Since becoming starter, confident Koenig has been different player
OMAHA, Neb. -- Bronson Koenig's sophomore season can be split directly down the middle and placed into two distinct stages marked by a seminal moment during the year: BI and AI. That is, Before Injury and After Injury.
During Wisconsin's first 17 games, Koenig's role was to find a way to fit in rather than stand out on a veteran team trying to put pieces in place for a national championship run. As a backup to starting point guard Traevon Jackson, he wasn't quite sure of himself when it came time to fully take charge, still too timid to bark out play calls and too hesitant to consistently showcase his sweet long-range shooting stroke.
The result? An average of 4.9 points while connecting on only 14 of 44 3-point attempts (31.8 percent) in 20.4 minutes per game. And when Koenig missed a shot or turned the ball over, he knew a spot would likely be available on the bench if Badgers coach Bo Ryan opted for a quick hook.
"I was definitely going through a slump at the beginning of the season," Koenig said. "But I just tried to stay confident and tell myself that eventually my shots will start falling."
Then came the instant when Koenig's entire season changed. Jackson landed awkwardly while trying to block a shot from Rutgers guard Myles Mack on Jan. 11, and the consequence was a broken right foot that sidelined Jackson for the remainder of the regular season.
In 17 games since replacing Jackson, Koenig has averaged 12.2 points and made 40 of 86 3-pointers (46.5 percent), all while playing an average of 36.8 minutes per game as the team's starter.
"If I wouldn't say he looked different, that would be a bold-faced lie," Jackson said. "He's aggressive and he's just playing great and he's playing like himself. That's great to see. He's really helped to boost our team up."
Over the span of about nine weeks, Koenig has blossomed into the standout that coaches knew he could become when they recruited him out of La Crosse Aquinas High School. Increased playing time has sent his confidence skyrocketing, and he has responded well to being the team's floor leader.
When Koenig assumed the starting role, Ryan said he simply told him: "That's what we brought you here for." Ryan suggested some recruiters thought perhaps Koenig matured early and would not improve as a high school player. Of course, Badgers coaches had a different inclination.
"He was pretty good where he was," Badgers assistant coach Greg Gard said. "For us, it didn't matter if there was a growth after. Because what we saw was a guy that saw the floor terrifically, had a great feel for the game. I always thought he could be a really good shooter, which he's shown this past weekend. It was just a matter of more repetitions and that being what he was more comfortable doing."
Added Ryan: "He's the real deal."
That Koenig's confidence has grown does not mean to suggest he lacked in that area before Jackson's injury. Badgers guard Josh Gasser said when players sit around watching games of other teams, Koenig will chime in and point out he is better than a particular guard -- a claim Koenig did not necessarily refute in the locker room before Thursday's practice.
"People have told me before that I have a certain swagger about me," Koenig said. "I don't see it. But I like to portray confidence, I guess."
Koenig has played his best basketball this season in the most important stretches. He averaged 16.3 points in three Big Ten tournament games and scored a career-high 19 points against Purdue in the semifinal.
In the title game against Michigan State, Koenig showcased all of his skills. He scored 18 points with a career-high nine assists and played 42 of a possible 45 minutes during Wisconsin's overtime victory. And even he seemed to realize he was now playing like the type of player he would not have been earlier in the season.
"I just feel so much more comfortable and just not even thinking about should I shoot it or should I not?" Koenig said. "I'm just letting it go pretty much."
Koenig also has become the go-to player with the ball in his hands in late-clock situations -- a spot previously reserved for Jackson. Without another true point guard on the active roster, he has not played fewer than 35 minutes in a game since Feb. 7 against Northwestern, and that means teammates have had to rely almost exclusively on his decision-making.
"He had to play a lot of minutes and carry the load offensively at the 1 position," Badgers forward Sam Dekker said. "Coach said, 'Hey it's yours now,' so that gives you a lot of confidence to go out and just play your game. When he was coming off the bench, he was just trying not to make mistakes. That kind of makes you play a different style than you like to play. But now that it's just him at the 1, he's really opened up his game, and he's improved dramatically."
Any mention of Koenig's season cannot go without bringing up his assists-to-turnover ratio, which Coastal Carolina coach Cliff Ellis described as "amazing." Koenig has a 2.89 ratio, compared to Jackson's 1.75 this season. And Ellis cited Koenig for being the engine that helps make Wisconsin go.
"He's had a heck of a year," Ellis said. "I really think a lot of success that they've had this year they can attribute to him because he's come through when there's been adversity. He's a player."
A player whose impressive second act this season could be far from over.
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