MADISON, Wis. (AP) — John Tonje still has a bit to learn about his new school.
Tonje was discussing Wisconsin’s 103-88 victory over No. 9 Arizona on Friday night when the former Colorado State and Missouri guard mentioned the pregame ceremony honoring the Badgers’ 2014 and 2015 teams.
“We celebrated some of the guys from the Sweet 16 teams,” Tonje noted before his new teammates reminded him that Wisconsin actually reached the Final Four in both those seasons.
Forgive Tonje if he doesn’t yet know quite as much as the average Wisconsin fan about the Badgers’ basketball history. He’s been too busy making history himself.
Tonje had one of the nation’s most extraordinary individual performances of the young season Friday night by scoring 41 points — two shy of the Wisconsin record. He is averaging 23.5 points while shooting 55.8% (24 of 43) from the floor.
Much of the attention surrounding Wisconsin (4-0) after last season focused on the players who had left for other Division I programs, with leading scorer AJ Storr bolting to Kansas and three-year starting point guard Chucky Hepburn heading to Louisville.