Johnson was named a Naismith Player of the Year semifinalist

MANHATTAN, Kan. Senior Keyontae Johnson was named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2023 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Men’s College Player of the Year Award, as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club on Friday (March 10).

Johnson was a semifinalist for the award with Purdue Zach Edeyof Indiana Trayce Jackson-Davisat UCLA Jaime Jaquez Jr.Marquette’s Tyler Kolekin Alabama Brandon Millerin Houston Marcus SasserGonzaga Drew TimmeArizona Azuolas Tubelis and Kansas’ Jalen Wilson.

The four finalists for the award will be announced on Tuesday, March 21.

Fan voting, which will help narrow down the list to the winner, opens on Tuesday, March 21 and closes on Tuesday, March 28. Fan voting makes up 5 percent of the final vote. The 2023 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy for Male Player of the Year will be awarded on Sunday, April 2 at the Final Four.

There was another honor for the senior, who was recently named one of 15 players in national voting for the John R. Wooden Award and a finalist for the Julius Erving Award, given annually to college basketball’s best small forward. Into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.

Earlier this week, both the league’s coaches and the AP named Johnson the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and the All-Big 12 First Team. He is 13^th Wildcat since 1970, voted league Rookie of the Year and second in Big 12 era, joining Denis Clemente year 2009.

A 6-foot-6, 230-pound forward from Norfolk, Va., Johnson is currently averaging a team-best 17.7 points on 51.9 percent (209-of-403) shooting, including 41.9 percent (44-of-105). ) from three-point range and 72.5 percent (103-of-142) from the free-throw line, leading to a team-best 7.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 steals in 34 minutes per game. He is one of only two players (Kansas Jalen Wilson) to finish in the top five of the Big 12 in scoring and rebounding in both overall and league-only games.

Well. 12/12 K-State (23-9, 11-7 Big 12) will find out its postseason destination Sunday afternoon as the Wildcats are expected to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

How to watch “Cats”: For complete information on K-State men’s basketball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team’s social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.