Wisconsin overcomes slow start to comfortably beat Holy Cross in season opener

It wasn't pretty, but the Badgers opened the 2024-25 season with a win.

Wisconsin associate head coach John Krabbenhoft talks with guard Max Klesmit (11) during the first half of their preseason game against UW-River Falls Wednesday, October 30, 2024 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It wasn't pretty, but the Badgers men's basketball began the 2024-25 regular season season with an 85-61 win at the Kohl Center against Holy Cross.

The Crusaders entered Monday's matchup as one of the 25 worst teams in college basketball according to Kenpom.com. Greg Gard deployed the same starting lineup as last week's exhibition. With no traditional point guard, John Blackwell, Max Klesmit, John Tonje, Nolan Winter and Steven Crowl were the first five on the floor.

Things started out shaky for the Badgers. After an early three from Steven Crowl, Holy Cross went on a 13-0 run, which forced an early Gard timeout. Wisconsin slowly chipped away at the Crusaders' lead. It wasn't until there were less than three minutes left in the first half, that the Badgers took their second lead of the game.

Holy Cross shot an incredibly efficient 51.7% from the field, compared to 41.4% from Wisconsin. Missouri transfer John Tonje led the Badgers with 12 points in the first half, but the Crusaders led 36-35 going into the break.

It seems like there was a clear message in the locker room at halftime, as Wisconsin looked like a team that was favored to win by 25 points in the second half. They outscored Holy Cross by 25 and cruised to an 85-61 victory.

Nolan Winter scored 15 points in the second half after going scoreless in the first. Tonje added 11 more to bring his total for the game to a team-high 23 points in his first regular season game as a Badger. John Blackwell was the only other Wisconsin player to score in double figures with 16 points.

Send it in, @johntonje1!

John Tonje up to 17 points tonight

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— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) November 5, 2024

Wisconsin entered Monday's game as heavy favorites and they nearly covered the 25-point betting spread, but it was evident that this team has a long way to go before conference play. Central Arkansas transfer Camren Hunter was out due to an undisclosed reason, but their depth at the point guard position seems to be an early-season storyline.

The Badgers will look to have a more complete performance on Thursday night, as they host Montana State for a 7 p.m. CT tip off at the Kohl Center.