Beauty is surely in the shooting eye of the beholder.
Especially if he bescoring the basketball he beholding.
"That's a simple way to put it," conceded UW guard Josh Gasser.
"Every time the ball goes in the hoop it makes you look a little better."
A little better?
"When the ball is going in the hoop," Jordan Taylor said, "everything looks A LOT better."
During the recent three-game losing streak, the Badgers couldn't get anything in the hoop.
They shot .333 from the field (58-of-174) and .214 from beyond the 3-point arc (15-of-70).
At Purdue, the Badgers hit 19-of-40 shots (.475), including 9-of-20 (.450) from 3-point distance.
"We got some good looks and we knocked them down," Gasser explained. "The last couple of games we struggled up to the first media timeout. A fast start was a priority for us.
"Jared (Berggren) and Mike (Bruesewitz) hit one early," Ben Brust added. "And that helped us gain some confidence; especially on the road at Purdue, a tough place to play."
Taylor echoed, "This is a tough place to play for anybody."
The Boilermakers had won 26 straight games in Mackey Arena before the Badgers snapped that streak with a 67-62 victory Thursday night. It had been the fifth-longest active streak in the nation.
Kentucky and Duke have each won 44 straight games on their home floor. Ohio State has won 32 in a row. Notre Dame just had its 29-game home winning streak snapped by UConn.
Good things tend to comes in "3s" for the Badgers - offense and wins at Mackey.
Since the arena opened in 1967, the UW has now won three times in 40 games.
Bo Ryan has two of those victories.
On Jan. 5, 2005, Zach Morley scored 22 points in Wisconsin's 77-68 win at Purdue.
That snapped the UW's 29-game losing streak in West Lafayette.
As a team, the Badgers were 14-of-22 (.636) from beyond the arc that night. Morley was 6-of-8.
Sharif Chambliss, who is now the video coordinator, had 16 points and six assists.
Morley, Chambliss, Alando Tucker, Mike Wilkinson and Clayton Hanson were the starters.
Those Badgers made a deep run in the NCAA tournament - all the way to the Elite Eight.
Brust shrugged when asked if he was aware of Wisconsin's history in Mackey Arena.
"The rims are 10 feet," he said. "The court is the same length.
"All you've got to do is just play basketball."
Playing with high energy and intensity from the start of each half was an emphasis, though.
"I don't think it should take a three-game losing streak to get that kind of energy from all of us," Taylor allowed. "But we played the way coach has preached. It shows that he knows what he's doing."
Most of Ryan's sermons are about fundamental basketball skills and principles.
"We moved pretty well without the ball," Gasser said. "We made hard cuts to the rim and it opened up other players. It makes shooting a little easier when you have that extra space."
The Badgers finished with five players in double-figures.
They also had three players with five rebounds each and two with four each.
Everybody who played in the game found a way to make a meaningful contribution.
"That's one of the best team wins I've ever been part of here," said Taylor, a UW senior.
Brust was asked Thursday if the Badgers can sustain their momentum against Nebraska.
He looked puzzled.
"I don't know who we have next (on the schedule)," he said, sounding like his head coach. "But I look forward to getting ready for them because the next one is the most important one."
One last note: if you're waiting for Bruesewitz to grow out his hair, forget about it.
"My hair is staying short this year," he stressed.
"Plus, I'm not a Chia Pet. I can't just put water on it and it grows within a week.
"It was a fun thing last year and I might bring it back next year. We'll see."
Bruesewitz was sporting some stubble at Purdue.
"I'm trying the chin thing out," he said.
After going 4-of-4 from beyond the arc, his chin was up, too.
Especially if he bescoring the basketball he beholding.
"That's a simple way to put it," conceded UW guard Josh Gasser.
"Every time the ball goes in the hoop it makes you look a little better."
A little better?
"When the ball is going in the hoop," Jordan Taylor said, "everything looks A LOT better."
During the recent three-game losing streak, the Badgers couldn't get anything in the hoop.They shot .333 from the field (58-of-174) and .214 from beyond the 3-point arc (15-of-70).
At Purdue, the Badgers hit 19-of-40 shots (.475), including 9-of-20 (.450) from 3-point distance.
"We got some good looks and we knocked them down," Gasser explained. "The last couple of games we struggled up to the first media timeout. A fast start was a priority for us.
"Jared (Berggren) and Mike (Bruesewitz) hit one early," Ben Brust added. "And that helped us gain some confidence; especially on the road at Purdue, a tough place to play."
Taylor echoed, "This is a tough place to play for anybody."
The Boilermakers had won 26 straight games in Mackey Arena before the Badgers snapped that streak with a 67-62 victory Thursday night. It had been the fifth-longest active streak in the nation.
Kentucky and Duke have each won 44 straight games on their home floor. Ohio State has won 32 in a row. Notre Dame just had its 29-game home winning streak snapped by UConn.
Good things tend to comes in "3s" for the Badgers - offense and wins at Mackey.
Since the arena opened in 1967, the UW has now won three times in 40 games.
Bo Ryan has two of those victories.
On Jan. 5, 2005, Zach Morley scored 22 points in Wisconsin's 77-68 win at Purdue.
That snapped the UW's 29-game losing streak in West Lafayette.
As a team, the Badgers were 14-of-22 (.636) from beyond the arc that night. Morley was 6-of-8.
Sharif Chambliss, who is now the video coordinator, had 16 points and six assists.
Morley, Chambliss, Alando Tucker, Mike Wilkinson and Clayton Hanson were the starters.
Those Badgers made a deep run in the NCAA tournament - all the way to the Elite Eight.
Brust shrugged when asked if he was aware of Wisconsin's history in Mackey Arena.
"The rims are 10 feet," he said. "The court is the same length.
"All you've got to do is just play basketball."
Playing with high energy and intensity from the start of each half was an emphasis, though.
"I don't think it should take a three-game losing streak to get that kind of energy from all of us," Taylor allowed. "But we played the way coach has preached. It shows that he knows what he's doing."
Most of Ryan's sermons are about fundamental basketball skills and principles.
"We moved pretty well without the ball," Gasser said. "We made hard cuts to the rim and it opened up other players. It makes shooting a little easier when you have that extra space."
The Badgers finished with five players in double-figures.
They also had three players with five rebounds each and two with four each.
Everybody who played in the game found a way to make a meaningful contribution.
"That's one of the best team wins I've ever been part of here," said Taylor, a UW senior.
Brust was asked Thursday if the Badgers can sustain their momentum against Nebraska.
He looked puzzled.
"I don't know who we have next (on the schedule)," he said, sounding like his head coach. "But I look forward to getting ready for them because the next one is the most important one."
One last note: if you're waiting for Bruesewitz to grow out his hair, forget about it.
"My hair is staying short this year," he stressed.
"Plus, I'm not a Chia Pet. I can't just put water on it and it grows within a week.
"It was a fun thing last year and I might bring it back next year. We'll see."
Bruesewitz was sporting some stubble at Purdue.
"I'm trying the chin thing out," he said.
After going 4-of-4 from beyond the arc, his chin was up, too.
