Badgers best UW-River Falls in exhibition contest
October 30, 2024 | Men's Basketball
Second-half run leads to 78-62 victory
MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin men's basketball team used a second-half run to best UW-River Falls, 78-62, in an exhibition contest at the Kohl Center on Wednesday night.
Transfer John Tonje led the team with 15 points, going 8-for-9 at the free throw line. Steven Crowl was not far behind with 14 points and five rebounds.
Carter Gilmore brought a spark off the bench, finishing with nine points – a perfect 3-for-3 from 3-point range – and five rebounds.
Also coming off the bench was Kamari McGee, who finished with a steady five points, six assists and zero turnovers.
The Badgers earned their 51st straight exhibition win, dating back to 1992. UW improved to 62-4 all-time in exhibitions.
Wisconsin shot 11-for-32 from 3-point range as a team, hitting seven of those triples in the first half alone. UW knocked down double-digit 3-pointers in seven games all of last season.
Wisconsin also got to the free throw line, finishing the game 17-for-24 from the charity stripe. UWRF was just 6-for-12 at the free throw line.
Zac Johnson led UW-River Falls scoring a game high 25 points.
Markus Ilver highlighted an early 8-2 run, hitting two 3-pointers and a jumper in the paint to propell UW to a 16-6 lead at the 13:02 mark of the first half.
The Falcons slowly inched their way back into the game, pulling to within six points at 30-24 with 4:19 left in the first frame. Wisconsin took a 40-29 lead into halftime.
UW-River Falls came out aggressive to start the second half and continued to chip away at UW's lead, bringing the game to within 47-45 with 12:55 left in the second half.
The Badgers responded with a 13-0 run, fueled by two 3-pointers from Gilmore for his first buckets of the game.
Wisconsin built a 24-5 run and locked down on defense from there, pushing its lead to 75-52.
Up next, the Badgers officially tip off their season on Monday, Nov. 4 versus Holy Cross. Tip is set for 7 p.m. (CT) on Big Ten Plus.
