BIG TEN CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 11, 2022

Greg Gard

Johnny Davis

Brad Davison

Gainbridge Fieldhouse

Wisconsin Badgers

Postgame Press Conference

Michigan State - 69, Wisconsin - 63

MODERATOR: We are joined by the University of Wisconsin Head Coach Greg Gard, Johnny Davis and Brad Davison.

Coach Gard, we'll start with an opening statement, then we'll take questions from the students, then we'll go back to questions for Coach Gard.

Coach?

COACH GREG GARD: All right, thank you. Obviously, credit to Michigan State for making plays when they needed to, specifically down the stretch. I thought we were a little better offensively in the second half, not as good defensively and we had our opportunities, but it's a good learning experience for us because now it's on to the next and from here on out, 40 minutes is all we're guaranteed.

I know our guys are disappointed, wanted to continue to stay and continue to play, but not good enough for long enough stretches to be able to stay in the tournament.

MODERATOR: We'll take questions for the students.

Q. Johnny, you are very confident in your shot, you've hit some big shots all year. Did you get shots you wanted today or were there some times when you thought you were pressing just a little bit tonight?

JOHNNY DAVIS: Just missed shots. It happens in the game of basketball.

Q. Brad, this was your last Big Ten Tournament. You had big reactions when you fouled out, big reactions when you lost. What was so frustrating about not being able to close it out tonight?

BRAD DAVISON: Every time you have the opportunity to compete, you want to be out there for your team. So whether it's foul trouble or whatever it may be, you want to be out there trying to compete and trying to win and do everything you can to help your team be successful. Like Coach said, these games and these minutes aren't guaranteed anymore, so you want to always leave your best foot forward. That's just the desire to win.

Q. Brad, you guys had not lost two games in a row until now. Are you concerned about the way this team is trending heading into the NCAA Tournament?

BRAD DAVISON: No, not really. We're not defined by two games. We're more defined by the 30-some games before that we've been there, done that. We've won a lot of close games. We've battled, we've done things the right way and we've had pretty good outcomes throughout the year. We look at this as learning opportunities, a lot of things we can do better and now we've got some time to rest and recover and fix those things that we don't have -- you know, we sit in a quiet locker room forever again.

Q. This is for Brad. Brad, we were with you for your first Big Ten Tournament and you were in tears at Madison Square Garden. This is your last Big Ten Tournament. Can you reflect for me this journey that you've had in the Big Ten as you reflect on what is your final Big Ten game?

BRAD DAVISON: I think I just gained a lot of perspective on the game of basketball, especially when it's in a tournament format. All the time you put in, all the effort in the spring, in the fall, it's for these moments. It's for when the games and the minutes aren't guaranteed.

I gained a lot of perspective on the game of basketball and I'm just overwhelmed with gratitude for the opportunity I've had for five years to compete at this university and play at this level because it's been a dream come true, despite any outcome.

So I think I gained a lot of perspective, but also myself and everyone else in the locker room, we have a desire to win. So don't want to have a sad locker room, especially when we think it's a lot of things that we could control.

You know, I guess it's the end of a chapter on myself in the Big Ten Tournament, but I really don't think about it. I'm excited for what's coming next.

Q. Brad, you just mentioned things you can control. Free-throw shooting is one thing I think this team takes pride in. If you look at the numbers tonight, is that something that's a point of frustration, concern? I know it's just one game, but if you had a few, you're probably not sitting up there right now.

BRAD DAVISON: I think there's a lot of things we can look to, offensively, defensively, shots. That's one thing, that shots aren't always going to fall, free throws aren't always going to go down at the rate that you want. We've just got to continue to stay confident, continue to get there. There's also a lot of other things that we could look at that we probably should have and could have done better to not be in this position that we're in now.

Q. Johnny, you haven't been 3-19, 0-5 and deep very often in your life. How much of that was what Michigan State was doing defensively?

JOHNNY DAVIS: Being the status I had coming into the game, I'm pretty sure their game plan was to try and take away those shots or contest those shots really hard. And I don't think I did a good job of dispersing the ball and finding my teammates, but a lot of those shots just were on me, rushed through them or just didn't get the look that I wanted to.

Q. Johnny, you guys have been really good at finishing close games this season, but you weren't able to do it tonight. What was different about this end stretch that you guys weren't really able to close it out?

JOHNNY DAVIS: Just couldn't get buckets on our end and they made free throws, so it's credit to them.

Q. Marcus Bingham's impact on this game was significant. I'm wondering if you could sort of speak to that and the difference and trouble he gave you.

COACH GREG GARD: Yeah, he's -- obviously, he's improved immensely through his career there and he's made himself into a good player. I thought there were times when we let him catch it too deep and too easy, didn't think we gave enough support to him and to his defender at times and squeeze him enough. Then he got a couple offensive rebounds, we drug too far on ball screens on a couple of lobs, and he's obviously improved. He's got the jump hook down, he's active, he's long. He's made himself into a good player and he was better than what we were defensively there.

Q. Greg, the teams with the double bye today are 0-3 so far. And in a season where it's grueling and you're playing a game every two, three days, how much did that rest that you guys had before today do you think affect the shooting struggles?

COACH GREG GARD: I don't know. I mean, you can debate that on both sides, that it's advantageous to rest and play on Friday. As you mentioned, the teams that were playing the first time today, right, are 0-3, so sometimes there's an advantage to having played a game on the court and the shooting backgrounds and all those type of things.

I think you can make arguments or points on either side of it. It's an advantage to rest. I mean, we got the double bye because of what we've done over the last three months and that's how you have to look at it and that's what you want to focus on. We got to put ourselves in this position today. Whether we had a double bye or no bye, if you don't play well enough in the 40 you have, it doesn't matter.

Proud of what our guys did to put us in this position, but obviously, I don't know, I think you can make arguments both sides of it, whether it's an advantage or disadvantage. It must be an advantage if first-timers today are 0-3. See how Purdue does.

Q. I know Brad said he wasn't concerned with the two games, someone answered it focusing on the full season, but are any of the concerning trends from these last two losses heading into what is the NCAA Tournament?

COACH GREG GARD: No, I think they're two totally different games, and obviously a lot of different factors with it. The things that we have to get better at are things that we could control and we've got to be better, more disciplined, do a better job not putting ourselves in foul trouble. Today I'm speaking to, making sure we're doing a better job in some of the rebounding situations. We did a great job in the first half. I don't think they had any offensive rebounds. And the second half, they got loose a couple key ones, one air ball that they got, did a decent job. You know, we kept them off the three-point line. That was one of the keys.

But there's things that don't show up on the stat sheet that we have to be better at. We put ourselves in foul trouble the first half. Guys had to sit, Steve and Chris had to sit an extended amount. Johnny had to sit there with the four fouls, Brad fouls out. So all those things add up. We have to be better at that and part of that's discipline, part of that's playing a little wiser because it will change, officiating will change now even more as we get to the NCAA Tournament. We won't have crews that have reffed the Big Ten, so it will be tight and we'll have to do a good job of adhering to how we teach and how we need to play.

Q. Greg, you've obviously let Johnny -- give him the green light to take some shots tonight, but I think he acknowledged that there were sometimes he could have kicked the ball. Were there some times that he forced things that you would like to have him take back?

COACH GREG GARD: Well, I mean, I'll look through the film and see. I thought the first half, there was some situations where he could have dispersed it. Second half, he had some decent looks. He had the one post feed when he rejected a ball screen at Steve that I think he would like to have back. But you can't micromanage shots because if you do that -- he's gone 10-19 for us. I'm sure getting back into a normal practice routine and getting into a rhythm will help him a lot. It looked like he's been out of a rhythm in terms of what he's done in practice and he was because he was obviously working his way back from last weekend.

Q. Greg, you guys have been really good during the regular season in closing out tight games, but it wasn't able to happen tonight. What do you think was different about down the stretch today?

COACH GREG GARD: It's all those things we did before, well before we got down the stretch. Tonight we were -- today we were not as good in the first 38 minutes to be able to come down the stretch and put a game away. You know, we didn't lose the game in the last two minutes. There would be 50 things I'll find in the first 38 that put ourselves in that position.

So that's why we've been able to finish out games, because we've played the 40 minutes better than what we played tonight, not just what happens in the last two minutes.

Q. Greg, I'm wondering with Michigan State's defensive plan on Johnny, in particular Max Christie but also what Hoggard and Brown did, was there anything different than maybe in the first two meetings?

COACH GREG GARD: No, no, Tom does a great job of gapping. He always has. There's going to be extra guys in the gap and we've seen that for years. They do a good job of it, they execute it and follow the plan and just try to shut off his daylight as much as possible. I thought they did a good job of that and it wasn't unexpected. It's how it's been in some of the other games.

We've done some other things better in the game at East Lansing that we weren't as good as today and that's a credit to Michigan State because when we made a mistake they capitalized on some of the things.