Varsity is the free Official Digital Magazine of Wisconsin Athletics, covering Badgers football, basketball, hockey and more each week.
Issue link: http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/293106
31 Was it a good shot? Check out the still photos: Aaron Harrison's game- winner on Gasser vs. Jackson's po- tential game-winner on Aaron Har- rison. There's very little separation between Harrison and Gasser, while there's unbelievable separation be- tween Jackson and Harrison who's backing off. Jackson was in Arlington, Harri- son was in Fort Worth. There was no way Aaron Harrison was going to contest Jackson after watching his brother, Andrew Harri- son, foul him on the previous UW of- fensive possession resulting in three free throws. Jackson missed the first and made the next two. The Badgers set a Final Four record by making 19 of 20 (95 percent). "Trae has hit that shot how many times in his career?'' Gard posed rhe- torically. "But that one doesn't go in. I thought he did a good job of getting separation with his little step-back ― the defender went one way and he had a wide-open look at the rim. It's a credit to him; he has worked so hard to develop that kind of shot. Obviously if that goes down, it's a different story in this locker room. "There were so many other possessions before that but those are the ones that get magnified; one for them and one for us. This is how it is at this time of the year. There were just so many things we could have done better that wouldn't have put us in that position to need a last-second shot to win." To end a season in the Final Four is sweet. To end a national semifinal game in that fashion is bitter. "It's bittersweet right now," Gard agreed. "It was a heckuva ride; we just got thrown off the ride a little too soon. It takes a lot to get to this point. It's a long, long journey. That has always been our goal ― to win a national championship. But there are steps and a process that you have to go through. "It's such a fine line. The team that we beat last week (Arizona) missed a shot at the buzzer and this week the team that we're playing makes one and we miss one. It makes you more appreciative of the journey, not that you weren't before. But it's a long road and it's not easy to get here." On the 45-minute bus ride from the team hotel in Dallas to AT&T Stadium, Gard confided, "A lot of things were racing through my mind. I was thinking about all the people that have helped me along the way in my career to get to this pinnacle…" His voice began to crack. In another corner of the locker room, Dukan sized up the cluster of writers and broadcasters scurrying from one of his teammates to the next to get their raw emotion and reaction to the road to the Final Four stopping here for Wisconsin; one step away from playing for a national championship. "As tough as it is to swallow that we're not going to be playing Monday night, I'm going to remember this day forever," Dukan said, "It was still a heck of an accomplishment to make it to a Final Four – to take Coach (Ryan) there for the first time. Moving forward, we're excited for what's to come." The work begins anew. "It was still a heck of an accomplish- ment to make it to a Final Four – to take Coach (Ryan) there for the first time," Dukan said. "Moving forward, we're excited for what's to come."