Exhibition games may not count, but they do answer questions. In the final tune-up of the exhibition schedule the Badgers may answered some of those questions, but not all of them.One major question that remains to be answered is who will fill the void left after the departures of Jason Bohannon, and Trevon Hughes. In the exhibition games the Badgers have played so far this season there have been two different starting lineups.
In the first game against UW-La Crosse the Badgers started sophomore Ryan Evans at guard, and senior Tim Jarmusz at forward. In the second and final exhibition game head coach Bo Ryan started senior guard Wquinton Smith, and sophomore forward Mike Bruesewitz.
Last season it was Evans, and Bruesewitz that saw the most amount of playing time. Evans played the shooting forward position much of the time, and Bruesewitz played the power forward a majority of his time on the floor.
The reason that the two sophomores saw a lot of the floor was because of the injury to Jon Leuer. While both saw time on the floor last season their impact on the final score was often limited. Evans averaged just over three points a game last season in the average 13 minutes he was on the floor. Bruesewitz averaged only a point last season in the seven minutes of playing time he saw on average.
The two young players looking to step into the starting lineup are competing with two seniors for the same jobs. Tim Jarmusz, who is a past Mr. Basketball Wisconsin, has seen his playing time increase every year he has been at Wisconsin, but his point totals have not increased as rapidly.
Known more for his defensive abilities Jarmusz started 27 games last season for his defense rather than his offense. Wquinton Smith on the other hand has never started for the Badgers and has only seen limited time on the floor.
During his tenure at Wisconsin Smith has played in a total of 18 games, and 8 of them came last season. Smith's time spent on the floor has also been sparse. Last season the senior guard from Milwaukee spent an average of two minutes a game on the floor.
On Wednesday Smith finally got the opportunity to spend more time on the floor, and put more points on the board. In the exhibition against Minnesota State Smith scored six points, and accounted for five assists.
The other side of the coin from the two open spots in the starting lineup is the three returning starters that are looking to take over the team this year.
An obvious leader will be John Leuer. A team leader in terms of scoring last season, Leuer averaged over 15 points a game, as well as almost six rebounds each time he stepped on the floor. Another key returning starter that will look to compliment Leuer is Jordan Taylor.
Last season Taylor averaged ten points a game, and started in seventeen. Best known for this coming out party on the road against Iowa two years ago, Taylor has expanded his play to become the starting point guard. Besides scoring Taylor has become a team leader in assists, recording over one hundred last season.
After scoring a combined 45 points in the final exhibition game there is little doubt about who will be the team leaders, but the major questions about who will fill in the starting lineup remains in doubt. With the exhibition games over, and the regular season beginning the Badgers will need to fill those spots quicker than expected to avoid becoming a three man show. A show that will make it's regular season premier against Prairie View A&M on Sunday afternoon.
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