Former Wisconsin Badgers basketball player Kobe King returns to action with Valparaiso
Former University of Wisconsin guard Kobe King finally returned to the hardcourt Tuesday, coming off the bench to score 19 points for Valparaiso in a 101-58 win over East-West nearly two years after his high-profile departure from the Badgers.
King initially committed to Nebraska after leaving UW but never played for the Cornhuskers, instead signing with an agent and entering the 2021 NBA G League draft. Though he decided to return to college, he needed to gain an NCAA waiver, and Tuesday was his first opportunity to play.
King saw action in 10 games at UW in 2017-18, one year after he was named the state's Mr. Basketball and led La Crosse Central to a WIAA Division 2 state title. A knee injury cut short his freshman season at UW, and he played in 34 games as a redshirt in 2018-19, largely off the bench. In 2019-20, he played in 19 games and posted 10.0 points and 2.8 rebounds per game before leaving.
More: Kobe King details his frustrations with Badgers, Greg Gard to Madison newspaper
Valparaiso (5-5), located in northwestern Indiana, has seldom recruited players from the state of Wisconsin since Bill Jenkins (not to mention twin brother, Bob) of Nicolet High School became a key player in one of the most famous plays in NCAA history in 1988, Bryce Drew's game-winner to defeat Mississippi.
But this year, the school has become a Wisconsin outpost. Ex-Badgers guard Trevor Anderson, once of Stevens Point High School and also a former Mr. Basketball, is spending his final year of eligibility at Valpo, where he's started all 10 games and averaged 10.9 points. Former Whitnall standout Kevion Taylor, playing in his fifth year after transferring from Winona State, also has started 10 games and averages 9.5 points. Former UW reserve center Joe Hedstrom comes off the bench for the Beacons. Freshman Cam Palesse is from Waukesha West.
Last year's team included Sheboygan Lutheran's Jacob Ognacevic, who transferred after playing in 28 games and averaged 6.3 points as a true freshman. He's now at Lipscomb.
East-West, located in Chicago, participates in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (independent of the NCAA) but plays NCAA and NAIA competition.
JR Radcliffe can be reached at (262) 361-9141 or jradcliffe@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JRRadcliffe.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Former Wisconsin guard Kobe King returns with Valparaiso basketball
