With the start of the NCAA Tournament, March is the best time of the sporting year for many. Around here, the 10th anniversary of Wisconsinâ??s Final Four appearance makes it especially memorable.But for the longest time, March 2000 was neither happy nor memorable for Julian Swartz.
“Looking back at it now, I donâ??t even know why it was good for me to try to play at all from a college standpoint,” he said this week.
One of the best high school prospects this state has produced in the last 20 years, Swartz averaged 23.2 points a game as a 6-foot-6 senior swingman at Waukesha South. He carried a 4.15 grade-point average as class president. A lot of schools wanted him. Swartz chose Wisconsin, where, along with his top-shelf athletic and academic skills, he brought a debilitating mental illness.