UW’s Showalter contributes in many ways
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - His numbers aren’t jarring.
He hasn’t led Wisconsin in scoring once in 21 games this season.
Yet he is an underrated playmaker who has the best assist-to-turnover margin on the team.
He is a nuisance on defense who leads the team in charges taken and is second in steals.
And although his three-point shooting percentage has fallen off in the last six games (3-11), he has nonetheless hit big shots from beyond the arc this season. His name: Zak Showalter. “He has gone from walk-on to a two-year starter on a Big Ten team,” UW coach Greg Gard said. “That is a pretty significant accomplishment for him.
“And not only just become a starter … he has contributed in so many ways over the years, but now as a senior, I think his confidence level offensively has grown.”
When ninth-ranked UW (18-3, 7-1 Big Ten) faces Illinois (13-9, 3-6) at 8 p.m. Tuesday at the
State Farm Center, Showalter likely will play a pivotal role for UW.
The fifth-year senior from Germantown High School made four winning plays — two in the final 1 minute, 9 seconds of regulation and two in the first 2:16 of overtime — in UW’s overtime victory over Rutgers.
First, he scored on a difficult reverse layup along the baseline to pull UW within 42-40 with 1:09 left in regulation.
Then he stole an inbound pass with 28 seconds left in regulation with UW trailing, 44-43, though that play did not lead to points as Bronson Koenig missed an open three-pointer.
His plays in the overtime came in a span of 26 seconds.
When Ethan Happ missed a free throw after scoring inside, Showalter ducked and split two Rutgers players on the right side of the lane. He came across the lane and battled reserve center Shaquille Doorson, 7foot and 270 pounds, until the ball squirted free and into the hands of Nigel Hayes with 3:10 left.
Showalter eventually got the ball on the left wing, from Hayes, and drove into the lane. Doorson came off Happ to challenge Showalter, who went up and wrapped the ball around the back of Doorson to Happ for an easy layup with 2:44 left for a 51-48 UW lead.
“It is the energy and the toughness plays,” Gard said when asked about Showalter’s play against Rutgers. “The drive he made where he fed Happ on the layup was a big play . ... He contributes in a lot of ways. When scoring comes that is obviously a bonus for us.”
Showalter averages 7.8 points per game, tied for the No. 3 mark on the team with Vitto Brown.
He has 46 assists and only 18 turnovers for a plus-2.5 mark. He is averaging 0.9 turnovers per game, down from the mark of 1.4 last season.
He has five charges taken this season and a total of 26, both high marks on the team.
His total of 33 steals is three off his mark in 35 games last season and is second on the team behind Ethan Happ (42).
Showalter was shooting a personal-best 34.9% from three-point range (22 of 63) until missing both attempts against Rutgers.
He is shooting 49.6% overall (58 of 117), up from last season’s mark of 45.5%. He is also second among the top seven players in free-throw percentage (86.2%), also up from last season’s mark of 80.4%.
“In the off-season, I worked more on shots I am going to see in games, not just empty reps,” he said. “And not just getting 600 shots up. I made sure every rep was how I wanted it to be.”
Showalter hit a critical three-pointer in the second half of UW’s victory at Marquette and hit two huge shots during a critical scoring run in UW’s victory at Indiana.
He used a pump fake from the three-point line to get his defender in the air and then drove against Indiana center Thomas Bryant for a layin and a 63-59 UW lead. After Indiana failed to score, Showalter buried a three-pointer on a kickout from Happ for a 6659 lead.
“He is way more comfortable shooting the ball from the perimeter,” UW associate head coach Lamont Paris said. “I think he believes in his shot more. He has made enough that he believes he is going to make them.”