He's In The Dance: Josh Gasser

As former Port Washington basketball star and the 2009-10 Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year Josh Gasser prepares for the NCAA Tournament with the University of Wisconsin Badgers this week, he was kind enough to spare a few minutes to update Patch on how he’s doing in Madison thus far.

Matchup: No. 4 seed Wisconsin vs. No. 13 Belmont, Southeast Regional.

When: 6:27 p.m. Thursday in Tuscon, AZ.

Winner meets: Winner of Kansas State/Utah State

What else: Southeast Region Preview   Bracket Challenge

Patch: How are you liking things at UW?

Josh Gasser: “I really love it. There’s probably not another school I’d rather to be at right than Wisconsin now. Not only from a basketball standpoint, but just the atmosphere around campus and the people, not just the students here but my teammates as well. I’ve built a lot of great relationships, school’s been fun, and hanging out with people and basketball too. Everything’s going pretty well so far. Hopefully we make a run in the tournament. I really feel well.”

Patch: By now, everyone has seen that huge 3-pointer that won the game against Michigan. Is that the biggest highlight from this season?

JG: “The biggest thing I look at from this season is the Ohio State win. The Kohl Center was absolutely amazing that day, the atmosphere was crazy and to beat the number one team like that and have the students rush the court and everything, that was just one of the best experiences I’ve been a part of. Obviously I’ve had a couple good individual (things), but the team stuff and all the wins we’ve had and that one (game) in particular has really stood out to me the most this year.”

Patch: Going from playing against high school kids in Wisconsin to the best the Big Ten has to offer can’t be an easy adjustment. Were there some tough transitions along the way?

JG: “It’s definitely a huge change from pretty much every aspect you look at. I had kind of been one of the leaders at Port Washington for three, four years so to come here and kind of be a role player and learn from the older guys and keep your mouth shut a little bit was a big adjustment, and I definitely think I’ve done a good job.  And just having my role change completely on the court is a big change, but I’m definitely open to whatever my role might be. It hasn’t been scoring as much as in high school but just learning all the little things is probably the biggest [adjustment] and just knowing how you can get on the court and help your team out.”

Patch: How have you seen your game improve in the short time you’ve been in Madison thus far?

JG: “Defensively I think I’ve gotten a lot better. I’ve learned a lot from coach (Bo) Ryan, the assistant coaches and the players, just a lot of defensive stuff. Also just little offensive moves – creating your own shot a little better. I don’t necessarily use it that much now but I’ve definitely learned a lot just watching guys like Jordan (Taylor) and some of those older guys. Just learning from experience has really helped out a lot.”

Patch: Are you able to keep in touch with your old team?

JG: “Definitely. I talked to (Port Washington) coach (John) Bunyan earlier – a week or two ago –and just wished him luck in the tournament, and he did the same with me. I heard they lost a couple days ago, but they had a good year. They kind of struggled early in the year but they got a lot better as the season went on and credit goes out to Coach Bunyan and the guys on the team. I have a lot of friends on that team, and my dad is an assistant coach so I’ve definitely been in touch with those guys and have watched them throughout the year.”

Patch: They were able to have a deep run in the playoffs and fall one game shy of making it to Madison. Did you give them any advice during that run?

JG: “The playoff run was kind of tough for me to follow, with the Big Ten Tournament and just the season winding down, I actually got lost a little bit with their season until I heard that they won in the regional final, that was kind of the first thing I heard. Trying to focus on my basketball, I kind of got lost a little bit but I kept track and I had people texting me score updates and stuff just so I could … I was hoping they’d get the win. But they had a good year, and they’ve got nothing to be ashamed about.”

Patch: With the NCAA Tournament starting this week, what are all the thoughts and emotions that are going through you now that you’re headed to the Big Dance?

JG: “I’ve been looking forward to this week for a real long time. It’s kind of why Wisconsin was the school I wanted to go to so I’d get a chance to play in the tournament. Belmont, they’re a good team. They’ve made it to the tournament the past couple years. They played Duke two years ago and only lost by one. They average 80 points a game and they have 30 wins so they’re going to be a good team. We know we’re going to have our hands full. They’re a tough matchup but I think if we go out there and play the way we know how to and play our game we should be okay. But it’s whichever team executes for 40 minutes is probably going to come out with the win."