Greg Gard watches his team on the court during the Badgers’ big victory over Maryland last weekend. Credit: Associated Press

Gary D'Amato On Sports SHARE Poll Are you convinced Greg Gard should be the Badgers basketball coach? Yes No vote View Results Yes: 87% No: 13% Total Responses: 3458

Madison — In a few weeks, the University of Wisconsin will post the job of head basketball coach and begin the formal process of hiring Bo Ryan's permanent successor. Athletic director Barry Alvarez owes it to the university, the basketball program and Badgers fans, alumni and boosters to hire the very best candidate.

Evidence is mounting with each passing day that the best candidate already is on the job.

Under interim coach Greg Gard, Ryan's right-hand man going back to their days at UW-Platteville, the Badgers have won seven consecutive games, including three over ranked opponents. It's the longest winning streak in the nation among major conference teams.

But that isn't the half of it. When Ryan stepped down in mid-December, the Badgers were a disorganized bunch, lacking leaders in the locker room and the kind of team chemistry and toughness that had long been UW hallmarks. One person close to the program told me the team was "a mess."

Gard didn't have the luxury of an off-season to get it fixed. The Badgers already had played 12 games — they were 7-5 — and anyone who watched them could tell something wasn't quite right.

"One of the first things I noticed when I took over was that we needed to develop more of a cohesiveness and a chemistry and improve our culture off the floor before we were ever going to be able to fix anything on the floor," Gard said in an interview in his office Monday. "We were scuffling a little bit. That had to be righted from the start. You win in the locker room first.

"I knew we had to grow and I had to expedite that really fast."

Nine weeks later the Badgers' transformation, on and off the court, has been remarkable.

"I don't think there's any question about that," Alvarez said when I reached him Tuesday. "Anybody who watched us play earlier in the year and saw us play now, you recognize a great deal of improvement. I'm really impressed the way he's used all the kids. I've been very impressed with everything from game management to substitution to how he's gone about matching up with people. He's handled the media very well. He's been good with fans. People love him."

The Badgers once again are playing the tough, physical brand of basketball that was their calling card under Ryan. Players have improved individually and are starting to click collectively. And they are doing it within the framework of the swing offense Gard installed when he took over.

"I'm not surprised, but you have to see it," Alvarez said. "You're following a legend and now it's a different voice. You don't know how kids are going to respond, and they are responding to him."

Asked if Gard had established himself as the clear front-runner for the job, Alvarez said, "I don't want to get into that. I have to go through a process. All I can say is I've been very impressed with the job he's done. He's met my expectations thus far. I don't know how he could have done much better."

Indeed, the Badgers are the hottest team in the Big Ten going into their game Thursday at eighth-ranked Michigan State. Plenty of people have taken notice.

Gard said he has gotten "a ton" of emails and letters of support. Other coaches have been complimentary of the job he's done; after the Badgers upset No. 2-ranked Maryland on Saturday, Terrapins coach Mark Turgeon was effusive in his praise, saying Gard, "has done an unbelievable job with his team." The national media has taken notice, too.

"I'm obviously very appreciative of it," Gard said of the support.

Some Badgers fans who initially had doubts about the career assistant and were anxious for a "big name" to replace Ryan have quietly changed their tune. Even the drumbeat for Virginia's Tony Bennett has diminished.

Gard said that in his conversations with Alvarez, the two have not talked directly about the job or Gard's future.

"Barry has given me space," he said. "He's said, 'Hey, go coach your team.' He's been there for advice, coach to coach, more than anything. If I need anything, I know he's only a phone call away. He's been around during games. He's come into practice. But he's kept his distance from the standpoint of he's not looking over my shoulder."

Gard is a lifelong Wisconsin resident. He knows every corner of the state. He knows the culture of the UW basketball program. He knows what kind of kids to recruit. And there's not any part of the job that he hadn't done under Ryan, who gave him more and more responsibility in recent years.

"It wasn't like I just appeared here," he said. "I had been very well-prepared and put in situations and exposed to things; I've had experience in everything except maybe walking the sideline and mentally I always had myself in that role. It really has come extremely natural. Some people have said, 'It looks like you've been doing this for a long time.' It feels like that."

Is anyone better equipped than Greg Gard to lead the UW program going forward? If so, I can't imagine who it might be.

Send email to gdamato@journalsentinel.com