Laughter has been the soundtrack to Wisconsin's March success

LOS ANGELES — As he scrolled through Instagram on Wednesday morning, Wisconsin forward Sam Dekker discovered a message that made him chuckle.

A well-meaning fan had written on one of his photos expressing sympathy for how anxious the Badgers must be in advance of two season-defining games that will determine whether or not they make it back to the Final Four.

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"She said, 'I bet you guys are nervous and stressed out, but just know that we believe in you,'" Dekker said. "We're not though. By no means are we stressed out or worried because that just makes us play worse. We really stay loose and be ourselves."

If you're looking for a No. 1 seed to buckle under the weight of immense expectations, Wisconsin is definitely not that team. The fun-loving Badgers are so easy-going and carefree entering their matchup with fourth-seeded North Carolina on Thursday night that you'd swear they were preparing for a November scrimmage and not a win-or-go-home Sweet 16 game.

All-American forward Frank Kaminsky spent his off day Tuesday cracking jokes with the original "Frank the Tank" Will Ferrell as a guest host for Access Hollywood. Forward Nigel Hayes was so excited to have Kobe Bryant's locker at Staples Center on Wednesday that he snapped a photo with it while making a goofy face. Guard Bronson Koenig couldn't get Bryant's locker away from Hayes so he settled for a consolation prize.

It's Hayes' fascination with the fact a stenographer transcribes all of Wisconsin's news conferences that best sums up the fun the Badgers are having. The 6-foot-7 sophomore has made a point of throwing some vocabulary words into his responses during the past week to test the stenographer's spelling ability, anything from cattywampus, to syzygy, to antidisestablishmentarianism.

Of course, Hayes was impressed by more than just the stenographer's typing speed on Wednesday. An open mic picked up Hayes whispering "she's beautiful" to Dekker and Kaminsky, much to the amusement of his teammates.

"We try to collectively have fun because that's the time you play your best," senior point guard Traevon Jackson said. "That's why we've seen the results that we've had. We understand there's a time and place for everything. There's a time to be serious but basketball is a game at the end of the day. You've got to have fun with it."

Wisconsin players aren't sure why this particular team has so much fun together, but to a man they insist this is an especially close, tight-knit group. They credit coach Bo Ryan for keeping things loose by ribbing players during practice or splicing movie clips into film sessions to break up the monotony.

"When I went on my recruiting visits, the guys that you're with were a big influence on where I wanted to go to school," senior guard Josh Gasser said. "Coach Ryan recruits guys that have a sense of humor, that work hard and that fit the program.

"We're always hanging around the locker room together, hours before practice and hours afterward. We're in no rush to go home. We're always playing video games or watching games together or whatever."

Whatever Wisconsin is doing, the Badgers should stick with it.

They won 30 games last season, took Ryan to the first Final Four of his career and came within a late three by Kentucky guard Aaron Harrison of playing for the national title. They're two wins away from returning to the Final Four and perhaps getting another crack at the Wildcats, though a potential rematch with Arizona in the West Regional final will certainly be challenging.

Since neither the pressure of championship aspirations nor the challenge of slowing down North Carolina's quick-strike transition attack appear to faze the Badgers, Dekker was asked if there's anything that does stress out him and his teammates. He paused to think about it for a second or two before delivering a memorable answer.

"If the Packers lose," Dekker said with a straight face. "That's about it."

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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