An injury during the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Chucky Hepburn proved catastrophic for Wisconsin's chances of moving along to the Sweet 16 back in March.
A budding star, Hepburn was the only scholarship point guard available for the contest, and as a result, the Wisconsin Badgers made an early exit in the tournament.
On Friday morning, Andy Katz of the Big Ten Network sat down with Hepburn to discuss the injury and what he is doing this summer off-season to prepare for next year.
One of the most significant takeaways from the five-minute interview was that Hepburn is back to full-health, saying, "I'm feeling 100%, I just came back from a workout in Kansas City."
The positive development about Hepburn's health is great news for Greg Gard and the Badgers, who are looking to make another deep run next season despite Johnny Davis and Brad Davison, the top two scorers from a year ago, off to play professionally.
Hepburn also mentioned in the interview that he is working hard to improve on the offensive end, a needed step for next season given the loss of Davis and Davison.
After averaging 7.9 points per game and 2.3 assists a year ago, Hepburn sees his role on the team changing slightly next year. The returning starter told Katz, "I'm going to be more of an aggressive player, and more of a scorer. I feel like I could have been more of a scorer this past year, and been more aggressive, but it's a learning experience. I'm going to take that and apply it to next season."
A native of Nebraska, Hepburn burst on the Big Ten scene last season, becoming the first true freshman to start in the season opener for Wisconsin since Devin Harris did so in 2001.
The former three-star recruit started all 33 games for the Badgers and proved to be a crucial part of the lineup on both ends of the court. Hepburn made the Big Ten All-Freshman Team following the season, and he could be primed for a more prominent role next season.
You can check out the entire interview between Hepburn and Andy Katz below.
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