A report on Julian Welch

Former Yuba College star backcourter Julian Welch impressed in his first game:

...Point guard Julian Welch got his first live action with the Gophers on Monday. Welch missed last week's exhibition game due to an ankle injury, but played 18 minutes against Augustana.

Welch, a junior transfer from Yuba (Calif.) Community College, had seven points and four rebounds in his Gophers debut. He committed a turnover in his first possession, but didn't turn it over again the rest of the game.

"I thought Julian did some good things," Smith said. "I thought he settled down, played very solid. He gave us that aggressiveness that we were lacking. … Julian is a guy that we need to step up. He's learning our system, learning our offense, learning our defense ..."