After two years at Hutchinson (Kansas) Community College where he was a First-Team All-American in 2019 and three injury-plagued years at the University of Alabama, the 6-foot-6 senior forward is making a significant impact this season at Wichita State.

How much?

Well, according to Shockers’ head coach Isaac Brown, Rojas is the toughest player he’s coached in more than two decades at the Division I level.

The numbers the last seven games appear to confirm that.

James Rojas is in his first season with Wichita State after spending three injury-plagued seasons at the University of Alabama. Photo courtesy of Wichita State Athletics

In last night’s 70-61 loss to No. 3 Houston, Rojas scored 15 points (on 5 of 9 shooting), grabbed seven rebounds and added two assists and a steal. He has now scored in double figures in seven straight games — after doing so twice in the first two months of the season — and is averaging 13.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in that span with a pair of double-doubles.

Last Sunday at East Carolina, Rojas matched his career high with 19 points to go along with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Before last night’s game, the Shockers had won four of their last six games, including an 85-72 win at ECU. Rojas scored 14 of his 19 points in the first half to help Wichita State build a 21-point halftime lead.

For the season, Rojas — before last night’s game — is averaging 8.8 points and 5.9 rebounds, while shooting 41% from the field and 80% from the foul line. He also has 23 assists, seven blocks and 21 steals.

In conference games, Rojas is averaging 10.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 42% from the field and 81% from the charity stripe.

A two-time Post-Journal Player of the Year during his high school career, Rojas was an All-Western New York first-team selection as a senior when he averaged 27.1 points, 10.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.3 blocks per game. He finished with 1,190 career points.

James Rojas