Takeaways from Wake Forest's 78-75 win over Wisconsin
The Deacs went into a hostile road environment and emerged victorious on Tuesday night, besting Wisconsin in Madison 78-75. Tyree Appleby shined and the Deacs overcame a five-point deficit in the game’s final two minutes to come away with the win. Here’s what we learned from Wake’s seventh victory of the season:
Tyree Appleby is a dawg
Okay, we might have already known this, but a lot more people learned what this guy is all about last night. Appleby finished with 32 points on 11/16 shooting, five assists and four rebounds and played all 40 minutes. He went on a personal 9-0 run in the second half to keep Wake alive, and made two big free throws in the final minute to put the game on ice. Appleby has been playing at a high level all year long. He’s now averaging over 18 points per game and shooting over 50% from the field while adding four rebounds and five assists per contest. Those are First-Team All-ACC numbers, and this game was a statement performance that proves he’s going to be one of the best players in the conference this season.
What stands out to me most about Appleby’s play is his efficiency and his poise. He can be so aggressive attacking downhill, or looking for his shot off the bounce. But he also does a great job of knowing when to get the ball out of his own hands and generate looks for his teammates. Appleby is a fifth-year senior who’s made 105 career starts,and that experience shines through in his play. The team is better on both ends of the floor when he’s out there. Especially on a night when Daivien Williamson appeared to be on a pitch count, Appleby knew he had to step up and delivered in a big way. Steve Forbes has officially hit another home run in the transfer portal.
Cam Hildreth and Damari Monsanto can close out games, too
Last season, the Deacs were served well by having multiple guys that were able to hit big shots at the end of games. Alondes was Alondes, Jake was the secondary playmaker, and guys like Isaiah Mucius were trusted as well to take and make big shots. Appleby has emerged as the star of this team, but as a 6-1 point guard, he won’t always be able to create for himself.
Insert the sophomore Hildreth and the junior Monsanto, who stepped up big in crunch time to deliver tough isolation buckets. With under two minutes to play, 71-70, Monsanto received the ball from Appleby on the wing with the smaller Chucky Hepburn guarding him. Monsanto penetrated below the free throw line on the wing, before turning around, elevating and drilling a fad away midrange jumper that the smaller Hepburn struggled to contest. The next time down the floor, Wake went right back to him to go get a bucket, this time with freshman Connor Essegian guarding him. Monsanto created space with a jab but missed the midrange jumper. The announcers thought it was too quick of a look, but I had no problem with it and I liked that Monsanto shot it with confidence. That’s a look he’ll make more than he misses.
After two free throws from Wahl, Wake trailed by one again. Hildreth received the ball off of a dribble handoff from Carr, and the bigger Wahl switched on to him. Hildreth was strong on the ball, driving down to the left block, before jump-stopping and elevating for a six-foot float shot with his right hand. Hildreth does such a great job of getting low when attacking. The sophomore from England doesn’t get to the basket with speed, athleticism, or dribble moves. It’s all about toughness, balance, and playing off of two feet. That’s what makes him effective in clutch situations — he knows how to play under control when the game is on the line and it paid off big time against Wisconsin.
Appleby was fantastic all game, but in the final two minutes, Wake relied on Monsanto and Hildreth to score in isolation. Having multiple guys outside of the primary ball handler that can go get a bucket on their own is huge for this team, and their performance in these situations will decide wins and losses.
Wake’s defense won the game down the stretch
A few weeks ago, we wrote that this team’s stingy defense and tendency to force long possessions would help them win some games. This is exactly what happened Tuesday night. Wake trailed by five entering the final two minutes of the game and didn’t give up a single field foal in that period. The Deacs forced two misses from Tyler Wahl (17 pts, 6/14 FGs) and one from Chucky Hepburn (23 pts, 6/12 3pt), who had been the Badgers’ biggest offensive threats. Wisconsin drilled a barrage of threes in the second and threatened to crack the game open at several points, but Steve Forbes’ group dug their heels in down the stretch and forced several big stops that kept the Deacs in it.
Yes, Wake gave up 75 points, but the Badgers were uncharacteristically hot from three, draining 12 shots from deep in the loss (including a half-court heave to beat the first-half buzzer). Wisconsin presented a tough matchup for Wake Forest in a lot of ways — they had two skilled, physical big men in Wahl and Steven Crowl and the Deacs are young and inexperienced at the five. Matthew Marsh was the best five man Tuesday night — he made plays on both ends throughout the game and went a perfect 4/4 from the field. When Wahl looked to take Marsh on with under two minutes to go in regulation with the Badgers up one, the sophomore forced him into a tough shot and grabbed the rebound as well. Andrew Carr’s length bothered Wahl in his limited minutes because of foul trouble, and surprisingly it was Monsanto who was guarding Wahl when he missed a go-ahead shot attempt with 15 seconds to play.
Follow @DeaconsDaily on Twitter and Instagram for more Wake Forest content
