1993–94 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 18-11 NCAA Tournament Second Round Wisconsin Field House(capacity: 11,500) Tim Buckley Bob Beyer 2nd Stu Jackson 8-10 1993–94 Big Ten Big Ten Conference Wisconsin Badgers logo.svg Wisconsin Badgers Stan Van Gundy The 1993–94 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1993–94 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Head coach Stu Jackson completed his second and final season coaching the Badgers. The team played its home games in Madison, Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Field House. Wisconsin finished the season 18–11, 8–10 in Big Ten play to finish in seventh place. The Badgers earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 9 seed in the West Region, defeating No. 8 seed Cincinnati before losing to No. 1 seed Missouri in the Round of 32. Season summary A breakthrough season for Wisconsin culminated in its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1947. Highly-touted freshman center Rashard Griffith joined fellow Chicago natives Tracy Webster and preseason All-American Michael Finley to form a trio of teammates in program history. Though Jackson's reputation was as an uptempo coach, Wisconsin adjusted its style with Griffith on the court. The Badgers posted an 8–1 record when they scored at least 85 points, but generally played at a slower pace than the previous season. The differences from 1992–93 were most notable during conference play. Wisconsin averaged four fewer points-per-game (69.8), back near the bottom of the league. But it countered with a stingy defense that allowed 70.8 points-per-game to Big Ten foes, ranking just behind league-leader Michigan State. This was an eight-point improvement from the previous season's defense (78.9). The team led the conference in field goal defense (.428) and blocks, with 79. Webster paced the league with 40 steals and Griffith led in blocks-per-game (2.57), swatting 36 in only 14 Big Ten games. Offensively, a prolific three-point shooting offense led by Finley, Webster and Andy Kilbride shot and made more from long distance than any other Big Ten school, though it only converted on 34.9 percent as a team. Griffith debuted in spectacular fashion in the season opener versus UW-Milwaukee, posting 27 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in 32 minutes of a 106–84 win. The team scored 100 points the next game as well, a win at Loyola Marymount. The Badgers went undefeated through the non-conference schedule, which included a road win over reigning SWC champion Texas Tech and a home win over ranked rival Marquette. In early January, 11–0 Wisconsin ascended to No. 12 in the country, its highest ranking ever in the AP Poll, following a home victory over Ohio State. A visit to No. 18 Minnesota the next game resulted in the team's first loss, 90–53. Wisconsin bounced back to beat Glenn Robinson and No. 9 Purdue, 75–69, in a tense matchup of Top 15 teams. Then the Badgers began to succumb to the rigors of the Big Ten. Two weeks later, Griffith injured his knee and missed two games, starting with a February 2 rematch with Michigan State. Led by Finley's 32 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, the Badgers blew out the Spartans, 87–62, to move to 14-3 (5-3) on the season. However, Griffith would miss two more games with back spasms while the team slipped to 6–6 in conference. Minnesota remained a thorn in its side, blowing out Wisconsin for a second time. The Gophers outscored the Badgers 199–132 in two games. Riding a four-game losing streak into a matchup with the Fab Five and No. 3 Michigan at the Field House, Wisconsin responded with a resounding 71–58 victory on March 2, 1994. The monumental win essentially saved the team's NCAA Tournament aspirations. The unranked Badgers dropped two of their final regular season games on the road to finish with a losing conference record, yet still received a bid to the Big Dance. Postseason Wisconsin earned a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament's West Region and faced No. 8 seed Cincinnati in a first round game in OgdenUtah. Finley and Griffith pitched in 22 points apiece and the Badgers got nine points in 16 minutes from freshman Jalil Roberts to outlast the Bearcats, 80–72. "We were fighting uphill all the way," Cincinnati head coach Bob Huggins said following the game.Miller Tom July 11, 2020 Miller: Three days in Ogden, Utah, that will always be remembered by Wisconsin basketball fans https://www.gazettextra.com/sports/local/miller-three-days-in-ogden-utah-that-will-always-be-remembered-by-wisconsin-basketball-fans/article_4b54f550-56eb-5a4d-bff3-d36e4b976d94.html live https://web.archive.org/web/20200617171646/https://www.gazettextra.com/sports/local/miller-three-days-in-ogden-utah-that-will-always-be-remembered-by-wisconsin-basketball-fans/article_4b54f550-56eb-5a4d-bff3-d36e4b976d94.html 2020-06-17 2020-07-03 GazetteXtra en In the second round, the team lost a fast-paced duel to Missouri, the West Region's No. 1 seed, 109–96. Finley scored a career-high 36 points, but the usually dependable Wisconsin defense was torched by the Tigers' 68 percent shooting. Webster added a season-best 27 points to seven assists and no turnovers in his final game as a Badger. Awards and honors All-American Michael Finley - 2nd team (Basketball Times), honorable mention (AP and USBWA) All-Big Ten Michael Finley - 2nd team (coaches and media) Tracy Webster - Honorable mention (coaches and media) Big Ten Player of the Week Michael Finley - Week of January 10, 1994 Roster 1993 Wisconsin Badgers y Jason Johnsen 3 G 6 3 190 SR y New Hope, MN Brian Kelley 4 F 6 7 240 JR Decatur, GA Jalil Roberts 5 F/G 6 4 185 FR Jersey City, NJ Darnell Hoskins 10 G 6 0 165 FR Dayton, OH Tracy Webster 11 G 6 0 185 SR Harvey, IL y C Chris Conger 12 G 6 3 180 SR Green Bay, WI W Andy Kilbride 15 G 6 3 185 JR Kankakee, IL n Otto McDuffie 22 F 6 5 200 SO Milwaukee, WI Michael Finley F 24 205 6 6 JR Maywood, IL y C Howard Moore basketball F 34 6 6 JR y 200 Chicago, IL y Jeff Petersen 43 C/F 6 10 225 SR Mequon, WI n Grant Johnson 52 C 7 0 245 SR y Plymouth, MN n Rashard Griffith 54 C 6 11 265 FR Chicago, IL y Greg Timmerman* 55 C 6 9 220 SO Dickeyville, WI * Stu Jackson (Seattle) * Stan Van Gundy (SUNY Brockport) Bob Beyer (Alfred) Tim Buckley (Bemidji State) 2020-06-14 1993-94 Wisconsin Badgers Roster and Stats https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/1994.html live https://web.archive.org/web/20121118010137/http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/1994.html 2012-11-18 2020-06-14 College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com en *transferred to Div. II North Dakota after fall semesterhttps://madison.com/sports/richard-will-play-at-uwm-the-cuba-city-scorer-takes-a-pass-on-division-ii/article_8b7efc8f-6171-59a2-b5c3-fae43159f047.html Richard Will Play at Uwm\ the Cuba City Scorer Takes a Pass on Division Ii Offers for a Shot at Division I June 14, 2020 June 14, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200614094450/https://madison.com/sports/richard-will-play-at-uwm-the-cuba-city-scorer-takes-a-pass-on-division-ii/article_8b7efc8f-6171-59a2-b5c3-fae43159f047.html live Schedule yes yes yes |- !colspan=9 style="Wisconsin Badgers"| Regular Season 11/27/1993 yes UW-Milwaukee Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 106-84 1-0 Griffith 27 Griffith 12 Webster 10 11,500 12/4/1993 yes y Loyola Marymount Gersten Pavilion Los Angeles, CA 103-67 2-0 Finley 24 Kelley 9 Webster 10 2,259 24 12/8/1993 yes UW-Green Bay Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 64-50 3-0 Webster 19 Finley 7 Finley 5 11,500 19 12/11/1993 yes y Texas Tech Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock, TX 91-88 4-0 Finley 27 Griffith 7 Webster 6 4,487 19 12/13/1993 yes Eastern Michigan Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 94-68 5-0 Finley 18 Griffith 12 Webster 7 11,500 18 12/23/1993 yes Mississippi Valley State Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 115-79 6-0 Finley 21 Griffith 14 Hoskins, Webster 8 11,500 17 12/27/1993 yes Stanford Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 80-73 7-0 Finley 21 Griffith 12 Finley, Webster 5 11,500 17 12/29/1993 yes Grambling Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 103-83 8-0 Griffith 20 Griffith 7 Hoskins 7 11,500 17 1/2/1994 yes Marquette 24 Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 71-52 9-0 Finley 14 Finley 6 Webster 6 11,500 17 1/6/1994 y Penn State Rec Hall University Park, PA 71-56 10-0(1-0) Finley 23 Griffith 11 Finley 6 6,253 15 1/8/1994 Ohio State Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 69-55 11-0(2-0) Finley 21 Griffith 12 Webster 4 11,500 15 1/12/1994 y Minnesota 18 Williams Arena Minneapolis, MN 53-90 11-1(2-1) Finley 15 Finley 8 Webster 5 14,413 12 1/15/1994 Purdue 9 Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 75-69 12-1(3-1) Finley 25 Griffith 16 Webster 4 11,500 12 1/19/1994 y Michigan State Breslin Center East Lansing, MI 60-70 12-2(3-2) Finley 17 Finley 9 Webster 3 14,211 14 1/25/1994 Illinois Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 66-56 13-2(4-2) Finley 17 Griffith 9 Finley, Webster 7 11,500 16 1/29/1994 y Michigan 15 Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, MI 75-79 13-3(4-3) Finley 30 Kelley 6 Webster 10 13,548 16 2/2/1994 Michigan State Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 87-62 14-3(5-3) Finley 32 Finley 11 Webster 6 11,500 16 2/5/1994 y Ohio State St. John Arena Columbus, OH 57-73 14-4(5-4) Finley 18 Finley, Kelley 5 Kilbride, Webster 4 13,276 16 2/9/1994 Penn State Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 77-65 15-4(6-4) Finley 19 Finley, Petersen 6 Webster 7 11,500 21 2/12/1994 Minnesota 23 Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 78-109 15-5(6-5) Finley 25 Petersen 6 Webster 6 11,500 21 2/16/1994 y Purdue 9 Mackey Arena West Lafayette, IN 64-67 15-6(6-6) Kilbride 20 Kelley 8 Webster 6 14,123 24 2/19/1994 Northwestern Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 71-75 15-7(6-7) Webster 16 Griffith 7 Webster 7 11,500 24 2/27/1994 y Illinois Assembly Hall Champaign, IL 65-76 15-8(6-8) Finley 27 Petersen 7 Webster 4 16,321 3/2/1994 Michigan 3 Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 71-58 16-8(7-8) Finley 20 Griffith 12 Webster 5 11,500 3/5/1994 y Northwestern Welsh-Ryan Arena Evanston, IL 54-66 16-9(7-9) Griffith 13 Griffith 9 Webster 5 8,117 3/9/1994 Iowa Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI]] 95-71 17-9(8-9) Finley 27 Finley 12 Webster 9 11,500 3/12/1994 y Indiana 18 Assembly Hall Bloomington, IN 65-78 17-10(8-10) Kilbride 11 Griffith 10 Finley 5 17,338 |- !colspan=9 style="Wisconsin Badgers"|NCAA tournament 3/17/1994 First Round - West Region yes y Cincinnati 25 Dee Events Center Ogden, UT 80-72 18-10(8-10) Finley, Griffith 22 Griffith 15 Webster 6 12,126 8 9 Second Round - West Region y yes 3/19/1994 Missouri 18-11(8-10) 5 Ogden, UT 12,126 Dee Events Center 1 96-109 Finley 7 Finley 36 Webster 7 9 yes Rankings 1993–94 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings AP 0 17 NR 25 24 19 18 17 17 15 12 14 16 16 21 24 NR NR NR NR Coaches 0 18 22 NR 21 19 20 17 15 12 15 17 16 22 23 NR NR NR NR NR NR NCAA Men's College Basketball Coaches Poll for November 17, 1993 USA Today Sports https://www.usatoday.com/sports/ncaab/polls/coaches-poll/1993-1994/1993-11-17/ 2020-06-16 USA TODAY en-US June 16, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200616180257/https://www.usatoday.com/sports/ncaab/polls/coaches-poll/1993-1994/1993-11-17/ live Player statistics +Individual player statistics (Final)The University of Wisconsin Collection: Wisconsin 1994-95 media guide: Wisconsin 1994-95 media guide http://images.library.wisc.edu/UW/EFacs/UWAthletics/Basketball/BBall1994/reference/uw.bball1994.i0001.pdf live https://web.archive.org/web/20190307180208/http://images.library.wisc.edu/UW/EFacs/UWAthletics/Basketball/BBall1994/reference/uw.bball1994.i0001.pdf 2019-03-07 2020-06-14 digicoll.library.wisc.eduMinutesScoringTotal FGs3-point FGsFree ThrowsReboundsPlayerGPGSTotAvgPtsAvgFGFGAPct3FG3FAPctFTFTAPctOffDefTotAvgATOBlkStlPFFinley, Michael2929104636.159220.4208446.46666182.363110140.786561381946.79275214067Griffith, Rashard252467226.934813.9127236.53800-94162.580741382128.5246166967Webster, Tracy292989730.933211.4120272.44147119.3964563.7141168792.71717256955Petersen, Jeff29549817.22348.193157.59200-4872.66756651214.293318969Kilbride, Andy292971724.72147.469164.42154131.4122227.8151759762.6554601989Roberts, Jalil28048217.21535.554149.3622581.3092032.6252239612.2204131232Kelley, Brian282454219.41475.360130.462310.3002438.63256741304.6214631183Johnsen, Jason24024710.3763.22666.3942255.40025.400516210.919801025Moore, Howard120726.0342.81221.57100-1011.909512171.4232110Hoskins, Darnell22024511.1602.71851.353523.2171926.731423271.2463001523Johnson, Grant28530510.6411.51740.42500-718.3892037572.071717464McDuffie, Otto120494.1171.4814.57100-15.20055100.8410016Conger, Chris100282.8111.149.44438.37500-0220.223012Total -Opponents - Legend GP Games played GS Games started Tot Total count Avg Average per game  Pts  Points FG Field goals made  FGA  Field goal attempts  3FG  3-pointers made  3FA  3-point attempts FT Free throws made  FTA  Free throw attempts Off Offensive rebounds Def Defensive rebounds A Assists  TO  Turnovers Blk Blocks Stl Steals PFPersonal fouls Team high Records and trivia Tracy Webster set a Wisconsin single season record for steals, with 69. The senior's assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.38 during the 1993-94 season topped Mike Heineman's nine-year-old record and stood for five more seasons until Mike Kelley's 1998-99 season. Webster left school as the program's all-time leader in career assists (501) and steals (183), compiling those numbers in just three seasons. His assist total remains a Wisconsin record. References Category:Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball seasons Wisconsin Wisconsin Wisconsin Badgers men's b Wisconsin Badgers men's b