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Wisconsin snags international starting point guard in surprise flip from LSU

Before the transfer portal even opens...
Mar 18, 2026; Portland, OR, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard answers questions from the media before a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images
Mar 18, 2026; Portland, OR, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard answers questions from the media before a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Greg Gard has pulled a rabbit out of his hat and surprised everyone with a new addition to the 2026 class. This time from 22-year-old international star Owen Foxwell, who's been playing professionally in Australia's NBL. He's the starting point guard for the South East Melbourne Phoenix team, and he may be just the guy to step into Nick Boyd's role next season.

Owen Foxwell joins the Badgers after flipping his commitment from LSU

Related: The recruitment of Zavier Zens just took a hard Wisconsin Badger turn

Foxwell has been a professional basketball player for five years in Australia, and he's also played in the NZ NBL, and he was part of Team Australia at the FIBA Asia Cup. He's developed into a certified starting point guard in the highest level of the NBL. He started the NBL1 South with the Eltham Wildcats and absolutely dominated with 18.6 points and 5.2 assists.

He was then promoted to the top NBL league, where in 2024 he averaged 4.3 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in around 11.5 minutes per game. This year, he took another big step forward, going to the South East Melbourne Phoenix. All of his stats have elevated as the starting point guard, with 11 points, 4.5 assists, and 3 rebounds on 41% shooting.

The NBL is nothing to turn your nose up to; it's arguably the top professional league in the world outside of the NBA. It's up there with the EuroLeague. So, he will be coming to Wisconsin as the starting point guard. A player who can score and assist at will and is ready to bring some of his experience and ability to the college basketball world.

He was originally committed to LSU, but that was before all the coaching changes there. His recruitment reopened when LSU changed its head coach to Will Wade.

His brother is already in the States at the University of Portland (where Austin Rapp was from) as a freshman guard. There could be a chance to bring them both to Wisconsin, as Joel is planning to enter the portal. The only thing holding that up is that they are both elite point guards. It would be interesting to see how that shakes out.

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