In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, Mike Lucas and Tom Oates continue to wait for the Wisconsin men’s basketball team to shore up its defensive game. The Badgers scored 83 points against the Fighting Illini and still lost by eight points. 

“Wisconsin has to play defense for 40 minutes like they play for about 20 minutes every game,” says Oates, the former Wisconsin State Journal sports columnist. “Sometimes, the Badgers just can’t get a stop and it’s been at critical times in games. 

Lucas thinks the Badgers have had lackluster ball pressure all season.  

“In what’s been the case a lot this year, Wisconsin didn’t have finishing power. They couldn’t close out Illinois when they needed to and they went down in another defeat,” says Lucas, a Cap Times sports freelance writer and former radio color analyst for the Badgers. “And that bench has really shortened up, hasn’t it?” 

Also on the podcast, the veteran sports journalists — like basketball fans across the country — have caught Caitlin Clark Fever. Lucas notes the Iowa’s star point guard has broken more than the NCAA’s all-time scoring record.  

“She's putting people in the seats and not just at the Carver-Hawkeye Arena, but around the league,” says Lucas. “What a boost for women’s basketball.”

Oates says Clark has earned all the attention. 

“Caitlin Clark doesn’t take a backseat to anyone,” adds Oates. “She’s a sensation and fun to watch.”

The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Dylan Brogan. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.