The Badgers transfer hit the record books after a strong performance in the opener.
The Wisconsin Badgers cruised to an 85-61 victory over the Holy Cross Crusaders on Monday, pulling off a dominant win in the season opener to go to 1-0 on the year.
It was a tale of two halves, as Wisconsin started very slow before ramping up towards the end of the first half, making it a one-point game at the break. Then, they came out swinging with a number of runs in the second half, outscoring the Crusaders 50-25 for a blowout win.
Transfer wing John Tonje was the star of the show, scoring 23 points on 6/11 shooting, while hitting 3/6 of his threes and 8/8 of his free throws.
Tonje led the charge as Wisconsin clawed its way back in the first half, hitting a pair of threes while scoring a team-high 12 points in the period, as he attacked his way to a couple of trips to the free throw line as well.
It was a strong performance for the Badgers wing, who quickly cemented himself as one of the team’s top bucket-getters, hunting for his shot both inside and outside the arc on a consistent basis.
Just how good was Tonje’s debut for Wisconsin?
Well, Tonje’s 23 points are the most of any Badger in their program debut since at least 2000, according to UW Communications, surpassing Josh Gasser’s 21 points back in 2010.
He also eclipsed Devin Harris’s 20 points in his debut back in 2001, as well as last year’s newcomer AJ Storr’s 15 points in his debut among other notable performances.
Tonje will look to be one of Wisconsin’s leading scorers this year, as the team transitions after losing key pieces Chucky Hepburn and Storr. He earned the start in his debut and played in 27 minutes, with 16 coming in the first half alone.
Wisconsin is looking to improve on both ends of the court as their new-look team continues to gel, and Tonje will certainly be a key piece for the offense as that goes on.