Tag: john tonje

Former Wisconsin basketball guard transfers to Winona State

Former Wisconsin basketball guard transfers to Winona State

Former Wisconsin guard Luke Haertle announced his commitment to Winona State on Thursday via social media.

The former walk-on elected to enter the transfer portal in late March after two years with the Badgers. The Hartland, Wisconsin native appeared in 11 contests during his time with the program, all coming during his redshirt freshman season in 2023-24.

His Wisconsin career finishes with those 11 appearances, two rebounds and 11 total minutes.

Before arriving in Madison, Haertle accounted for 2,264 points and over 1,000 rebounds during his prep career at Lake County Lutheran. He helped lead the Lighting to the program’s first WIAA state title; his squad won the 2022 WIAA Division 3 state championship.

He is one of seven former Badgers who entered the portal after the 2023-24 season. His commitment was the last announced among those who entered the portal.

Wisconsin, meanwhile, has added commitments from transfer portal guard John Tonje, point guard Camren Hunter and power forward Xavier Amos this offseason. Greg Gard successfully retooled the roster in advance of a critical 2024-25 season despite losing star point guard Chucky Hepburn and wing A.J. Storr.

Greg Gard compares a current Wisconsin Badger to Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson

Greg Gard gave high praise to one of his transfer additions:

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard spoke with reporters at his annual Garding Against Cancer charity event on Friday.

It was his first time with the media since landing Camren Hunter, John Tonje and Xavier Amos from the transfer portal. The roster looks different than on April 25 when the head coach had to address the departures of star guard Chucky Hepburn and wing A.J. Storr. The roster looks like it can compete in a tough Big Ten in 2024-25.

Related: Wisconsin basketball 2024-25 starting lineup and rotation with latest transfer addition

The roles of the incoming transfers remain a question. Amos will almost definitely start at power forward, while Tonje and Hunter will battle in a competitive backcourt rotation.

It sounds as though Gard is high on Hunter’s potential. The Badgers head coach compared his build to that of former Villanova and current Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson.

“I recruited Jalen Brunson several years ago. … (Hunter) reminds me, I hope he can become as good a player. We talk about ‘jackpot’; that would be jackpot,” Gard said. “But big, left-handed, big body, really strong. … We played against (Brunson) in the NCAA Tournament so we have a pretty good reference to his type of game. And Cam has similar attributes. I’m not saying he’s Jalen Brunson … but you look at him physically and he reminds you of that.”

Hunter joins the Badgers after missing the 2023-24 season at Central Arkansas with an injury. He was terrific as a sophomore in 2022-23, averaging 16.9 points, 5 rebounds and 3.9 assists on 42% shooting and 31% from 3.

The transfer guard figures to battle for a starting role with Tonje, top recruit Daniel Freitag and rising star John Blackwell. Either way, he figures to play a big role for Gard’s team in 2024-25.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Wisconsin basketball appears in Joe Lunardi’s 2025 bracketology

Wisconsin basketball appears in Joe Lunardi’s 2025 Bracketology

Wisconsin men’s basketball program appeared in Joe Lunardi’s latest 2025 March Madness men’s field prediction on Thursday. 

Fresh off their round of 64 loss to No. 5 James Madison, Lunardi projected Wisconsin as one of the last four teams to make the tournament.

Wisconsin, alongside Saint Mary’s, Illinois and NC State, is forecast as an “on the bubble team” in the way-too-early estimates for 2025.

Over the past few weeks, UW’s program has experienced a complete shift in personnel. Thus far, the Badgers have landed Missouri transfer guard John Tonje, Central Arkansas guard Camren Hunter and Northern Illinois power forward Xavier Amos via the transfer portal.

With the departures of former Badgers Chucky Hepburn (portal), AJ Storr (portal) and Tyler Wahl (graduation), Greg Gard’s starting lineup will look much different in the fall. 

Wisconsin boasts four Final Four appearances, six Elite Eight bids and 10 Sweet 16 seasons in its storied history. The crew finished 22-14 a season ago, but will welcome three newcomers and freshman Daniel Freitag into the rotation next season.

BREAKING: Wisconsin lands commitment from Missouri transfer guard John Tonje

Wisconsin just added a third transfer to its 2024 class:

Wisconsin basketball landed a transfer portal commitment from former Missouri guard John Tonje on Thursday.

Tonje is the third member of the program’s transfer class, joining former Central Arkansas guard Camren Hunter and former Northern Illinois power forward Xavier Amos.

Related: Where Wisconsin basketball stands in 2024 transfer portal class rankings after John Tonje addition

The Badgers were late to join Tonje’s transfer recruitment. He was committed to New Mexico for a moment, though he walked back that commitment and chose the Badgers instead.

The five-year college veteran averaged 9.8 minutes, 2.6 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 0.3 steals for Missouri in 2023-24. His best season came in 2022-23 at Colorado State: He averaged 31.3 minutes, 14.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.8 steals on 47% shooting and 39% from 3.

He joins a Wisconsin backcourt that will consist of Hunter, top 2024 recruit Daniel Freitag, John Blackwell, Max Klesmit and others. It’s a new-look group after the departures of Chucky Hepburn and A.J. Storr this offseason.

For more on Wisconsin’s transfer portal activity this offseason, check out the updated list of its commitments, targets and scheduled visits.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Report: Wisconsin basketball set to land commitment from another transfer guard

Report: Wisconsin basketball set to add another transfer guard

Wisconsin basketball is on the verge of landing transfer portal guard John Tonje, according to the Albuquerque Journal’s Geoff Grammer.

The story is complicated. But the former Colorado State and Missouri guard entered the transfer portal after the conclusion of the 2023-24 season. He then committed to transfer to New Mexico, though recently walked back his decision.

Related: An updated list of Wisconsin basketball’s transfer portal targets

Grammer reports that Tonje “posted on his social media accounts his commitment to play for the Lobos…and after that accepted an offer to go play at Wisconsin.” On3 also logged a transfer prediction on Sunday for him to choose Wisconsin.

On the surface, it appears the Badgers entered at the last minute and stole a commitment away from New Mexico.

The five-year college veteran averaged just 9.8 minutes, 2.6 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 0.3 steals for Missouri in 2023-24. The 6’5″ guard had his best season in 2022-23 at Colorado State — 31.3 minutes, 14.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.8 steals on 47% shooting and 39% from three.

Nothing is official with Tonje’s commitment to Wisconsin quite yet. But monitor this space as that could change in the coming days.

The Badgers recently landed Central Arkansas guard Camren Hunter to begin their transfer portal class. Many of the program’s top targets have been taken off the board. But the potential duo of Hunter and Tonje would be a first step toward replacing the production of Chucky Hepburn and A.J. Storr.

For more on Wisconsin basketball’s ongoing transfer portal activity, check out our ongoing tracker of the Badgers transfer portal visits and targets.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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5 guards the Oregon Ducks should pursue in the transfer portal

With Will Richardson gone, and the rest of Oregon’s roster still in flux, here are some potential guards to watch in the transfer portal.

One of the biggest changes in college basketball over the past few years has been the creation of the transfer portal, which effectively forces coaches to re-recruit their roster every offseason.

For Dana Altman and the Ducks, it means the only guarantee for next year is the departure of Will Richardson, who exhausted his final year of eligibility while becoming Oregon’s all-time leader in games played.

Jermaine Couisnard stated he plans to come back for next season, Tyrone Williams entered the transfer portal, but right now the Ducks are awaiting word on whether Keeshawn Barthelemy or Rivaldo Soares will be back or not.

That makes pursuing guards via the portal a difficult exercise at the moment, but Altman and his staff are no doubt perusing the names available anyway, looking for any way to improve the roster after failing to make the NCAA Tournament again in 2023.

Here is a look at five guards currently available in the portal who could fit in Eugene next season: