When Colorado’s Ayianna Johnson was young, her mother stopped signing her up for youth league basketball.
“She said that I would just run up and down and not even want to touch the ball,” Johnson said in a recent interview with BuffZone.
That changed when Johnson wanted to get back into the sport as a high school sophomore.
“My mom was like, ‘If I’m gonna pay all this money, you need to lock in,’” Johnson said. “And I was like, OK, so I did. It took me here, so I think it worked out.”
Now a sophomore and one of 10 newcomers to the CU women’s basketball team, Johnson is still gaining confidence and eager for a fresh start.
“I absolutely love it (at CU),” said Johnson, a 6-foot-3 post who transferred from Minnesota this summer. “I mean, I feel like the community is super supportive of the Buffs, everyone’s just super nice here, friendly people, and the views are amazing. Yeah, I love it here.”
Johnson was a star at Jefferson (Wis.) High School, averaging 16.6 points and 11.5 rebounds as a senior. She was also a two-time state champion in the discus while setting a state record, and she played on her school’s golf team.
Growing up, she also participated in ballet, figure skating, floor hockey, flag and tackle football, gymnastics, volleyball and wrestling.
“My mom (Shana Johnson) worked at the YMCA, so there was just so many opportunities there, so she just signed me up for everything,” Johnson said.
Realizing her size, strength and athleticism could take her far in basketball, Johnson became serious about the sport as a sophomore at Jefferson. It paid off when she earned a scholarship to Minnesota.
In one year with the Gophers, she averaged 3.4 points and 1.8 rebounds. She started the last six games, though, averaging 6.2 points and 3.5 rebounds in those games.
Despite her growth with the Gophers, Johnson wanted a change.
“I think for me, it was just more about opportunities and kind of seeing what other places had to offer,” she said. “I just fell in love with Colorado, because they have a ton of opportunities – academically, athletically, everything – and I just felt that this would be a better fit for me. I also didn’t really like living in the city. I’m not a city girl.”
Johnson not only likes the Boulder vibe, but is hoping to make an impact with the Buffs. She’s still working on her confidence as she learns a new team, though.
“I’m getting there,” she said. “It’s a whole new system with all different players. … I’m working on it, but I think that I’ll get there once we have more time. Now that we’re starting 20-hour weeks, I think we’ll get there.”
Johnson said there’s also some pressure to live up to the standard set by CU, which has been to back-to-back Sweet 16s. But, the Buffs aren’t big in the paint and could use the strength and athleticism that Johnson brings to the table, even as a smaller center.
“My ability to run and just have that, like, stamina for the entire game is really going to help us,” she said. “And again, since I’m not as big, I am very strong, though.”
The early returns are positive. It hasn’t been a seamless transition for Johnson as a young player learning a new system, but improvement is already obvious, head coach JR Payne said.
“AJ has grown exponentially since she got here,” Payne said. “When she first got here, it was like drinking out of a fire hydrant; just everything was so new, which it was for everybody. But, she’s made tremendous strides and is having great practices. I think she’s been very, very good this past week and a half that we’ve been practicing.”
