Five Things to Know: Nate Johnson

Today we continue a series of "Get to Know" features on the newest members of the 2025-26 Kansas State men's basketball team. We continue with senior transfer guard Nate Johnson (Liberty Township, Ohio/Lakota East/Akron), who is one of 10 newcomers, and five Division I transfers.

Head coach Jerome Tang recently announced the 14-member team, which can be reviewed here.

Johnson's complete bio can be viewed here.

Johnson is a big-time winner.

Much like teammate Khamari McGriff, Johnson is used to winning. He was part of 60 wins his last 3 seasons at Lakota East High School in Liberty Township, Ohio, where he helped the Thunderhawks to a 25-2 record and the regional final vs. Archbishop Moeller in 2019-20 before the season was canceled due to COVID-19. That winning continued at Akron, where he was part of 74 wins, three Mid-American Conference Championships (one regular season and two tournament titles) and two NCAA Tournament appearances (2024, 2025) under head coach John Groce.

This past season, Johnson became the first Akron player to be selected both as the MAC Player and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season in guiding the Zips to a school-record 28-7 overall record, including a tie for the best conference record in MAC history at 17-1. The squad defeated No. 8 Bowling Green (and future teammate Marcus Johnson), No. 4 Toledo and No. 2 Miami en route to a second consecutive MAC Tournament title. The Zips lost to Big 12 foe and No. 4 seed Arizona, 93-65, in the NCAA Tournament at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle to end the season.

Johnson enjoyed a career year as a junior at Akron in 2024-25.

Johnson became the first Akron player and the first MAC player since Ball State's Bonzi Wells in 1998 to earn both conference Player and Defensive Player of the Year honors in the same season. In addition to All-MAC First Team and All-Defensive Team accolades, he earned MVP honors in the Zips' run through the MAC Tournament, as he averaged 18.7 points, 5.0 rebound and 5.3 assists per game. He scored a career-high 31 points over Toledo in the semifinals.

Johnson was also a finalist for the Lou Henson Award, which is given annually to the top player in the mid-major ranks, while he was selected to the NABC East District First Team honors.

For the season, Johnson started 34 of 35 games and averaged a team-high 14.0 points on 43.9 percent (169-of-385) shooting with 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals in 30.1 minutes per game. He led the Zips in scoring, total points (489), double-digit scoring games (26), field goals attempted (385), free throws made (114) and attempted (142), steals and minutes.

Johnson ranked among the MAC's top-20 in 12 different categories.

Johnson is among the best defensive players in the country.

Demonstrated by his MAC Defensive Player of the Year and All-Defensive Team honors, Johnson ranked among the top defensive players in the country in 2024-25. He ranked fourth in the MAC in steals (1.7 spg.), while he was seventh in defensive rebounds (136) and 16^th in total rebounds (171). He led the Zips in rebounds in 8 games, including a career-high 10 boards vs. Kent State on Feb. 28 to go with 14 points for his first career double-double. He also paced the squad with 61 steals, including a season-high 4 in 5 games.

Johnson is one of the active Division I leaders in steals with 123 in his 92-game college career, averaging 1.3 per game. He led the Zips in steals in all 3 seasons.

Johnson developed over time at Akron capped by his historic year in 2024-25.

A 3-star recruit out of high school, Johnson developed into the MAC Player of the Year over his 3-year career at Akron, going from a 4.5 points per game average as a freshman in 2022-23 to 7.3 points per game as a sophomore in 2023-24 to 14.0 points per game as a junior in 2024-25.

As a freshman, Johnson played 33 games with 5 starts, averaging 4.5 points on 50.4 percent shooting with 2.9 rebounds in 20.1 minutes per game. He improved all his numbers as a sophomore, starting 21 of 24 games played, while averaged 7.3 points on 43.3 percent shooting with 3.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals in 23.7 minutes per game. All his statistics took a big jump as a junior with his team-high 14 points per game average on 43.9 percent shooting to go along with 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

Johnson has scored more than 800 points (812) in his college career, connecting on 44.9 percent (295-of-657) from the field, including 33 percent (77-of-233) from 3-point range, and 78.5 percent (145-of-185) from the free throw line. He has also totaled 345 rebounds (3.8 rpg.), 188 assists (2.0 apg.), 123 steals (1.3 spg.) and 21 blocks (0.2 bpg.) in 2,285 minutes played.

Johnson has developed a strong ability to score the ball.

In averaging double figures (14.0 ppg.) as a junior in 2024-25, Johnson showed his ability to be a significant factor on the offensive end. He scored in double figures in 26 of 35 games played, posting 15 or more points in 13 games, with five 20-point games and one 30-point games. He also led the Zips in scoring in 10 games. Four of the five 20-point games came against MAC competition.

After scoring just 3 points in the win over Bowling Green, Johnson erupted for 53 points in Akron's wins over Toledo and Miami in the semifinals and finals of the MAC Tournament, including a career-best 31 points vs. the Rockets on 10-of-16 shooting on March 14. He also had 22 points against the Red Hawks in the finals on March 15, hitting on 8-of-13 field goals and 7-of-10 free throws.

Johnson also made the most of his attempts from the free throw line, connecting on 80 percent from the charity stripe with perfect performances in 12 games. He ranked fifth in free throws made (114) and attempted (142) in the MAC, while he was 12^th in free throw percentage.

Season tickets for the 2025-26 season went on sale June 10 with a variety of ticket options. Fans can purchase tickets by calling toll free at (800) 221.CATS (2287) and/or online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets.

How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on K-State men's basketball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Kansas State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Marcus Johnson

Nate Johnson

Khamari McGriff

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