Three things in life are certain—death, taxes and Bo Ryan’s offensive game plan.
Or maybe lack of an offensive game plan is more appropriate.
Bo Ryan is arguably the best coach in the Big Ten, and his "We’re not going to change a thing," mentality is usually what makes Wisconsin so good.
Thirty-six times last year teams knew the Badgers were going to run the swing offense, and 31 times it didn’t matter. Through Wisconsin’s first fifteen contests this season, it looked like the methodical madness would continue. They ran the swing, and they won.
But after six consecutive losses, something Badger fans have not seen in more than a decade, UW’s offense needs a shot of adrenaline, especially at the end of the game.
With the exception of their first loss to Purdue, Wisconsin has been in every game during the losing streak.
There have been first-half scoring droughts and defensive lapses, but more than anything, the Badgers’ inability to score late in the game, has absolutely killed them.
You can blame the players for not executing, but it’s the head coach’s job to put them in a position to win. And you could write Ryan’s playbook on a Post-It note.
There’s the swing, and then there’s the high pick-and-roll. Oh yeah, and then there’s the pass the ball to Jordan Taylor and see what happens.
Think about it.
At Texas last season, Michael Flowers hit a 3-pointer coming off a high ball screen. Ryan drew up the same play for Flowers at Purdue. He drove off the ball screen and had his shot blocked.
The Badgers tried to run the same play at Indiana a year ago, but Brian Butch wasn’t able to get the ball to a guard so he came off Marcus Landry’s high ball screen and banked in a three.
More recently, there’s been a Taylor 3-pointer from the Carver-Hawkeye parking lot and a wild Taylor runner against the Boilermakers. Both came after timeouts called by Ryan.
I’m still a "Bo-liever," as the t-shirts say. Wisconsin can and should run the swing for the first 39 minutes of the game. But in the final minute, Ryan and the Badgers need to open up the offensive playbook, or they can forget about dancing come March.
