BADGER BLUES

After Duke beat Wisconsin in the title game of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, Badgers coach Bo Ryan had a few complaints.

He didn’t like the way the game was officiated in the second half, when his team was called for 13 personal fouls after being hit for only two in the first half. The NCAA would later be left explaining an out-of-bounds call that went to Duke even after the officials visited the TV monitor long enough to watch every episode of “Friends.” Then Ryan took a shot at “one and done” players – the guys who leave after a single season to turn pro, which irritated Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski.

So Ryan got called a whiner and a moaner, but guess what? He was right about the officiating (for the most part), the officials did miss a huge call and botched the chance to get it right, and now the one-and-done crowd has headed for the exits.

Duke’s Jahlil Okafor, a freshman, declared for the NBA draft on Thursday. Seven Kentucky players – remember Wisconsin upsetting Kentucky in the semifinals? – are not coming back, including freshmen Karl-Anthony Towns, Devon Booker and Trey Lyles. Sophomores Dakari Johnson and twins Andrew and Aaron Harrison will depart. The lone old man making his exit is junior Willie Cauley-Stein. You can count the diplomas on no fingers.

The NBA is partly responsible for this, as it will not allow anyone not yet 19 into its league. So where do the kids go to play ball? College. Should we be mad at them for leaving the university for high-paying jobs? Probably not. Is this ideal? Probably not.

The Indianapolis Star noted this about Kentucky: With the departures, UK lost 85 percent of its points, 83.2 percent of its blocked shots, 78.3 percent of its steals, 77 percent of its rebounds and 69.6 percent of its assists from the 2014-15 season. The cupboard is not completely bare, as freshman point guard Tyler Ulis, sophomore forward Marcus Lee and junior forward Alex Poythress — all former McDonald’s All Americans — are expected to return and top recruits are headed in.

See you in October, Wildcats.

Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .