The Wisconsin Badgers finished with a 27-10 overall record during the 2024-2025 college basketball season. They were also 13-7 in BIG10 conference play.
Wisconsin once again made it to the BIG10 Championship game before losing to the Michigan Wolverines. The Badgers were the number three seed in the NCAA Tournament, and they lost to the BYU Cougars in the second-round of the NCAA Tournament. John Tonje was the primary player for head coach Greg Gard last season and the Badgers were a Top 25 team because of him. Can Wisconsin be a Top 25 team once again in 2025-2026 despite the departure of Tonje?
Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports Thinks That the Wisconsin Badgers Can Be a Top 25 Team In 2025-2026 Despite John Tonje Departure
Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports has been updating his Top 45 teams often for the upcoming 2025-2026 college basketball season. The BIG10 Conference could have another strong representation in the NCAA Tournament once again. Also, Wisconsin fans are wondering if they are going to be the same team next season.
Rothstein has Wisconsin ranked number 23 in his Top 45 rankings. This means that he believes that they could very well be in the Top 25 by the time the first week of the 2025-2026 college basketball season rolls around. Rothstein said,
“Projected Starting 5:
G Nick Boyd
G John Blackwell
G Andrew Rohde
F Austin Rapp
C Nolan Winter
Projected Bench: Will Garlock, Hayden Jones, Zach Kinziger, Aleksas Bieliauskas, Jack Janicki
Key Newcomers: Zach Kinziger, Will Garlock, Hayden Jones, Andrew Rohde (Virginia), Austin Rapp (Portland), Nick Boyd (San Diego State), Aleksas Bieliauskas
Key Losses: John Tonje, Kamari McGee, Carter Gilmore, Steven Crowl, Max Klesmit
Entered 2025 NBA Draft while retaining college eligibility: John Blackwell”
Tonje played in 37 games for Wisconsin during the 2024-2025 season averaged 19.6 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.8 APG, and shot 46.5% from the field. Blackwell is expected to return to the Badgers for the 2025-2026 season. He played in 37 games for the Badgers in 2024-2025 as well. Blackwell averaged 15.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 2.2 APG, and also shot 45.1% from the field.
Rohde when he was with the Virginia Cavaliers in 2024-2025 averaged 9.3 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 4.3 APG, along with shooting 43.2% from the field. As for Boyd, he averaged 13.4 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 3.9 APG, and shot 41.1% from the field last season with the San Diego Aztecs. It will be interesting to see how well those two guys perform in 2025-2026 with the Badgers. Boyd could be a player that can replace Tonje in the scoring department.
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