Everything Greg Gard said after loss to High Point

The Wisconsin Badgers saw their season come to an abrupt end in an 83-82 loss to the High Point Panthers on Thursday, bowing out in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 5 seed for the second time in three years.

It was a heartbreaker for the Badgers, given how well this team played down the stretch run and how in control they were at several points of the game, including in the second half. A go-ahead fastbreak layup with 11 seconds proved to be the killer for Wisconsin, who heads home without seeing this team reach its fullest potentiall.

Following the loss, head coach Greg Gard, guard Nick Boyd, guard John Blackwell, and forward Austin Rapp spoke with the media, crediting High Point and noting how unfortunate the circumstances are for his team.

Here’s everything Gard said after the loss to High Point on Thursday.

Opening Statement

GARD: First of all, congratulations to High Point. They played a terrific game, hit some unbelievable shots. And that’s the heartache that comes with this tournament is that the team plays exceptionally well and you get sent home when you don’t take care of things you need to take care of.

But extremely proud of my group to get us to this point. They’ve grown immensely. These 3 guys to my right (John Blackwell, Nick Boyd, Austin Rapp) have come a long, long ways, both in their play but also in their leadership and their ability to handle adversity and grow. Extremely proud of them.

As I told them in the locker room, the worst part is we don’t get to go to practice again together. And how this group has grown together, they’ll have something. Today sucks. Today stings. But they’ll, they’ll look back at how far they’ve come and what they’ve accomplished this year together and do that with a lot of pride with the bonds that they’ve formed over the, over the past 6 months.

On what Wisconsin was looking for on the final play…

GARD: Yeah, we took our timeout to be able to obviously stop the clock, and then we had a role play of the The inbounder had a few options. One of the options was throw it deep to Nolan Winter, and [Austin] Rapp was back there as well. So we knew we had to advance the ball to try to get something more than just a half-court heave. We wanted to get the ball into the front court if we could.

On what surprised Wisconsin about High Point…

GARD: We knew they went to the offensive glass. I mean, that’s evident in their numbers. It’s evident on film. I thought we got better at keeping them off the glass in the, in the second half. But the 3-point shooting, yes. I mean, we’ve seen Johnston make— he made some circus ones today off one leg. It’s exactly what I saw on film. I mean, his ability to shoot the ball and get it off quick. Hausen’s ability to shoot the ball. Obviously, Martin made some great plays in the middle ball screens. You know, and they hit timely 3s. Fletcher hits one. Anderson, I believe, hit one. They bank in one. So it took that type of, you know, 15-3s for them to be able to counter what we were doing. And it’s a credit to them. I mean, you can take them, but they were able to knock them down.

Boyd on his experiences throughout college basketball…

BOYD: Yeah, man, I just thank God. Came a long way, man, from nothing, you know, just trying to make it, make a way, and got to do that with FAU and then San Diego State welcomed me with open arms and I came here. Expectation was always high. We came with high expectations. We had a bunch of great guys and, you know, we had the highs and lows of the season. And as I look back, man, I’m just grateful for every moment I spent. Like, I’m a little different, you know, I’m high energy, I’m competitive, and sometimes, you know, I could be a lot to accept. And these guys, you know, open their arms and allow me to be myself and change my life forever. Hope, as I go on my next journey, wherever it’s at. But I’m just grateful for my experiences. And I mean, I just want to spend as much time as I can with these guys. But I know, all 3 schools I went to, I have lifelong connections with these people. And that’s why I think the transfer portal is such a beautiful thing in that sense.

Blackwell on what changed for him offensively in second half…

BLACKWELL: I think I was getting to the same things in the second half, just mentally staying there when you have a big half and finishing around the rim, things I could have done better. But credit to them, you know, getting the win and, you know, playing some good defense.