BleedGopher
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per Chris:
The first year for Minnesota Gophers men's basketball head coach Ben Johnson wasn't something you would expect. After seeing 11 players transfer before he even coached a game, Johnson scrambled to put together a team for the 2021-22 season.
One of the gems of Johnson's impromptu recruiting class was Jamison Battle. After a successful COVID year at George Washington, the Robbinsdale native transferred to Minnesota and became one of the Gophers' top offensive weapons.
Now entering his sophomore season, Battle is a preseason All-Big Ten selection and looks to lead the Gophers to another level after starting 10-1 a year ago but winning just three of their final 19 games.
"I think it's just about winning games," Battle told reporters at Big Ten Media Day on Wednesday. "You can talk about last season [and] we had a great start but we kind of faded off in the second half of the season. I think about collectively, as a team, it's just about winning games. That's all we're really focused on."
If the Gophers are going to achieve that goal, Battle is going to be a huge part of it. The 6'7" forward led Minnesota with 17.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game last season and impressed Johnson with his ability to plug into the starting lineup from the season-opener for a team-high 29 games.
"You're talking about a guy that transfers in from a mid-major and had really good numbers," Johnson said. "Very rarely do those numbers match up when you make that jump to a high major and your role is the same."
www.si.com
Go Gophers!!
The first year for Minnesota Gophers men's basketball head coach Ben Johnson wasn't something you would expect. After seeing 11 players transfer before he even coached a game, Johnson scrambled to put together a team for the 2021-22 season.
One of the gems of Johnson's impromptu recruiting class was Jamison Battle. After a successful COVID year at George Washington, the Robbinsdale native transferred to Minnesota and became one of the Gophers' top offensive weapons.
Now entering his sophomore season, Battle is a preseason All-Big Ten selection and looks to lead the Gophers to another level after starting 10-1 a year ago but winning just three of their final 19 games.
"I think it's just about winning games," Battle told reporters at Big Ten Media Day on Wednesday. "You can talk about last season [and] we had a great start but we kind of faded off in the second half of the season. I think about collectively, as a team, it's just about winning games. That's all we're really focused on."
If the Gophers are going to achieve that goal, Battle is going to be a huge part of it. The 6'7" forward led Minnesota with 17.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game last season and impressed Johnson with his ability to plug into the starting lineup from the season-opener for a team-high 29 games.
"You're talking about a guy that transfers in from a mid-major and had really good numbers," Johnson said. "Very rarely do those numbers match up when you make that jump to a high major and your role is the same."
It's all about winning for Jamison Battle and the Gophers - Sports Illustrated Minnesota Sports, News, Analysis, and More
The first year for Minnesota Gophers men's basketball head coach Ben Johnson wasn't something you would expect. After seeing 11 players transfer before he even coached a game, Johnson scrambled to put together a team for the 2021-22 season.
www.si.com
Go Gophers!!