Learning the Ropes Has Tonje Playing Vital Role

No fear.

That's how Niko Medved says sophomore John Tonje plays the game. Offensively and defensively. He may be soft-spoken off the court, but the Colorado State men's basketball coach said no one would draw the parallel after watching him play.

"It's huge. He always finds a way to make an impact on the game, whether that's getting an offensive rebound, playing really good defense, making big shots or getting fouls," Medved said. "He just brings a ton of energy and confidence to our team."

For Tonje, that's about the best compliment the sophomore could receive. Coming off the bench for the Rams, he's proved it true on both ends of the court. He won't shy away from a defensive challenge this year, and judging from his game-winner on the road at San Diego State, he's not shy about taking the final shot.

All of it is vital for a team which is 14-4 on the season, 11-3 in Mountain West play heading into this week's two-game set with New Mexico (5-11, 1-11), beginning tonight with a 9 .m. tipoff at Moby Arena.

Getting there also took time. Tonje wasn't short on confidence when it came to playing basketball, but he collegiate game brought about a bunch of unknowns. He wasn't afraid of what he didn't know, yet he was cognizant there was much for him to learn.

Now, having seen it, having done it, he plays the games all out when he comes off the bench.

"I would say it is the experience side of it. Coming in last year, obviously you don't have that college experience coming out of high school, so day by day, getting better and learning as much as I can – just being an open book," he said. "Now it's my second time around in the rodeo, so it's just having confidence in everything I do, and knowing I've been there before. I basically know what it takes now, so it's just following through with the plan.

"It was tough. I'm understanding it now. I'm understanding the college game better, so I'm just trying to keep improving."

The improvement has been obvious. It was also intentional on many levels.

Tonje played in all 31 games a season ago, averaging about 8.5 minutes per game, hitting double figures once (10 points) in a game against the Lobos.

This year, he's also appeared in every game, but he's playing time has more than doubled for one major reason.

He's playing defense much better. He said the coaching staff told him at the end of his freshman campaign he would have played more if he was better on the defensive end. So he went home and worked hard at improving. His trainer, Hunter Longacre, had him workout with professionals, and it was trial by fire.

"They beat me up a little bit to start, but I really made great strides in the summer and got a lot better defensively, because I was playing against pros and learning a lot," he said.

When quarantine's started and players were sent home, they were told to get creative in finding ways to work out. Tonje picked up yoga and made it part of his usual routine. He said it made him more flexible, allowing him to perform better on both ends of the floor, and he said it's also provided him with mental clarity on the court.

Defensively alone, he's a better option for the Rams this season.

"The biggest area that I see is I think he continues to get better on the defensive end," Medved said. "He's a versatile guy. He's strong, he's athletic and I think he's really taking on a challenge on the defensive end and continuing to get better."

By versatile, Medved means he can guard the perimeter well, and when the Rams decide to go small and put David Roddy on a center, Tonje can pick up the opposing power forward. He's strong and physical, and Medved said he's seeing Tonje incorporate the physical play more often into his defensive assignments.

That's a plus for any coach adapting to game flow. So too is knowing he has another scoring option on the floor at the same time.

People have noticed that, too. Tonje is averaging 7.6 points per game, and he's already produced eight double-digit efforts, including three of the past four games and both games in the sweep over Wyoming.

It's not just he can give a little bit of everything to Medved, it's how Tonje goes about his tasks.

"John loves to compete. He's a guy who loves to be in the game, loves to be in the moments," Medved said. "He loves it when the game is tight. He wants and loves competition. That's an intangible a ton of people don't realize about him. I don't think you teach that. I think that's innate."

He spends his time on the bench well. He watches and takes mental notes. Sees matchups he might get defensively and offensively and thinks of ways to make them advantages for him. Maybe it will lead to a steal, or the creation of an open look for him or a teammate.

Either ways, he's doing whatever with a ton of intensity. That, Medved said, breeds confidence for the entire team.

Which Tonje says, thanks to experience and coaching feedback, he has more of this season.

"I just let it flow coming in. We have good coaches, and they've given us a game plan," he said. "I just sit back and watch, see what I can do and observe how I can impact a game before I get in there. Then I go in there and try to really put an emphasis on those parts of the game, offensively and defensively."

Medved sees it. Internal drive. A team-first concept. Instant energy.

That's how you see the floor. That's how you become a valuable part of the whole.

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