Wisconsin guards Brad Davison, D'Mitrik Trice and Kobe King on the mend

MADISON – Brad Davison is 52 days out from having reconstructive surgery on his left shoulder.

Earlier this week he was finally able to discard the sling that had been part of his daily wardrobe since the surgery on March 5.

His No. 1 goal hasn’t changed, however.

Davison plans to be on the court for Wisconsin’s 2018-’19 opener. 

“I have no intention of missing any games and my goal is to be back 100% way before that,” Davison said before the team’s postseason reception Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.

“We don’t really talk about timetables, just because we want to keep that mind-set of attacking each day and improving each day.”

Davison, Kobe King and D’Mitrik Trice are all working back from injuries that contributed to UW finishing 15-18 last season and missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1998.

Davison first dislocated the shoulder in Game 4 against Baylor. He battled through the pain and several more dislocations to play in all 33 games and finish second on the team in scoring at 12.1 points per game. 

He is on track to be cleared for full-contact drills sometime in September. 

“You’ve just got to make sure you don’t get out ahead of yourself,” head coach Greg Gard said, “because if you try to do too much too soon you can set yourself back.

“Because you do some damage that was surgically repaired.”

Trice, who played 10 games before undergoing season-ending surgery on his right foot, participated in every session of the spring workouts that concluded Wednesday.

“I’m 100%, full-go for about a month now,” Trice said. “It is great to be back with the guys.”

King, who played 10 games before undergoing season-ending surgery on his left knee, missed the event because he was in class. 

According to Gard, King should be cleared for full-contact drills in June. 

“Everything so far has been good,” Gard said. “Everything has checked out fine. 

“He is just going based on how he feels. It has been five or six months since he has done anything on the leg.”

Both Trice and King are expected to receive medical waivers for last season. As a result, King will be a redshirt freshman next season and Trice will be a redshirt sophomore. 

The return of Trice and King and a healed Davison should give UW six capable guards, several of whom can play point guard or shooting guard, for next season. 

They join Brevin Pritzl, who came on strong down the stretch; Trevor Anderson, who redshirted after transferring from UW-Green Bay; and incoming freshman Tai Strickland. 

“I’m extremely excited,” Davison said. “Depth at this level is huge. That is one thing we learned by fire last year.

“You’ve got to earn everything you get. Nothing is given to you. That is exciting. It adds fuel to the fire for everybody. At the end of the day, we all share one common goal. And that is to (win).”

One player who isn’t battling to overcome an injury but is determined to play a greater role next season is Nate Reuvers. 

Reuvers was headed for a redshirt season, but when it became obvious UW needed help in the frontcourt, the staff decided to throw him into the mix in the sixth game of the season. 

Reuvers, who carried 215 pounds on his 6-foot-10 frame last season, averaged 5.3 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. He struggled to maintain position against stronger players and wore down physically as the season progressed.

“I had to play him in short spurts,” Gard said. “His tank went to E quicker as the season went on.”

Reuvers revealed Wednesday he weighs 235 pounds, though he is still adjusting to the added weight.  

“He is bigger and thicker and he understands what it is like to play against Nick Ward,” Gard said, referring to Michigan’s State’s bruising forward-center.

“He’ll be able to play for longer spurts. His endurance will be better just because of being stronger. That will help on both ends of the floor. 

“His ability to finish at the rim should be better. He should be able to deliver contact and go through people.”

The 2017-’18 season ended for UW on March 2, with a 63-60 loss to Michigan State in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament. 

UW went 4-2 in its final six games, with both losses to the Spartans. The Badgers were playing well down the stretch, but their overall record meant they had no chance to qualify for the NCAA Tournament as an at-large team. 

“I wouldn’t say I am over it,” Davison said when asked about last season. “I would say it fuels me. People talk about how it ended. It ended well but it also ended with that loss in Madison Square Garden. ...

“It was very frustrating for us. We’re not used to losing that many close games. I would say I’m definitely not over it and I don’t think I’ll be over it until we get to make up for it next season."