Tyler Herro believes Badgers can make a run at a national championship

MEQUON – Tyler Herro believes the Wisconsin men’s basketball program is positioned to remain a force in the Big Ten and eventually make another run at a national title.

Herro, who committed to UW last September and is preparing for his senior season at Whitnall High School, sees the current freshman class of guard Kobe King, guard Brad Davison and forward Nathan Reuvers providing immediate and long-term contributions.

“What we have so far with Kobe and Brad and Nate coming in this year, I think they are going to be pretty good,” Herro, who plays AAU ball for Playground Elite, said this week during the NY2LA Summer Jam at Homestead High School.

“A lot of people think they are going to be down but with the winning culture that they have ... I think they are going to be pretty good.”

Davison is a tough 6-foot-3, 190-pounder from Maple Grove, Minn., who can play either guard spot.

King, 6-4 and 175, is a shooting guard who is versatile enough to play small forward in some lineups.

Reuvers, 6-10 and 220, is a skilled forward who can stretch defenses to the three-point line. Whether he is physically ready to handle the rigors of Big Ten play is the biggest question.

All three could contribute in 2017-'18 as UW must replace four starters from a team that helped the Badgers reach the Sweet 16 in March for the fourth consecutive season.

Herro is eager to join a culture that has resulted in 19 consecutive NCAA Tournament berths and 16 consecutive seasons of finishing no worse than fourth in the Big Ten. He hopes rising senior Joey Hauser, a 6-foot-8 forward from Stevens Point Arena Senior High, comes along for the ride in ‘18.

Hauser is mulling signing with UW, Marquette or Michigan State and if you ask three people which school will win Hauser’s services you’ll get three different answers. 

“Hopefully we can get Joey,” Herro said. “He said it is going to be a tough decision. I’m not going to say too much, but we’ll see what happens. 

“I think we could be a great combination. It would be great to have him.”

Herro, a 6-6 guard, is a dangerous scorer who can hurt teams from three-point range, in the mid-range area off pull-up jumpers and can drive to the rim and finish comfortably.

UW coach Greg Gard and assistants Joe Krabbenhoft and Dean Oliver were at the Summer Jam this week to watch Herro and several players the Badgers are pursuing in the 2019 and ’20 classes.

D.J. Carton, a 6-1 point guard from Bettendorf, Iowa, has attended camps at UW, is comfortable with the staff and appears to be a perfect fit for the program. Carton, who plays for Quad City Elite on the AAU circuit, is adept at finding open teammates in half-court sets or in transition.

He also is an effective scorer and is tremendous at attacking the rim, particularly on the break. His leadership skills are palpable. 

UW has established a great relationship with Racine Park forward Nobal Days, who plays with Herro for Playground Elite, and his family. The 6-9, 200-pound Days, a member of the '19 class, is raw offensively. However, he is an adept passer and showed physical and mental tenacity this week despite playing up one level with his 17U team.

Days has offers from UW, Marquette, DePaul, Illinois, Kansas State and Northwestern. Butler and Missouri have recently made contact. 

“I want to be a better two-way player,” said Days, who plans to major in business and one day would like to own a restaurant. “Right now, I’m a good defensive player. I’ve still got to work on the offensive side.”

Sun Prairie forward Jalen Johnson is the No. 1 player in the state in the 2020 class. The versatile guard-forward hit the game-winning shot to lift the Wisconsin Playground Warriors’ 15U team to the Under Armour Association Finals title last week in Emerson, Ga.

He missed the first two days of the Summer Jam while in Philadelphia at an Under Armour camp. Oliver spent time in Philadelphia watching Johnson. 

According to Ritchie Davis, the executive director of the Playground Warriors, Johnson has grown from 6-4 to 6-7 in the last 10 months. His wingspan was recently measured at 6-10.

“He is long,” Davis said. “Long, long, long.

“And the nice thing he has played point guard for us. And he’s got a well-rounded skill set so you can play him on the wing.”

Johnson is the son of Roderick Johnson, who played at Milwaukee Marshall High School, two seasons at UW-Milwaukee (1995-'96 and '96-'97) and two at Southeast Missouri State (1998-'99 and 1999-2000).

Jalen Johnson, 15, is already drawing interest from North Carolina and Kansas and appears on his way to being one of the top recruits in the nation in his class.

“He is a talented, talented kid,” Davis said.

According to Davis, UW’s staff long ago made Johnson its No. 1 target for the 2020 class. At least one member of the UW staff was at each of Johnson’s games in the spring and has been so far this summer. 

“They’ve put the full-court press on,” Davis joked.

The tie that binds the players such as Johnson, Carton and Days is that they were identified early by UW's staff. That foundation should give UW a legitimate chance to win each of the upcoming recruiting battles.   

Herro, who is actively trying to recruit players to come to UW, envisions state players like Johnson and Days suiting up for the Badgers. He recalls how UW made a run to the '15 title game, with state prospects such as Sam Dekker and Bronson Koenig playing critical roles. 

“The state of Wisconsin,” he said, “we could really represent and make a run in the tournament."