SIMPLE LOOK

As Bo Ryan approaches 200 wins with the University of Wisconsin men's basketball team, anyone who has coached or played for him is flummoxed every time they are asked to name the victories that best define his coaching prowess. That's because the biggest reason why Ryan has 199 wins at UW heading into tonight's game between the 20th-ranked Badgers (6-1) and UW-Green Bay (8-2) at the Resch Center is virtually all of them were earned the same way. There haven't been a bunch of great speeches, surprise plays or major game adjustments that led to the Badgers' biggest wins under Ryan over the past eight-plus seasons. Whether it was during the Badgers' 7369 win over Duke last Wednesday, their 64-63 win at Michigan State in 2002 that ended the Spartans' 53-game home winning streak or UW's 72-69 victory over Ohio State in 2007, Ryan spent every practice, timeout and halftime reinforcing the need to take care of the ball, get good shots and follow all their rules defensively. "A lot of people tried to paint him into a corner and say that he had to have done this or that differently for the Duke game. But he has not done anything different for any game in the last 17 years I've been with him," said assistant head coach Greg Gard, who coached with Ryan at UW-Platteville and UW-Milwaukee before they came to UW in 2001. "It's all about consistency, which I think helps instill confidence in the players." The only time Gard heard Ryan go against the norm and say something truly inspiring was before the Badgers rallied from 13 points down with 3 minutes left to defeat Tulsa 61-60 in a second-round NCAA tournament game in 2003. "He said something like, 'Hey, they are going to remember this one for a long time.' He was trying to instill some confidence," Gard said. But they won the game in true UW style. Ryan told the Badgers to run one of their simplest plays that led to Devin Harris getting the ball to Freddie Owens, who hit a 3-pointer from the corner at the buzzer. "It was Play One; a very simple ball screen and we spread the floor with the other guys," Gard said. It was the same situation during their runs to three Big Ten Conference regular-season titles, two Big Ten tournament titles, their run to the NCAA tournament Elite Eight in 2005 and their brief No. 1 ranking in 2007. "Bo says, 'This is what we do and we have to get really good at it. If you stick with it, good things will happen,'" said UW-Milwaukee coach Rob Jeter, who played for Ryan at UW-Platteville and was a longtime assistant. "That's how his approach is with everything." Watch Ryan during games and he coaches with the consistency he demands from his players. "(Barry) Alvarez has the book titled, 'Don't Flinch.' But I think that title applies to Bo's teams, too," said Matt Lepay, the radio voice of the Badgers. "They rally to beat N.C. State (in an NCAA tournament regional semifinal) in Syracuse, last year it was Florida State (in the first round of the NCAA tournament); where they get behind but you see him on the sideline and, when he's not working the refs, he's just watching with that poker face and you get the feeling his mind is turning," Lepay continued. "With Bo, his success goes beyond the swing offense and his defensive principles." Most of those who have worked with Ryan also believe he has done his best work with player development. North Dakota State coach Saul Phillips, who played for and worked under Ryan, says his commitment to senior point guard Travon Davis is what sticks out from Ryan's first season at UW that started so horribly and ended with a Big Ten regular-season title. "If you're looking for one thing that typifies Bo, it was helping Travon realize his potential that year," Phillips said. "That really was a huge, huge step in our team's development and Devin Harris' development because it took a lot of pressure off him. That's the stuff I look back at and say, 'Wow.'" Jeter said he loves the work Ryan has done with Trevon Hughes, who has become one of the elite guards in the country this season. "He has worked with that kid and didn't allow him to take any short cuts or go out on his own. He said, 'Just stick to what we do and you'll be a pretty good point guard for us,'" Jeter said. "Now Trevon is so much better, he's so much more under control. He has a purpose. He knows what he is supposed to do and he gets it done."