It looks Joe Coleman is not going anywhere.
This morning, Coleman was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week, and In his third start, the freshman established himself as a critical part of this team in two major ways:
1. Statistically – Coleman led the team with 23 points and five rebounds and a 13-for-14 performance from the line.
2. Emotionally – when the team desperately needed a spark in a sluggish first half, Coleman was there. He scored 10 of 12 points in a Gophers 12-6 run to finish the half and take the momentum.
But you know what impressed Rodney Williams? Coleman got his first collegiate dunk.
"I'll give him a 10 because it wasn't wide open, he dunked on a couple people," said Williams, who has jokingly chided Coleman for not dunking sooner. "It's about time."
Coleman had a reputation for dunking often in high school. He also developed the reputation for being a winner, a leader and a hard worker. And now, the Gophers are starting to see all of those things.
Smith said Coleman is always the first one on the court for practice and the last one to leave. He works on free-throw shooting on his own, daily. His aggressiveness is tops on the team right now.
"He's been trained properly coming out of that program at Hopkins," Smith said. "He's won three straight state championships out of high school. He knows how to compete; he's a winner. And he learned a lot from his brother. I think that helped – I remember when his brother would take him to practice and they'd be in the gym at 6 a.m. before practice would start – and he was just a ninth-grader then. He's been preparing for this opportunity and this chance, and he's embraced it.
"He doesn't fear failure or success, he's just what he wants in a player. He's committed. He's the first guy in the gym, he's the last one to leave, he's always willing to do what we ask him to do and he's a team player."
Those are big words from a coach but you can tell his teammates feel the same way. He seems to have grown especially close with Williams – perhaps bonding over their mutual athleticism. And what would you know, Colman's first dunk came on an assist from the junior forward.
"It came from him so it was even better," Coleman said with a laugh. "It felt good. It's been a while – I was a little scared to think I might not even get one the whole season but I did."