Watch: College Gameday Features Keyontae Johnson Upon Florida Match Up
Keyontae Johnson’s return has been one of the best storylines in college basketball this year. Johnson has the opportunity Saturday afternoon to add another chapter to his triumphant story when his new team, the Kansas State Wildcats, take on Johnson’s former team, the Florida Gators in the Big 12-SEC Challenge.
Johnson averaged 14.0 points per game and 7.1 rebounds as an All-SEC performer at Florida in 2019-20 before being named the 2020-21 Preseason SEC Player of the Year. After the first three games of the 2020-2021 season, Johnson averaged 19.6 PPG and was viewed as a first-round pick in the NBA Draft.
Prior to the matchup between the Kansas State Wildcats and the Florida Gators, College GameDay created a video segment dedicated to the incredible story of Keyontae Johnson. Take a look at the video link below.
Johnson’s story took a turn when he collapsed on the court during one of Florida’s basketball games which led to him sitting out of basketball for the next two years until he was cleared medically to play.
Johnson then decided to transfer to Kansas State and team up with guard Markquise Nowell and join Jerome Tang’s debut season in Manhattan. Fast forward to the present and Keyontae Johnson is continuing to shine at the national level helping to propel Kansas State to fifth in the nation with Johnson averaging 18.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG, on 54.6% shooting.
Johnson and the Wildcats have a tough match ahead that will feature a lot of emotions when the Florida Gators enter Bramlage Colosseum Saturday afternoon. Regardless of any extra feelings that Keyontae may have surrounding the game, he, along with the rest of the Wildcats, look to Jerome Tang for guidance.
“Like Coach [Tang] says, we are just trying to go 1-0 and they are the next team on the schedule,” Johnson told media members prior to the highly anticipated match up. Keyontae Johnson continues to write history every step of his journey.
K-State and Florida tip off at 5:00 CST.
