Two former Wisconsin Badgers have career highs with new teams

MADISON, Wis. - Two players cast off from the University of Wisconsin men's basketball team had a big day at the new homes.

Buffalo point guard Daniel Freitag and Vermont center Gus Yalden both set new career highs with their respective teams on Saturday, with Freitag scoring 27 points and Yalden registering 18 off the bench to keep their teams undefeated.

Freitag has been on a tear for the Bulls. After scoring seven points in the season opener, the sophomore guard scored 20 in a win over Green Bay, 18 in a road win over DePaul and had 23 of his points in the first half on Saturday.

George Halcovage and Buffalo killed it in the portal picking up Wisconsin transfer Daniel Freitag.

Freitag is a former-four star recruit who played sparingly his first season at Wisconsin, but has been a key cog in the Bulls 4-0 start.

He had 27 PTS/5 ASTS/2 REBS today and 18… pic.twitter.com/CiXRMTlptf
— Sam Kayser (@KayserHoops) November 15, 2025

Freitag also contributed five assists in the 80-64 win over RIT and is averaging 18.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists for the only 4-0 team in the Mid-American Conference.

Yalden didn't appear in the first three games of the season but was 8-for-12 off the bench in an 85-74 win over Northeastern. Yalden also added five rebounds and five assists in a career-high 23 minutes. Like Buffalo, Vermont is the only 4-0 team in the America East.

Vermont trailed by 3 at halftime at Northeastern but came back in the 2nd half to win, 85 to 74.

Big-man Gus Yalden had 18 PTS, 5 REB, 5 AST and guard Sean Blake 16 PTS off the bench.

TJ Long & TJ Hurley were key, per usual.

Catamounts improve to 4-0. pic.twitter.com/lss8xgytzq
— Vince Wolfram (@vincewolfram15) November 15, 2025

The two former Badgers never played together, missing one another by one season, but left the program in similar fashion.

A finalist for Minnesota's Mr. Basketball in 2024, Freitag led his team to a 31-1 record and a Class 2A state championship while averaging 26 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Those numbers raised expectations on him of competing for the starting point guard position after Chucky Hepburn transferred to Louisville.

However, Freitag didn't look comfortable during preseason camp with the practice's speed and physicality and was turnover prone. With the presence of Kamari McGee and the emergence of John Blackwell, Freitag was limited to mop-up duty in 14 games. He averaged 2.1 minutes and scored his only basket against Iowa on January 3.

Following a frustrating post-year meeting with the coaching staff, one that gave him the impression that the staff didn't want him to return, Freitag left after one season at Wisconsin

Yalden's time was even more brief. A native of Appleton, Yalden was the first prospect offer by the Badgers in the 2023 class, and he was a top-125 prospect by Rivals.com. Off-the-court and legal issues caused him to miss valuable practice time and eventually short suspensions from the team. He never appeared in a game.

Yalden spent last season at Seton Hall, playing 26 games and averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds per game, before reentering the portal.

Wisconsin remained its backcourt following offseason transfers and graduation and it has been a strength through their first three games. Senior Nick Boyd has been a good fit since transferring from San Diego State, averaging a team-best 19.3 ppg, with Blackwell (18.0 ppg) close behind. Senior transfer Andrew Rohde (7.7 ppg) has also been a strong defensive presence with senior transfer Braeden Carrington (6.7 ppg) leads the team in bench scoring.

In a twist of irony, the two former Badgers will play each other on Tuesday with Yalden's Catamounts traveling to Buffalo to take on Freitag's Bulls.

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