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Keyontae Johnson of Kansas State named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year

On3 imageby: Drew Galloway03/05/23galloway__drew
Keyontae Johnson 2023
Keyontae Johnson/Getty

Kansas State forward Keyontae Johnson has been named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, per a release by the conference as chosen by the league’s coaches. He entered the transfer portal after a tenure at Florida and picked K-State over others after being medically cleared.

Johnson was one of the stories in all of college basketball after collapsing in a game while playing for the Gators in 2020. He had not played in an organized basketball game in two years and there was a question about whether or not if he would play again at one point.

He did more than that. Johnson became one of the best players in college basketball in his return to the sport.

In his first season back on the court, the Kansas State forward averaged 17.8 points and seven rebounds per game. He was even better in conference play, as the K-State standout averaged 18.1 points per game and led the Big 12 in rebounds late in the year.

Johnson’s season-high in points came in a record-setting performance by Kansas State in a win over Texas at the Moody Center in Austin where he scored 28 points. That offensive output versus the Longhorns was also a career-high in points for the K-State senior.

He was also named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week five times this season, which led the conference. No other player in the conference won the weekly award more than three times, just to apply perspective to his accomplishment.

Awards are not stopping for Johnson. He was named All-Big 12 first team by the league as well and is a John R. Wooden Award finalist.

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