Sitting at his locker — surrounded by reporters and resting with his shirt off — Mo Walker looked like a different person.
A year ago, at about 310 pounds, the big man barely played and rarely got the locker room attention he received Monday night at Williams Arena after the Gophers' 101-67 exhibition victory over Concordia (St. Paul).
But then, not much is the same.
In the Gophers' final tuneup before Friday's season opener, a slimmed-down and toned-up Walker fit seamlessly into a new role: the star. The center, who has come off the bench in both exhibitions, led the team with 17 points and added 13 rebounds and two blocks in 24 minutes in by far his best performance as a Gopher.
Had Monday's game counted toward the official stats, Walker would have set career highs in points and rebounds.
"Mo did a great job on the boards," fellow center Elliott Eliason said. "And it's really encouraging to see that going into the season."
Last season, Walker played only 6.6 minutes a game, averaging 2.2 points and two rebounds. Now, after losing 60 pounds over the offseason, the redshirt junior is playing like a new man. Walker has more energy under the basket and has demonstrated some spring early as well. He dunked again in the first half Friday, his second slam in two exhibitions.
"It just shows you he's playing with a lot of confidence, feels good about himself," Gophers coach Richard Pitino said. "He's still got to be more aggressive in my opinion than what he's been, because he's a really talented player."
