John Shipley: Gophers’ missing freshman Niamya Holloway is cheering, learning

John Shipley, Pioneer Press
·4 min read

She is the piece missing from the Gophers’ talented freshman class, but Niamya Holloway is not really missing. You can find the forward from Eden Prairie just about anywhere you see the women’s basketball team.

Whether it’s finding classmate Mara Braun immediately after her game-winning 3-pointer on Nov. 13 against Lehigh or doing her rehab exercises in the corner while the rest of the team practices, Hollway isn’t hard to spot.

“I still have a role on the team,” she said last week. It’s just not the one she expected to be playing this season.

During summer workouts, the four incoming freshmen — Holloway, Braun, Amaya Battle and Mallory Heyer — boldly predicted the Gophers would surprise those expecting a difficult transition season for a team with only one returner who played serious minutes in 2021-22. So far, those bold prognostications have been on target. The Gophers entered the holiday break 8-5 overall and 1-1 in the Big Ten Conference — despite a roster with nine new players and a starting five that averages 19.4 years of age.

The freshmen have been a large part of the early success. After Thursday’s 59-48 victory over Eastern Illinois, Braun (18.1 ppg), Battle (12.5) and Heyer (11.3) were the Gophers’ leading scorers, and Battle led the team with 4.4 assists a game.

“I’m just so incredibly happy — like, excited for them,” Holloway said. “They came in doing what we all said we were going to do when we got here.”

But Holloway, ‘Nia’ to teammates and coaches, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee during a summer practice, a non-contact injury that in an instant turned her true freshman season on its head.

“When I got my MRI (results), it was tough because all I heard was, ‘You tore your ACL.’ And all I could think about was (losing) the season.” Holloway. “It was really hard. But I’m so far from that now; it’s crazy to think that happened almost five months ago.”

Holloway was cleared to begin spot shooting last week and spends practices doing stretching and strengthening exercises that would intimidate many. The sight test suggests she could play. In fact, Holloway said as her knee improved, it felt like she could play.

“The hard thing with this recovery process, that I don’t really know is talked about enough, is that when you start feeling good, you’re like, ‘Oh, I can go hoop’ — like you can just go play,” she said. “But you know that the graft in your knee isn’t that strong yet, so it’s like, ‘Yeah, I might be five months in, but there’s no way I could play five-on-five right now.’ ”

Because the Gophers have been such a pleasant surprise to those outside the program — the players and coaches were confident — one can’t help but wonder what Holloway would be adding. Holloway, Battle, Braun and Heyer composed one of the top-rated recruiting classes in the nation last spring, ranked as high as No. 10 by ESPN. They are coach Lindsay Whalen’s best recruiting class.

But season-ending injuries to Holloway and Amanata Zie, a 6-foot-1 junior college transfer who shot 67 percent from the field last season, have depleted the front court. Wing Maggie Czinano was moved from wing to power forward, and Heyer — an athletic 3/4 — sometimes plays center behind leading rebounder Rose Micheaux and 6-3 transfer post Destinee Oberg.

What would the fourth piece of that recruiting coup bring? Holloway is a 6-foot rim-runner who averaged 16.9 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.0 steals while shooting 62 percent from the field during an all-state senior season at Eden Prairie.

Holloway acknowledges wondering the same thing, but not that much. This season, she said, isn’t about how she could have been helping the team. Instead, it’s about preparing for next season. Her first full season on the sideline has been something of an eye-opener for Holloway

“If I’m seeing a rebounder miss a box out, I’m thinking, OK, when I play, that’s the position I need to be in if I want to make that play,” she said. “It’s less like, oh, the team needs me right now so I can, like, get a steal and move down court. It’s more like, when I play, I need to make sure I get into the passing lane so I can get that steal next time. I am learning a ton.”

Her presence remains an indicator of the program’s promising future.

“Obviously, I’m not in that picture at the moment, but I know I still have a role on the team — and they’re so supportive of my recovery,” Holloway said. “They’re like, ‘Just wait till you get back, Nia.’ I think that’s really helpful in my recovery, especially knowing that I still have a role. But they’re doing fantastic. I cannot wait to get on the court with them.”

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