Where is De Pere basketball star Johnny Kinziger now? Making noise as a freshman for Illinois State

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Illinois State freshman guard and former De Pere star Johnny Kinziger (11) started the final nine games of the season for ISU.

Johnny Kinziger had a rough start to his first season of college basketball.

The end was far more spectacular, when the Illinois State freshman guard looked much like the one who led De Pere to the WIAA Division 1 state championship in 2023.

Kinziger went from role player to star almost overnight for ISU.

He entered the starting lineup in early February and flourished the final nine games, averaging 14.9 points and shooting 48.4% overall (44-for-91) and 43% from 3-point range (18-for-42). He played at least 35 minutes in every contest during that span.

If there were any doubts the 5-foot-11, 165-pound Kinziger could hold up to the rigors of NCAA Division I basketball, he answered them.

“I had great people around me,” Kinziger said. “I had great coaches. Great teammates. The coaches were doing whatever they could to put me in the right position and then, if I did make mistakes or I had a bad day, my teammates would always pick me up.

“We were really a close-knit group. On the court, we’d always be talking. Off the court, we’d have long conversations in the locker room after. If I was struggling with something I’d talk to them, and they’d help me get through it. I also learned that being confident is so big in college basketball.”

Johnny Kinziger had delayed start to college career

The day Kinziger stepped onto campus last June was a painful one.

Literally.

He started to feel something wrong in his pelvic area when he and his parents arrived in town the night before, and it kept getting worse.

It got so bad he couldn’t even move around in bed. He needed to use his upper body for everything.

Kinziger described the injury like the cover of a baseball coming off as the laces get looser and looser.

Except this was a muscle falling off his bone, and it hurt.

Kinziger traveled to Philadelphia for surgery a short time later and was out six weeks. Any…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/where-pere-basketball-star-johnny-132445481.html

Author : Green Bay Press-Gazette

Publish date : 2024-04-02 13:24:45

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