The Wisconsin men's basketball team has many reasons to be thankful.

And it comes at a surprising time, since the coach who rebuilt the program, Dick Bennett, retired in late November and untested first time head coach Brad Soderberg was named the new Badgers head man.

But everyone around the program knows that the success the Badgers have enjoyed recently — their No. 15 ranking, their 12-4 overall record and last season's surprise Final Four appearance — is a reflection of Bennett's philosophies.

However, many people don't realize there is another Bennett family member pacing the sidelines of the Kohl Center preaching the same ideals and viewpoints that Dick Bennett used to talk about.

Tony Bennett, Dick's son, is Wisconsin's main man when it comes to recruiting, summer camps and player development. Not only does Bennett bring the knowledge his father has passed down to him through being involved in basketball, but Dick has also passed down the family name, which plays a large role when Tony goes on the recruiting circuit each year.

"One of my many reasons for coming back was to coach with my dad and secondly, to learn from the best," Tony said. "I'm very thankful because he's given us a chance."

It wasn't a surprise when Dick Bennett went to Wisconsin and resurrected one of the poorest Big Ten programs into a national contender.

In Bennett's final two years before he retired, the coach, who was known as one of the hardest working people in the business, took his Badgers to the NCAA Tournament twice and last season to a Final Four appearance.

Tony said his father was one of the smartest recruiters and coaches he knew, because he targeted kids that would fit the program's mold of tough defense and a methodical offense that opened up the team's best shooters.

"He was a tremendous draw card," the Badgers assistant said. "He only recruited the kind of kids that would be successful in the system.

"My dad had to go through the brick wall to get there."

Tony isn't the only Bennett family member that is in collegiate coaching, however.

Dick's daughter, Kathi Bennett, is the head coach of the Indiana women's basketball team and in her first year at the Hoosiers helm, has been credited in starting the rebuilding process in Bloomington.

Kathi said her father has already been to Bloomington since his retirement to give her team a pep talk and watch a few days of practice.

Obviously, for a man who has been in the game for decades, it will be tough for Bennett to just throw away basketball forever.

But Tony said his dad will find things to take up his time, and added his father is anticipating the spring, when the snowy, Wisconsin ground will thaw and he will fill his time with one of his favorites hobbies — golfing.

Although Dick isn't in the media limelight as a coach, Tony jokingly added that his father is still receiving a lot of calls from media from throughout the country, possibly even more than when he was coaching.

"As the time wears on, he'll be doing the things that he wants to do," Tony said. "He's been enjoying everything except that he hasn't found something to fill the void during basketball season."

Dick Bennett's contribution to the Wisconsin men's basketball program will burn brightly as the Badgers continue to build on the success that he brought to the program.

With his son, Soderberg and a new cast of young, energetic coaches and players, the Badgers just hope they can return the favor.