"The Voice of the New Due Process Army" ————– Musings on Events in U.S. Immigration Court, Immigration Law, Sports, and Other Random Topics by Retired United States Immigration Judge (Arlington, Virginia) and former Chairman of the Board of Immigration Appeals Paul Wickham Schmidt. To see my complete professional bio, just click on the link below.
After a shaky start, the Lady Badgers (31-3) showed their prowess by beating fellow B10 rival Nebraska Cornhuskers to bring the national title to Madison for the first time! Congrats champs, you are an inspiration to all of us!
Here’s the complete report from Jim Polzin @ the Wisconsin State Journal!
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Badgers turning out leaders of the future!
PWS
12-19-21
March 7, 2020. Left for dead at mid-season, the # 24 Wisconsin Badgers (21-10, 14-6) came back from a 9-point second half deficit to beat the Indiana Hoosiers (19-12, 9-11) in Bloomington, IN on Saturday afternoon. It was Bucky’s eighth straight victory in the tough Big-10. But, it wasn’t easy.
Badger “bigs” Nate Reuvers (17 pts, 7 reb) and Micah Potter (14 & 11) paced the way. Brad Davison (11 & 1) made a key three to give the Badgers the lead for good and calmly sunk two charity tosses to seal the deal. Senior Devonte Green led the Hoosiers with 16, all in the first half.
At one point this season, the Badgers were 13-10, 6-6 and viewed as out of March Madness, particularly after leading scorer Kobe King left the team. But, coach Greg Gard weathered the criticism and held the team together. Better play from Potter, a transfer from Ohio State who only gained eligibility at mid season, junior guard D’Mtrik Trice, and sharp-shooting fifth-year senior Brevin Pritzel enhanced the effectiveness of Reuvers, Davison, and junior Arleem Ford. The Badgers also began knocking down threes that had been clunking off the rim earlier in the season.
The Badgers could win the Big-10 regular season outright if both Michigan State and Maryland lose tomorrow. In any event, they will get a “double bye” into the quarterfinals of the Big-10 Tournament on Friday @ 2:25 EDT. They will play the winner of Thursday’s Rutgers-Michigan matchup.
The Badgers are a lock for the NCAA Tournament, although their seed — probably a 5 or 6, perhaps as high as 4 — will probably depend on how they perform in the Big-10 Tourney. In any event, they are likely to be a “tough out” in the Big Dance.
A good time was had by all at the Annual Schmidt Family Visit to Lambeau on Sunday.
And, as an extra bonus, on Saturday the Badgers ran all over the Michigan Wolverines (literally and figuratively) 35-14 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. Badger superstar Jonathan Taylor ran for 205 and 2 TDS, despite playing only about half the game!
Oh yeah, and in equestrian competition on Saturday, Cassie Schmidt on “Rooster” takes a second!
PWS
09-23-19
Jim Polzin reports in the Madison Cap Times:
“The moment is fresh nearly 12 months later, partly because the pain still lingers for the members of the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team.
But even if there were a way for the Badgers to wipe the memory of a 61-56 loss to Notre Dame to end the 2015-16 season from their brains, it wouldn’t matter because their coach keeps bringing it up.
“It should stay in their minds since we mention it about every week,” Greg Gard said. “We referred to Notre Dame more than any past opponent, I think, since I’ve been here in terms of how it ended.”
It didn’t end pretty for UW, which self-destructed in the final minute against the Fighting Irish and watched its season come to an abrupt end in the Sweet 16.
The Badgers (27-9) have arrived at the same step on the NCAA tournament ladder a year later. They’ll face Florida (26-8) on Friday night in an East region semifinal at Madison Square Garden in New York.”
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Schmidt’s Instant Pregame Mini-Analysis
In an earlier post, http://wp.me/p8eeJm-tJ I highlighted the factors that could allow Wisconsin to go all the way to the Final Four: experience, inside play, and Bronson Koenig. All three of those strengths were on abundant display in the first two games as the Badgers downed #9 Virginia Tech and then upset #1 Villanova.
The Badgers also minimized two of the three weaknesses that I thought could make them an “early out:” offensive inconsistency and turnovers.
The other factor was horrible free throw shooting. While the Badgers did have horrible free throw shooting (43%) against Villanova, fortunately it didn’t cost them the game. Ironically, Villanova, a much better free throw shooting team (71%) missed a key charity toss down the stretch which would have given them a one point lead and might have changed Wisconsin’s strategy last minute strategy of having Nigel Hayes drive for a two-pointer.
Florida plays tough defense. So, in addition to maintaining offensive consistency and getting continued outstanding play from Koenig, Hayes, Ethan Happ, and Vito Brown, the Badgers will have to hold down the turnovers and sink their free throws to escape the Gators.
Tune in on Friday night @ 10:00 PM on TBS to see what happens, live from Madison Square Garden in NY!
GO BUCKY!
PWS
03/21/17