A High Volume 3-Point Shooter, Trey Autry and Wisconsin Feels Like a Great Match

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin likes to shoot 3-pointers. In fact, the Badgers set a school record with more than 400 triples last season and led the Big Ten Conference at 12 per game. That’s good news for Trey Autry, who really likes to shoot them.

“Definitely very excited,” Autry told reporters Sunday morning. “They get up a lot of 3’s. That was something that was really exciting to hear, and really something that kinda makes me want to start the season now.

“Something they said was, ‘They took 1,200 (3’s). They’re not opposed to taking 1,300. Having confidence in my teammates, knowing how well they can shoot the ball, that’s something that’s really exciting for the team this year.”

In his junior season at George Washington, Autry averaged 11.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. He shot 44 percent from the field, including 39 percent from 3-point range. Autry also attempted 6.4 3 triples per game for a Revolutionary squad that ranked No. 26 nationally in made 3’s per game.

Autry was the first addition from the transfer portal for head coach Greg Gard, later joined by Hofstra center Victory Onuetu and Miami (OH) small forward Eian Elmer.

“The way the coaches treated me in the recruiting process. Having an idea and having a plan on how I can come to the team and be a help, play my part, and be somebody who’s contributing on and off the court,” Autry said of why he chose UW.

While transfer portal recruiting tends to be more transactional, Autry, who did not visit Wisconsin prior to signing, said there was a personal touch that did not go unnoticed.

The son of former Syracuse guard and head coach Adrian Autry, now an assistant with Virginia, Trey said the Badgers involved his father in the recruiting process. Adrian had some prior familiarity with UW, coaching against Gard and former head coach Bo Ryan in the 2011 Sweet 16 as well as the 2015 and 2016 ACC/Big Ten challenge contests.

However, the fact that Gard and company and Adrian Autry spoke during the recruitment process went a long way with the family.

“Wisconsin and the staff, they’re known for their winning tradition. My dad, being in the game, he’s seen that,” said Autry. “Having the coaching staff reach out to him, and not just necessarily treat him like he was another coach in the business, but treat him like he was my father, have him in the recruiting process, that was something that was really big for me.

“The coaching staff reaching out to him, and making sure he felt like he was a father in this recruiting process, that was something that was big to me. Given the things that I want, he thought this was a great fit.”

Wisconsin also may have gotten some unexpected help from a pair of former players.

Autry said he spoke with both outgoing guards, Nick Boyd and John Blackwell, before signing. Boyd just finished up his first and only season with the Badgers, while Blackwell put in three years before entering the transfer portal.

Autry knew Blackwell in high school while competing on the Nike EYBL circuit, while he and Boyd are represented by the same agency and have worked out together.

“They both spoke very highly of coach Gard and Wisconsin,” Autry explained. “They spoke highly of all the coaches, the fan base, kinda just the whole nine. Being able to hear great things from people who made their impact — John Blackwell, for three years, made a tremendous impact. Nick Boyd was only here for nine months, but he made a tremendous impact.

“Being able to hear great things from two good friends was something that was really exciting and encouraging.”

Autry doubled his scoring production from his sophomore season, in which he averaged 5.4 points per game. Last season, he led the Revolutionaries in scoring six times. Autry was also a three-year starter for GW and appeared in 100 games, including 68 starts.

Describing himself as more than just a shooter, Autry believes he’ll add value as an off-ball cutter and someone who can get downhill. Autry said he also prides himself on the defensive end and being a two-way player.

“It’s also a big Wisconsin tradition, being able to play defense and being able to kind of lock in and take the match up personal,” he said.

Above all else, Autry said he wants to reach the NCAA Tournament in his final season of eligibility. In three seasons, Autry never reached the ‘Big Dance’ out of the Atlantic-10 Conference, but did play in the NIT last season and the College Basketball Crown in 2024-25.

Joining a program that’s reached 25 of the last 27 NCAA Tournaments, Autry feels good about his prospects.

“Watching the NCAA Tournament since I was a little kid and being in college, and falling up short a few years — watching it was something that was really special to me, really important to me,” Autry stated. “Wisconsin has a great winning tradition. They’re in the tournament all the time. At the end of the day, I wanted to live a kid-like dream.”