Greg Gard reacts to scoring drought over final 10 minutes vs. Michigan

Wisconsin picked up a home conference win on Tuesday night despite not scoring a field goal in the final 10 minutes of the game. Badgers head coach Greg Gard quipped his team would begin their next practice with layup drills.

But turning more serious, Gard gave his team props for not folding mentally and buckling down on the defensive end. That, and making some free throws, got Wisconsin a resume-boosting win over Michigan.

“But they responded on the other end, shot the line well. We had some good looks, Chucky [Hepburn] had a good look off a little action to the top. Connor [Essegian] had several good looks. Had a really wide open look right in front of me, off an offensive rebound. So hey, you gotta keep shooting them. You like it, let it fly. If it’s in your wheelhouse, if it’s something you do well. But, the most important thing is how we responded on the other end and that was the key,” Gard said.

After Wisconsin made a layup at 10:47 left in the second half to take a 52-42 lead, the Badgers didn’t score again from the field. All the points came from the free throw line.

And in a game that Wisconsin won, 64-59, making free throws became critical. The Badgers were 14-of-18 on the night. And during the field goal drought, they went 12-of-14 from the free throw line.

“And I think the guys that have struggles, that have percentages that are lower, are better shooters than what their numbers say. But I say that, and you say ‘Well, they’re shooting 60% or 50%.’ They gotta obviously do it when the lights are on and game pressure, but you’ve just gotta stay positive with it,” Gard said. “Help them with some technique things. Help them with some relaxation things. If we need to tweak some things. But I see them every day in practice, and you just have to continue to have confidence in them. And they have to have the confidence in themselves, too. Which none of them have lost confidence in that and it’s good to see them get rewarded tonight.”