The Wisconsin Badgers fell 91-89 to the BYU Cougars in an NCAA Tournament round of 32 thriller on Saturday night.
After trailing by as many as 14 points in the opening frame, star wing John Tonje led the Badgers back into the contest with a flurry of free throws and clutch makes from beyond the arc. He nearly singlehandedly cut the Badgers’ deficit to just two points with exactly one minute remaining.
BYU would go on to miss its next pair of shot attempts before bench forward Carter Gilmore secured a loose ball rebound, prompting a UW timeout. The Badgers would turn to Tonje, who played arguably his best game of the season, for the final offensive sequence.
The veteran drove right, double-pumped and faded away for a contested shot attempt that failed to hit the net. When the clock hit zeros, the Cougars had corralled the defensive rebound and dribbled out the clock to deny the Badgers an opportunity to advance to the Sweet 16.
Simply put — BYU played a much more complete game from start to finish. The Cougars held the advantage for the entire bout, controlled both the offensive and defensive glass and tallied 10 more assists than the Badgers. Most importantly, Kevin Young’s squad shot lights out from the charity stripe.
While the Badgers occupy the No. 1 spot in the nation in free throw percentage, BYU looked like the more composed team from the line. The Cougars shot 15-of-16 compared to UW’s 23-of-29 mark. If Wisconsin had connected on just a few of those opportunities, it could have punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament’s next round.
The Badgers manufactured a formidable offensive attack, especially in the second half, but BYU was simply more efficient and deadly offensively. The Cougars executed on 12 of 26 looks from deep, many of which arrived in timely spots to hold off a Badger scoring run.
Tonje, Wisconsin’s top option, went off for 37 points, four rebounds and four assists off 10-of-18 from the floor, 3-of-9 from deep and 14-of-16 from the line. He, alongside sophomore John Blackwell and senior guard Max Klesmit, made clutch play after clutch play in the second half.
Blackwell added 21 points, six boards and three assists in 38 minutes of action, while Klesmit pitched in 12 points and three rebounds off 4-of-9 shooting from three-point range. Steven Crowl also dropped 10 points and four rebounds in his final game as a Badger, while sophomore forward Nolan Winter finished with just six.
Tonje’s 37 points were the most by a Badger in an NCAA Tournament game. It portrays the type of season he had. Wisconsin’s bench, usually a reliable four-man rotation, combined for only three points off 1-of-9 from the floor. In a game with these types of margins, Greg Gard’s group needed an extra push from its role players.
The Badgers exceeded nearly every preseason expectation. However, it is yet another March of postseason disappointment in Madison.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
#Wisconsin #Badgers #basketball #BYU #Cougars #loss #recap
