MADISON, Wis. – Forced to overhaul a roster pillaged by the transfer portal, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard felt good about the additions, the developments, and the chemistry cultivated over the weeks of conditioning and practices. He was also blunt leading into college basketball’s opening night in that he was still learning about the group’s makeup.
He learned a big lesson in game number one: his group is resilient.
On a night where plenty of things were askew on both ends of the floor, the Badgers managed to erase an early 16-point deficit and find their gear in the second half to earn a runaway 85-61 victory over Holy Cross.
Senior John Tonje impressed in his Wisconsin debut, scoring 23 points to lead the program to a ninth straight win in the home opener. John Blackwell added 16 points, five coming on a 15-0 run that gave UW the lead for good early in the second half. Nolan Winter scored 15 points in the second half in his first collegiate start.
Guard Gabe Warren had 23 for Holy Cross, 13 of which came in the opening 5:39 when he and his teammates made nine of 10 shots and smacked Wisconsin with a 21-3 run.
The fact the Badgers wiped the shock off their faces to trail by one at halftime was a testament to shunning the perimeter and attacking the post. After the opening eight minutes, UW had only attempted two shots inside the arc before running off a string of seven shots around the rim.
The results provided expected results against an undersized team. Multiple players found production at the rim, which generated more open looks on the perimeter. Tonje’s two open three-pointers punctuated an 18-2 run, broke a string of nine perimeter misses, and knotted the game at 25.
UW didn’t let the Crusaders hang around for long. The Badgers made seven of their first nine shots out of the locker room and tightened things up defensively, outshooting the Crusaders 56.7 percent to 33.3 in the second half.
The Badgers also got some bounces going their way, like Carter Gilmore turning a bobbled layup into a three-point play or Winter’s three-pointer that deadened off the back iron before falling in to push the lead to 18.
What it means: In one of the more sparsely attended home openers in the Kohl Center history, the lack of fan support was almost as jarring as the Badgers falling behind by 16 to the projected ninth-place team in the Patriot League. UW was able to get things corrected on the court but needs to find a way to get the fans back and engaged.
Star of the game: Tonje was active on all three levels, going 3-for-5 from two, 3-for-6 from three, and 8-for-8 from the line. The graduate senior also helped erase his mistakes. After committing a turnover on a poor post-entry pass, Tonje hustled back and drew the charge.
Stat of the game: After going 3-for-15 from the perimeter in the first half, Wisconsin went 8-for-16 in the second half from six different players scoring points.
Reason to be Concerned: Steven Crowl made his first shot of the game and then disappeared offensively for most of the game. He finished with seven points and a game-high eight rebounds but was just 2-for-5 in the low post. With the amount of scoring UW needs to replace, having Crowl fade into the background in games where he has a decisive size advantage is concerning.
Don’t overlook: Kamari McGee showed his value to the roster won’t always be in scoring. Joining Gilmore as the first substitutes off the bench, McGee had seven points on six shots, four assists and a steal to one turnover and saw UW outscored Holy Cross by 35 points when he was on the floor.
What’s next: Choosing not to play on college basketball’s opening night, Montana State will begin its 2024-25 season in Madison on Thursday night. The three-time defending Big Sky champion, the Bobcats were the preseason pick to win the league. Montana State will be one of the older teams in the country with seven seniors and graduate students in the projected rotation, plus five juniors. Tip is set for 7 p.m. on BTN+.
