Gateway grad Will Kromka steps into starting lineup for Pitt-Johnstown

Will Kromka was somewhat behind the 8-ball when he began his collegiate basketball career in the fall of 2022.

The Pitt-Johnstown sophomore guard and Gateway graduate suffered an ankle injury in the spring that required significant surgery.

That put him on the shelf for several months and slowed his growth.

“Last year was a kind of difficult year for him. His whole September and October, he couldn’t do anything, so he was kind of behind to start the season,” veteran UPJ coach Bob Rukavina said. “He didn’t have the freshman year he wanted to have or that we wanted him to have.

“But he got the chance to play with his brother, he got to play in the NCAA Tournament, and he did a nice job for us with the minutes he had coming off the bench. He has some experience, but at the same time, he’s still inexperienced compared to what we had the past couple of years.”

But that didn’t stop Kromka, who averaged 1.9 points and one rebound in 20 games last year, from working and seeing what was in front of him in terms of getting on the court more this season.

So far, in a starting role through UPJ’s first eight games, the work is paying off. And he knows there is room for more improvement as the season progresses.

“Will really responded to the opportunities in front of him,” Rukavina said. “He worked to get stronger. When he came in in September and started playing some pickup games, he looked like a completely different player. He was healthy. I remember the first pick-up game, he drove the baseline on the right side and went up and tomahawk dunked left-handed. We didn’t see that all last year. He is healthy and energized, and that is a major plus for us. He is in great shape, and he feels a lot more confident now.

“He’s just very solid all around. He does the right things at both ends of the court. He plays hard, is aggressive, and is a strong rebounder.”

Kromka said that getting stronger and building up minutes each game as his freshman season wore on provided motivation and a good foundation to come back ready to move into a starting role.

“Being able to learn from all of the older guys and watch them play together as the year went along, that was really helpful,” Kromka said.

“My ankle got stronger, and I got my feet under me. All-in-all, I think it was a decent first year.

“I didn’t do much different in the offseason, just working hard, getting in the weight room, getting shots up, and working on my game. I just treated it like I always do in getting ready for a season.”

UPJ, which lost six seniors, including leading scorer and rebounder John Paul Kromka, Will’s brother, from a team that went 20-11 and made it to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional, was 2-5 through a 68-57 loss to Mansfield University on Dec. 2.

In those seven games, all starts, Kromka averaged 8.7 points and was second on the team in rebounds at 6.7 a contest.

He scored in double figures three times and recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds in his starting debut against Notre Dame (Ohio).

“I was nervous, but a lot of people, including my brothers, had my back and were able to help me,” Kromka said. “They always offer words of encouragement, words of advice. It is helpful to have them available to talk to before or after any game. That game, I was happy with the way I played but not satisfied. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the win, which is the main goal, but it was a good start to the season. It was also good to have that as a measure of what I still needed to work on.”

A couple of weeks later, Kromka tallied 15 points and nine rebounds in an 89-75 setback to perennial national qualifier Saint Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.) at the IUP Thanksgiving Tournament.

“It was a good test and a good battle,” Kromka said. “We came up short and got off to a bad start in the first half. The second half, we battled but just couldn’t quite get over that hump of 12 points. We kept pushing, and then something would happen. It was another good test to see where we’re at.”

Conference games against Bloomsburg and East Stroudsburg on Monday and Tuesday were to lead into an 11-day break until a Dec. 30 PSAC matchup with Kutztown.

“As inexperienced and young as we are, I think we are still trying to find our footing and also our identity a little bit,” Kromka said.

“But I think we are coming along nicely. We have good team chemistry. We all know each other well, and that leads to being able to play well together. I think that will be good for us moving forward.”