Posted 1/19/07
Bo Richter is a sophomore guard from Waukesha South High School. On Saturday, he will not mind being the second most noticed "Bo" on the court.
Because of the multiple injuries the Pioneers have sustained during the year, your role has changed many times. How do you adjust to that?
"Before (center) Jeff Skemp went down, I was trying to feed the ball to the posts and we'd feed off them. Since he's gone down, my roles are different in different games.Sometimes I'm asked to do more scoring, maybe more defense the next. It can vary. I try and get a feel for it as the game goes along. I like to shoot when I'm open and not force anything and then play good defense. Nothing spectacular."
Not spectacular? How about the last time you played UW-Eau Claire and you hit the game-winning three-point shot with just over a minute to play. It was your only shot of the game. Describe that.
"We were running a weave on the top with ball screens. I came off it and noticed no one was there. I shot it, it felt good, and it just went down. It felt real good because my confidence had been down going into that. I hadn't done a lot of scoring in the past couple of games. When I hit that, I kind of relaxed in the next game and practices."
The team seems to have adjusted to an altered lineup. What do you look for the rest of the year?
"We're looking for a good second half. We're playing well again and we have a stretch of home games. We want to turn this into something pretty big."
Something big is happening Saturday with the Bo Ryan Court dedication. How much are looking forward to this?
"We've been talking a lot about what it's going to be like. It's going to be unbelievable. I've played in front of 1,500 or 2,000 people before, but we're talking about something this big to the program. Bo Ryan was a main figure in this city and the area. It will be special to play in a game like that and with the whole Badger team coming, the 2,500+ and the alumni coming back."
Did Bo Ryan and the Pioneer winning tradition help attract you to UW-Platteville?
"That was a huge part. Coach Combs was probably the biggest reason, outside of the education. This is the one place I thought I could win a national title. With Bo Ryan and the tradition and all that brought me even closer. It just felt like a family."
You haven't declared your major yet. Are you leaning in any way?
"Actually, I'm going to see my advisor right now. I've been thinking of education because my father is a teacher and my mother is a teacher. I really like the lifestyle. I'm going into education, but whether it is physical education or another kind, I have to figure it out. I will be declaring shortly. And I want to coach, too."
Interview by SID Paul Erickson