The No. 18 Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team have already surpassed preseason expectations with a 15-4 record. While several returning players have flourished in bigger roles, the driving factor of the Badgers’ success this season is University of Missouri transfer guard John Tonje.
With the loss of three key players in transfers Chucky Hepburn and AJ Storr and the graduation of Tyler Wahl, the Badgers were expected to suffer a drop off from their fifth place finish last season and picked to finish 12th in the Big Ten basketball preseason media poll. But Tonje, who leads the team in points per game and is one of the most prolific free throw shooters in the nation, has given the Badgers a spark that was needed.
Born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Tonje spent his high school basketball career at Omaha Central High School. As a high school senior, Tonje averaged 23.8 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per game. That same year, Tonje set the single-season scoring record for Omaha Central.
Tonje committed to play for Colorado State after high school and spent four years in Fort Collins. During his last two seasons with the Rams, Tonje served as a crucial contributor for head coach Niko Medved’s squad. In his third year during the 2021-22 season, Colorado State reached the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2013.
After those four years, Tonje transferred to Missouri as a graduate student. Injury issues derailed his season, and after playing just eight games over the course of the year, he received a medical redshirt, giving himself another year of eligibility.
Now, Tonje has elevated his game on a bigger stage in the Big Ten Conference. Coming off of his disappointing, injury-filled season, the Badgers could not have expected Tonje to immediately take on the role that he ultimately would as a primary or secondary scorer on any given night.
The Badgers opened their season on Nov. 4 against Holy Cross, and in their comfortable 85-61 victory, Tonje showcased his skillset immediately, finishing the game with 23 points and shooting 3-of-5 behind the arc. Tonje also shot a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line, previewing what has been a key part of his game throughout the season.
During the Badgers’ matchup against No. 9 Arizona on Nov. 15, Tonje had a true breakout game. With 41 points, Tonje was just two points shy of the Wisconsin single-game record. Again, he was efficient inside and behind the 3-point line but made the Wildcats pay from the charity stripe. Tonje took 22 free throw attempts and only missed once. His efforts played a key role in securing the Badgers’ 103-88 upset win that jump-started their so-far successful campaign.
In the Greenbrier Tip-Off championship against the University of Pittsburgh, Tonje again starred for Wisconsin. With a game-high 33 points, Tonje led the Badgers to an 81-75 win over the Panthers. Again, he would go 10-of-10 on his free throw attempts.
In the most recent loss to UCLA on Tuesday night, Tonje shined with an extremely efficient night coming off of a zero point performance against USC. Tonje shot 6-of-7 from three and was 8-of-9 from the floor as a whole. While his 24 point night was his highest scoring output since that Pittsburgh matchup in November, Tonje has remained an extremely important contributor for the Badgers in conference play.
Tonje has continuously gotten to the free throw line with ease, important for when the Badgers offense might be stalling. The Badgers have been the best free throw shooting team in the country, and Tonje is a big part of that.
The Badgers currently have an 85.47% free throw percentage. That number would break the all-time record in a college basketball season if maintained throughout the remainder of the season. Tonje himself is shooting 93% from the line, a top-10 individual number in basketball. Tonje is also top-25 in the nation in free throw attempts with 128, showing that with a high volume, his percentage has not taken a hit.
After the loss to UCLA, the Badgers’ seven-game winning streak came to an end. This was their first defeat coming outside of a three-game losing streak last month. Looking to improve on their finish from last year, Wisconsin is well on its way to another NCAA tournament berth and high seed behind Tonje and the rest of the Badgers squad.
