Kamari McGee 'pretty emotional' over ejection in Purdue game, Greg Gard admits

With 6:20 left in the first half of Wisconsin‘s showdown against Purdue on Saturday, Badgers guard Kamari McGee was ejected after fighting through a screen and hitting Boilermakers forward Trey Kaufman-Renn in the groin. While McGee claimed the contact was incidental, he was ejected nonetheless.

It was a painful blow to the Badgers’ depth. McGee is averaging 7.1 points and 2.5 rebounds per game this season off the bench while shooting 52.1% from the field. Before being ejected on Saturday, McGee had four points in eight minutes.

Wisconsin didn’t allow Kamari McGee’s absence to slow it down. The Badgers went on to defeat Purdue 94-84 to improve to 10-4 in conference play. On Monday, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard pulled back the curtain on Kamari McGee’s emotions following the ejection.

“He was pretty emotional,” Gard said. “He took it really hard. He really has invested a lot in this team and loves his teammates. So he felt that he had let everybody down and that was not the message we gave him as we left. I was the last one to leave the locker room and gave him a big hug. I said, ‘Kam, we got you. We’re gonna go get this for you.’

“He was very emotional after the game too, which was awesome to watch. I think you’ve seen some pictures and stuff of that interaction. He was in there, put all his clothes on, his jersey over the top the whole second half. I don’t know if he watched it on his phone or something. They couldn’t get the TVs working at halftime for him to watch the game, but he was pretty happy when we all came back in.”

Kamari McGee EJECTED on this play 😳🤔 pic.twitter.com/17eAjPGT74

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 15, 2025

It was a dominant second-half performance for the Badgers. They shot 18-25 (72%) from the field and 6-12 (50%) from beyond the arc in the second half without committing a turnover.

John Tonje was particularly excellent, tallying 22 of his 32 total points in the second half. He shot an efficient 10-15 from the floor in the win. It was Wisconsin’s second win over a ranked opponent this season.

With the victory, the Badgers improved to No. 11 in the AP Top 25. Before the game on Saturday, the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee named Wisconsin the No. 11 team in the country and said the team would be a 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament if it started that day.

With the win, Wisconsin’s seeding line has like only improved. On Tuesday, the Badgers will have a chance to build on their momentum as they square off against Illinois at 8:30 p.m. ET. The game will air live on FS1.