Badgers center comfortable stepping outside

MADISON, Wis. The other day, Jared Berggren sat at a table during a post-game press conference lamenting his recent inability to make 3-pointers consistently.He had missed four of five 3s in his last game and was just 3 of 13 from long range on the season. The shots were open, he said. Everything looked and felt fine, except that they weren't falling through the hoop.On Tuesday, the Badgers' 6-foot-10 center didn't have to explain his shooting touch one bit. Berggren drilled all four 3-pointers he attempted, scoring a career-high 21 points during No. 11 Wisconsin's 77-31 shellacking of Missouri-Kansas City in the Kohl Center."It always feels good to have the first one go down," Berggren said. "I think any shooter will say that. You see the ball go in the hole and it does help your confidence a little bit."I was in the gym earlier today getting some shots in. I felt pretty good then. Luckily, teammates are finding me open and I was able to finally put some in."Berggren's rapid turnaround in a span of one game and three days speaks to how difficult it is to keep the players in Wisconsin's regular rotation down for an extended period of time. And when everyone heats up from long range at the same time, look out."When they go in, it's a thing of beauty, isn't it?" Badgers coach Bo Ryan said. "But those were the open shots. Again, you still have to take what the defense gives you." Defenses have been giving Wisconsin 3-point tries through the first four games, and the Badgers are obliging. Of Wisconsin's 226 shots thus far, 43 percent (98) have been 3sWisconsin (4-0) shot 48.1 percent (13 for 27) from 3-point range against UMKC (1-4) and improved its Big Ten-leading mark to 48.0 percent this season. The Badgers are averaging a Big Ten-best 11.8 3-pointers made per game and entered the evening ranked sixth in the country in 3-point percentage.Among Big Ten teams, Nebraska was tied for ninth in the country at 45.6 percent, and no other Big Ten team was ranked in the top 45. Purdue was next, ranking 48th in the country at 40.7 percent.Perhaps most striking about Wisconsin's offense is that the team's big men are just as likely to fire up 3s as the guards. On Tuesday, Berggren and 6-11 backup center Frank Kaminsky combined to shoot 6 of 7 from long range. The rest of the team made 7 of 20 tries."They move the ball extremely well," UMKC coach Matt Brown said. "They were on the year a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, shooting the ball 40 percent from 3 and 50 percent from the field. I think they're really underrated in terms of their efficiency in the halfcourt offense. It is very, very difficult to guard when you have five guys on the floor that can shoot and pass it."Ryan noted that Wisconsin's ability to shoot the 3-pointer so well was predicated on the team moving the ball quickly around the perimeter and working inside-out. That is reflected in the team's overall assist figures. The Badgers have 68 assists and 31 turnovers."We've had a ton of assists," Badgers forward Mike Bruesewitz said. "Every game we've played we're sharing the ball extremely well and playing good team basketball."Bruesewitz found Berggren for a basket that broke an 8-8 tie early in the game. Not surprisingly, it was a 3-pointer one of six the Badgers made to close the half on a 32-10 run that sealed the game without much difficulty. Although Wisconsin has won its first four games by an average margin of more than 40 points, the Badgers will finally leave the comforts of home for their next game. Wisconsin faces Bradley (3-1) in Hoffman Estates, Ill., on Friday night as part of the ongoing Chicago Invitational Challenge."There's some challenges out there," Ryan said. "Right now the challenge is for us to develop. Up next is Bradley. We take our show on the road and play somewhere else."The 3-point distance, of course, won't change on a different court. And given the Badgers' early-season long-range shooting performance, there's no reason to believe the results will change, either.Follow Jesse Temple on Twitter.