Wisconsin men's basketball cruises past Chicago State to remain undefeated

The Badgers continue roll through nonconference play.

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard is shown during the second half of their game Friday, November 15, 2024 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin.Unranked Wisconsin upset Arizona 103-88. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Things started a little slow, but a huge second half powered Wisconsin past Chicago State for a 74-53 win, as they move to 8-0 on the season.

Wisconsin hosted Chicago State at the Kohl Center at noon on Sunday in their first game since winning the Greenbrier Tip-Off last weekend. Odds makers tabbed the Badgers as 35.5-point favorites, but the game was far more competitive than they predicted.

The Badgers quickly jumped out to a 12-2 win, but the lead never grew past 11 in the first half. John Tonje and Steven Crowl combined to score 23 (71.8%) of their 32 first half points, which led to only a seven point lead at the half.

John Tonje cuts and slams the beautiful pass out of the double team! 😤

📺 Peacock | @BadgerMBB pic.twitter.com/XH7xWmzO85

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) November 30, 2024

Chicago State had 13 points from its bench compared to only two from Wisconsin's reserves in the first half. The Badgers led 32-25 after 20 minutes of play.

They looked like a team favored by 35 points in the second half with a dominant showing. They out-scored Chicago State 42-28 thanks to a 13-15 mark from the free throw line. They cruised to a comfortable 74-53 victory.

Tonje scored a game-high 22 points, while Nolan Winter was the only other Wisconsin player in double figures with 12 points. Wisconsin's 19 points off 11 Chicago State turnovers was a significant difference in the box score.

This game was always a prime lookahead spot sandwiched between a daunting schedule for Wisconsin. It will start on Tuesday at home against Michigan before taking on Marquette on Saturday at Fiserv Forum. It continues to following week with a road game against Illinois and a neutral site contest against Butler. With the football team knocked out of bowl season, it's officially basketball season for Badgers fans.