Wisconsin basketball’s season-opening win over Holy Cross was not as decisive as the 85-61 final score indicates.
The Badgers trailed the Crusaders, ESPN BPI’s No. 331 (of 364) team in the sport, 13-3 in the opening minutes of the game, 23-7 midway through the first half and 36-35 at halftime. A second-half surge led by transfer wing John Tonje created enough separation for the final score to indicate wire-to-wire dominance despite the Badgers’ significant early deficit.
Related: Biggest takeaways from Wisconsin basketball’s opening win over Holy Cross
That separation, importantly, led to a great moment for Badgers head coach Greg Gard and his son, Isaac.
Isaac, a junior walk-on guard, got one minute of action in the game’s closing moments. He made that limited action count, drilling a three-pointer for the first points of his college career:
GARDO 🙌
Isaac Gard, the son of Greg Gard, drains a late triple for his first career @BadgerMBB points 🎯#B1GMBBall x @gardo1214 pic.twitter.com/jhYCY7cKBT
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 5, 2024
Isaac joined the team as a walk-on ahead of the 2022-23 season. He appeared in five games that season, then six games in 2023-24. He was just 0/2 from the field over those 11 appearances as a freshman and sophomore.
The reaction of Wisconsin’s bench says it all, highlighted by John Blackwell leaping in the air.
Greg Gard highlighted that reaction when speaking about the moment postgame:
“It’s a credit to [Isaac],” Gard said. “He’s put time into it. He’s made himself a better player. He’s gotten bigger and stronger, it’s amazing what a weight room four days a week will do for somebody…I’m standing there as I’m trying to get guys in the game, and I knew the shot clock was winding down a little bit. Just the reaction of his teammates. To them, yea, he’s coach’s son, but he’s one of the guys. And they know at home, he’s my son. But at practice, he’s one of the guys. It’s neat. It’s obviously cool for him.”
The Badgers’ head coach continued to reflect on the moment:
“I don’t think his mom was at the game tonight, so I’m sure she’ll be pissed at me for not being able to see it live,” Gard continued. “He puts in just as much work as everybody else. He’s in the weight room, he’s running the hill. It’s hard being a coach’s kid. I haven’t been able to be present all the time as he was growing up, and our other two kids as well. To have this time with him day after day, you’re not making up for time, but you’re not losing any more time. And he’s also proven that he can be a handful some days when he’s running off screens and banging threes. He gives John Tonje nightmares…Just the team around him, that’s the neat part to watch. They’re happy for him and I’m happy for him too. Time goes fast, so you have to enjoy it. You won’t be able to coach your son forever.”
Wisconsin is back on the Kohl Center court on Thursday against Montana State. The team will look to notch another blowout victory, one large enough for Gard to again empty the bench late in the second half.
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