It was a banner night in more ways than one for the Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team on Friday at the Kohl Center.
Before tip-off, Wisconsin honored the 10-year anniversary of its unforgettable back-to-back Final Four teams, raising a banner for legendary former coach Bo Ryan. The current squad then delivered a memorable performance of its own, defeating the No. 9 Arizona Wildcats 103-88 in front of a truly raucous home crowd.
Beginning with the Final Four reunion and ending with a court-storming, Wisconsin couldn’t have drawn up a night any better.
Led by a show-stopping 41-point performance from guard John Tonje, Wisconsin’s offense caught fire early and never took its foot off the gas. Wisconsin took an 18-point first-half lead, and despite a second-half scare from Arizona, the Badgers weathered the storm and ended an already special night at the Kohl Center victorious.
“A tremendous night for our program,” head coach Greg Gard said after the victory. “We had a lot of other former players that were back and, I think as I told these guys in the locker room, it exemplifies how special it is to be part of this program, how important playing for the front of the jersey is, and they got a chance to experience how special this place is tonight.”
With a striped-out Kohl Center jumping from the start, Wisconsin, now 4-0, jumped ahead 7-0 and didn’t trail the rest of the game. Arizona quickly clawed back to make the score 9-8, but with 15 minutes left in the first half, guard John Blackwell baited star Wildcats point guard Caleb Love into a technical foul, which led to a seven-point offensive possession for Wisconsin.
Blackwell, who was originally fouled on the play, made both his free throws, and guard Max Klesmit sank two technical shots before Blackwell hit a three-pointer off the technical possession.
Wisconsin got into the bonus with 13 minutes left in the first half and from there rode the free-throw line en route to 55 first-half points. Wisconsin drew fouls early and often, taking control of the game quickly and putting Arizona in immediate foul trouble. Wisconsin’s 41 free-throw points mark the most for the program since 1955.
After a Tonje three at the 7:54 mark, Wisconsin took its first double-digit lead of the game. The Badgers, carried by home-court advantage, stretched their lead to as high as 18 points, when guard Xavier Amos’ three made the score 49-31. But over the next two-and-a-half minutes, Arizona rattled off a rapid 11-0 run, bringing the game within seven to remind the Kohl Center they were still a force to be reckoned with.
Still, Wisconsin went into the half with a 55-44 lead, with 23 of those points from the free-throw line.
No player exemplified Wisconsin’s ability to get to the line more than Tonje, whose 21 points from the line were the most in program history. He also led the team with six rebounds. His 41 points were two shy of the program record set by Frank Kaminsky, who was in attendance Friday night.
“I just want to be a part of something special,” Tonje said after the game. “I was not expecting to have a night like this, but I guess, when you believe in a man like [God] anything can happen.”
Blackwell and Klesmit also had solid performances that boosted Wisconsin. Blackwell scored 14 points on 3-8 shooting, hitting one three and scoring seven points at the free throw line. Klesmit added 13 points on 3-7 shooting, contributing six from the line to go along with three rebounds and three assists.
Wisconsin also received a standout game from redshirt freshman guard Jack Janicki, whose nine points and 19 minutes both marked career highs. Janicki’s role increased as Wisconsin got into foul trouble, and he provided a much-needed spark from the bench.
“He plays the game the right way, and as you can see he gets rewarded from it,” Blackwell said after the game. “Just plays the game hard, makes the right reads and makes the open shots.”
The Wildcats were led by guard Jaden Bradley, who scored 22 points on 7-14 shooting to go along with six rebounds. Forward Trey Townsend scored 17 points on 6-10 shooting, and guard KJ Lewis added 15 points on 4-11 shooting. Center Tobe Awaka scored nine points and grabbed 13 rebounds before fouling out. The Badgers were able to silence the pesky point guard Love, who also fouled out, scoring only six points on 2-13 shooting.
Arizona started the second half on a scoring binge, silencing the crowd and tying the game at 65 just more than five minutes into the half. But Wisconsin stayed resilient, not letting the scoring spree from a top-Wildcats team rattle them.
“I think I was most proud of the response when it was 65-all,” Gard said. “That showed me the guts and toughness that is starting to develop with this group.”
Wisconsin came out of its time-out and scored five unanswered points. Arizona made it a two-point game, 70-68, with 12 minutes remaining, but from there Tonje led a 15-6 Wisconsin run.
From that point on, Wisconsin never led by less than nine points, taking firm control of a game over a top team in the nation.
After the final buzzer, with a sea of students moshing on the court, “Varsity” transitioned to “Jump Around.” As one of Wisconsin’s trademark songs gave way to another, with a feel-good victory freshly in the air, a storybook night for Wisconsin was perfectly came to a close.
