PENNEY'S PLAY DOES ALL THE TALKING
Wisconsin State Journal; Madison, Wis.; Dec 23, 2001; Tom Oates;

If the University of Wisconsin made a statement by beating 14th- ranked Marquette Saturday, the Badgers' Kirk Penney gave an entire speech.

A 40-minute lecture, if you will.

A regular college basketball filibuster.

Penney, whose 33 points included 20 in the second half, was the dominant player in UW's 86-73 upset of previously unbeaten Marquette. In a game that also featured Marquette newcomer Dwyane Wade, an explosive swingman who matched Penney shot for shot after halftime, that's quite a testimonial.

"You always hope a player or two steps up big," first-year UW coach Bo Ryan said, "and I think what you saw from Kirk Penney was quite a performance."

Quite a performance, indeed. Penney sank 13 of his 17 shots to become the first UW player to crack the 30-point barrier against Marquette in a rivalry that is now 108 games old. His 33 points were more than any UW player has scored since Michael Finley netted 36 against Missouri in a 1994 NCAA tournament game. The junior forward was so hot he eclipsed his personal best - 24 points against Xavier last season - with 13 minutes to play.

As impressive as Penney's totals were, however, they ran a distant second to the variety he displayed in his offensive game. The guy who spent two seasons coming off screens, catching the ball and launching 3-point shots has added 25 pounds and a new approach since last season.

Marquette coach Tom Crean credited Ryan and his staff for expanding Penney's game.

"They took a guy who was a great shooter coming in and made him a great player," Crean said. "He can now score inside, he can score around the basket, he can score on the pull-up, he can score from 3, he can rebound. He does a lot of good things."

He did them all Saturday. Finally beginning to feel comfortable and find his shots in Ryan's swing offense, Penney used his deft touch outside and his strength inside to torment Marquette from start to finish.

Talk about versatility. Penney sank six long jump shots, five of them from 3-point range. Of his other seven hoops, four came on hard drives to the basket, two came on post-up moves and one came on a put- back.

"He's an aggressive player," Wade said. "He's changed from last year. It really is hard to guard him."

It is particularly hard if you're in foul trouble, which Wade was. However, Penney's new-found abilities to post-up low and penetrate from the perimeter, two things Ryan's offense demands, make him a handful for any defender.

Unfortunately for the Badgers, who are 5-6 this season, that transformation didn't happen overnight. Penney had to learn how to establish position and make moves in the post. He had to learn how to finish drives down the lane or along the baseline. Those things take time.

As he struggled to learn them, there were whispers that Penney wasn't fitting into Ryan's offensive scheme. But after averaging 10.2 points per game in UW's first nine games, Penney broke out with 21 against Furman a week ago. His 33-point explosion Saturday made a convincing argument that Penney has matured into the big-time scorer former coach Dick Bennett expected him to be when he imported him from New Zealand three years ago.

"I'm feeling really comfortable with this offense," Penney said. "I like it. I think it suits a lot of us."

Penney said he "found a little rhythm out there," but he was merely being modest. Yes, he hit five of six shots from 3-point range, the best shooting rhythm he's had this season. But he also showed he's beginning to understand how to play closer to the basket, which was foreign to him prior to this season.

"Just practicing in it every day," Penney said, "the comfort level does come."

It came just in time for Ryan, who posted his biggest win at UW and gave worried Badgers fans hope that his short-handed but more- talented-than-advertised team won't fall off the college basketball map this season.

"That's what we envisioned Kirk Penney doing for us because of his new strength that he worked so hard to get over the summer," Ryan said. "He is stronger on the post and he is scoring inside and outside. I think he's feeling more comfortable."

He's not the only one.