Wisconsin will aim for a much quicker start in its second game of the season when it entertains Montana State on Thursday night at Madison, Wis.
The Badgers (1-0) trailed Holy Cross 21-5 just 6:21 into the contest before outscoring the Crusaders by 40 the rest of the way and producing a 65-61 victory.
“I liked how we responded and battled back and grew defensively as the game went on,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “I think we wore them down significantly. It’s a long way to go, but I like the response when things weren’t going well early.”
Veteran guard John Tonje scored 23 points and made all eight free-throw attempts. Tonje’s scoring output is the most in a Wisconsin debut since at least 2000, according to the school.
Tonje previously played four seasons at Colorado State and one at Missouri.
John Blackwell added 16 points and made all four of his foul shots. The Badgers were 16-for-16 overall, their second most makes without a miss in school history behind making all 22 against Purdue in 1976.
Holy Cross led 36-35 at the break before Wisconsin stepped up its shooting, making 8 of 16 from 3-point range after hitting just 3 of 15 in the first half.
“Second half, I thought we got better defensively and hopefully as you go through a season you grow from half to half,” Gard said. “This group understands that I think we can score, but how we continue to grow defensively will be extremely important.”
Montana State, which is playing its first game of the season, has qualified for the past three NCAA Tournaments by winning the Big Sky tournament championship all three times.
The Bobcats finished 17-18 last season, and forward Brian Goracke is the top returning scorer. He averaged 13.5 points and made 69 3-pointers last season.
Another standout returner is forward Brandon Walker, who averaged 13.1 points despite playing just 19.5 minutes per game.
Walker doesn’t lack for confidence.
“It’s going to be a real challenge for us to play against bigger teams, play against faster teams, but I know when we go out on the court we’re going to compete with anybody,” Walker said.
Experienced guard Tyler Patterson is also back. He has played in 128 career games (116 starts) and made 72 treys last season while averaging 8.2 points.
Guard Jabe Mullins, who played two seasons at both Saint Mary’s and Washington State, figures to be a contributor.
This is the first meeting between the two programs.
–Field Level Media
