Greg Gard does not have rebuilding to tackle during his first full-time season as the head coach of the Wisconsin mens basketball team.Gard took over as interim head coach when Bo Ryan abruptly quit last season after 12 games. An assistant to Ryan for 14 years at Wisconsin, Gard had the interim tag stripped from his job title in March with a five-year contract.The ninth-ranked Badgers begin the regular season with a four-game home slate on Friday when they host Central Arkansas at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.Wisconsin returns its entire starting lineup and 99 percent of offense from a team that finished 22-13 overall and reached the NCAA Sweet 16.The roster boasts four starting seasons, including forward Nigel Hayes, who was named the Big Ten Conference preseason player of the year. Hayes averaged 15.7 points and 3.0 assists per game during his junior campaign.Gard said Hayes maturity, along with experience of other veterans, will be impactful to begin the season. Wisconsin lost its season opener in 2015-16, and six games in total before Ryans departure.They had to dig themselves from (out of) a hole and mature and grow, Gard said. They understood how important the process is and how the everyday of it goes.It helps when you have a mature group. When you have four seniors leading the way ... your best-coached teams are always your player-coached teams. This group has taken on a leadership and ownership of that locker room.The Badgers also will lean heavily on senior guard Bronson Koenig for his 3-point prowess, and redshirt sophomore forward Ethan Happ for attacking the boards. Koenig contributed 13.1 points per game and shot 39 percent from 3-point range as a junior, while Happ led the team in rebounding with 7.9 rebounds per contest. Happ averaged 12.4 points and 1.8 steals per game.Senior guard Zak Showalter and senior forward Vitto Brown also bring a wealth of experience to Wisconsins starting lineup.The Badgers are fresh off a secret scrimmage at Northern Iowa on Nov. 5, which gave freshmen the opportunity to participate in a game-week preparation, complete with a scouting report on the Panthers. The event marked the second year that the two teams played a scrimmage that was closed to the media.Unlike Wisconsin, rebuilding is a priority for Central Arkansas.The Bears, members of the Southland Conference, posted a 7-21 overall record, an improvement from the 2014-15 season when Central Arkansas won just two games. Russ Pennell, a former Bears player, starts his third season at the coaching helm.The offense will run through Bears guard Jordan Howard, who averaged 20.2 points per game last season. Howard is joined by guard Derreck Brooks (12.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Mathieu Kamba (10.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg).Pennell said he hopes to build depth and improvement on defense with more options off the bench, after four players redshirted last season. He said he likes the Bears competitiveness in practices.We can go different ways (with lineups) because most of our guys are multi-position, Pennell said. We can mix and match, and thats the thing I like. I just believe that we will be able to keep quality players on the floor the entire game. NMD China . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. NMD Replica . The phone hearing is scheduled for 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. Winchester, who was not penalized for the hit, appeared to make contact with Kellys head early in the first period of Thursdays game in Boston. https://www.cheapnmdoutlet.com/ . -- For the first time in two months, an opponent was standing up to Alabama. NMD For Sale . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. NMD Online . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. KENNESAW, Ga. -- Kendrick Ray scored a career-high 33 points, Aubrey Williams had 17 points and 13 rebounds and Kennesaw State held off Alabama State 79-72 on Tuesday night.Ray was 11 of 22 from the field with three 3-pointers and went 8 of 9 from the line in playing all 40 minutes for his second-straight 30-point game and fourth of his career.The Hornets trailed 40-39 at the half but were up 52-50 with 14:14 to play after a Tony Armstrong layup. Nick Mastersons jumper tied the game and Rays dunk at 12:46 put the Owwls (2-3) up for good.ddddddddddddAlabama State trailed by 11 with 6:23 to play, clawed back within three but had no answer for Ray, who scored 12 points in the last four minutes. The Owls were 12 of 14 from the free-throw line in the second half.Armstrong had 19 points for the Hornets (0-4) and Rodney Simeon added 16. The Hornets made eight treys but were just 1 of 10 in the second half. ' ' '