5 things we learned from Wisconsin’s win over Appalachian State

Wisconsin men’s basketball moved to 3-0 in the 2024-25 regular season after dismantling Appalachian State 87-56 on Sunday afternoon at the Kohl Center. There was plenty to take away from their final game before hosting No. 10 Arizona in a pivotal non-conference showdown this Friday.

Through three games, Missouri transfer guard John Tonje is leading Wisconsin with 17.7 points per game. He’s been very efficient too with 55.2/38.5/94.1 shooting splits. His performance on Sunday might’ve been his best all-around performance, as he added seven rebounds and a team-high five assists. The Badgers have three guards who can score 20 points any night, but Tonje looks like the most consistent.

When Northern Illinois transfer forward Xavier Amos transferred to Wisconsin this offseason, many people thought he could find himself in the starting lineup. Though three games, he has averaged only nine minutes per game, but Saturday was our first look at the potential that made everyone excited. His day finished with 10 points and six rebounds in only 12 minutes. He has struggled with efficiency, shooting 3-13 from the field on the season, but he proved that his role can expand throughout the season.

Three games is still a small sample size, but Steven Crowl is averaging only 4.3 rebounds per game this season, which is the fourth-most on Wisconsin’s roster and he had only one rebound on Sunday against App State. He averaged a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game last season, so a drop-off of three rebounds per game is worth mentioning. He is leading the team with 3.3 assists per game, but the rebounding is something to keep an eye on before conference play.

There was a point in the offseason where it seemed like true freshman Daniel Freitag or Central Arkansas transfer Camren Hunter could be Wisconsin’s top two point guards this season. Through three games, both players have only seen the floor in garbage time. It’s clear that Greg Gard and his staff are comfortable with Kamari McGee as the only true guard off the bench.

Sophomore big man Nolan Winter was an X-factor for Wisconsin heading into this season. It’s clear that he’s answered the bell and made a big improvement compared to last season. He’s averaging 10.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game compared to 2.4 points and 1.8 rebounds per game last season. He will need to continue to improve if the Badgers want to reach their ceiling as a team this season.