Wisconsin senior guard John Tonje was red-hot in the Badger’s 91-89 loss to BYU in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Second-Team All-American played so well that he seemingly broke the scoreboard on CBS.
John Tonje’s jumper is worth how many points? pic.twitter.com/b4CwLqmxP5
— ᗩᑎT ᗯᖇIGᕼT (@itsAntWright) March 23, 2025
The scoreboard appeared to malfunction multiple times throughout the game as Tonje poured in 37 points, a program record for Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament. The CBS broadcast was forced to take down the scoreboard for long stretches of the game, including a signficiant second-half run for the Badgers, as they clawed back into the game.
Despite his great performance, Tonje came up four points shy of his season-high, set back in November against Arizona in Madison as the fifth-year announced himself as an emerging Big Ten star, and more important two points shy of tying the game in the final seconds.
Tonje missed the final shot of the game as he attempted to draw a foul on BYU’s Mawot Mag, who played excellent defense on the final suggestion.
It was a magical season for Tonje and the Badgers, who did not have high expectations in the Big Ten. However, Tonje’s spectacular final collegiate season led them to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and nearly to the program’s first Sweet 16 2017, head coach Greg Gard’s first season as the head man in Madison. Tonje led the way for the Badgers this season, averaging 19.1 points and 5.3 rebounds a game. The former Colorado State Ram played just eight games at Missouri in an injury-shortened 2023-24 season.
With Tonje off to professional basketball, Gard will be forced to overhaul his program, and keeping sophomore guard John Blackwell will be his No. 1 offseason priority. Blackwell had 21 points in the high-scoring second-round loss on 6-14 shooting. Blackwell averaged 15.5 points on 45.3% from the field, and could be the program's centerpiece going forward.