60 in late February, snapping a string of 40 consecutive road losses to top-10 Big Ten teams and illustrating just how far they'd come as a team after the 0-3 start in conference play.
Did You Know? Senior point guard Taylor is just the sixth Wisconsin player to garner first-team all-league honors twice in his career. The other players: Alando Tucker (2006, '07), Kirk Penney (2002, '03), Michael Finley (1993, '95), Ab Nicholas (1951, '52) and Don Rehfeldt (1949, '50).
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