ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It says sophomore next to Keaton Nankivil's name on the University of Wisconsin men's basketball team's roster.

There have been plenty of times during the first two months of this season, though, when Nankivil has felt like a freshman. After playing just 46 minutes in 19 games in his first season with the Badgers, the former Madison Memorial standout has endured his share of ups and downs the second time around.

The sophomore forward enters UW's Big Ten Conference opener Wednesday afternoon against 23rd-ranked Michigan (10-2) at Crisler Arena still searching for some form of consistency, a reality that's not all that surprising given the circumstances.

"I'm a sophomore, but it's really my first year playing," said Nankivil, who has started all 12 games for the Badgers (9-3) and is averaging 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, "and it's just, some of those things you have to learn and if you're learning on the fly you're going to make mistakes or things just might not work out. And some days that's what's happening."

The 6-foot-8 Nankivil, the state's Mr. Basketball in 2007, has shown flashes since opening eyes in UW's preseason Red-White scrimmage, when he scored 24 points, grabbed six rebounds and displayed his explosive leaping ability for a post player.

He posted back-to-back double-figure scoring games against San Diego and Connecticut in the Badgers' final two games at the Paradise Jam tournament, had 11 points and nailed his first career 3-pointer against Marquette and put together probably his best all-around performance — seven points and a career-high 11 rebounds in a career-best 28 minutes — against UW-Green Bay.

But he's also been held scoreless twice, scored two points on three occasions and is shooting just 41.8 percent from the field.

"You've just got to figure out what works and what doesn't work and how to make things work," said Nankivil, who had seven points and four rebounds on 1-for-6 shooting in UW's last game, a 74-69 loss to ninth-ranked Texas Dec. 23.

"And I'm still trying to figure a lot of that stuff out."
Nankivil is still learning the nuances of UW coach Bo Ryan's swing offense because he spent most of his practice time last season running opposing teams' schemes on the scout team. It was the same way on the defensive end, which means Nankivil isn't yet playing very instinctually on either side.

"That's the next step he has to take, is instead of thinking about it and everything (going) by the numbers or by the letters — A, B to C — it just has to be a natural. It has to become more of a natural feel," Badgers associate head coach Greg Gard said. "And as many drills as we want to run or as many individual workouts as we want to give him, it still comes from the decisions and the instinctual reactions that come within the speed of the game or the flow of the game."

There are reasons to believe Nankivil will get there, though.

Gard said Nankivil is asking more questions compared to earlier in the season, and he generally knows where he erred after making a mistake.

"He wants to get better," said Gard, who thinks Nankivil has made his biggest gains as a result of watching himself on film and experiencing situations on the floor. "He wants to be a good player, there's absolutely no doubt about that. It's just a matter of it's going to take time."