Redshirt sophomore Jalen Bridges felt he was simply filling a role at times last season.

And to some degree that is the truth, as the Fairmont native was elevated to a significant role after the departure of forward Oscar Tshiebwe in early January. From that point forward, Bridges played on average 23 minutes per game and scored 8.3 points per contest as a reliable shooter on the perimeter.

Bridges shot 49-percent from the field and 40-percent from three, with the latter being the best on the team, after he spent the season prior redshirting by his own accord.

But now, the redshirt sophomore is hoping to take his game to another level.

“I need to be more aggressive and look for my own shot,” Bridges said. “Also, use my shot to create for myself and my teammates.”

That isn’t as easy as it sounds, especially with Bridges admitting that he has never really been asked to play that role at any point of his basketball career. But it starts with changing his mindset and making yourself more comfortable in an assertive role.

At times last season when Bridges would miss shots he would admittedly get down on himself. That means developing a next-shot mentality and learning how to move on quickly. That also involved getting on the court and developing his overall skill set to handle an increased role.

“I feel like I’ve kind of rounded out the weaknesses of my game and turned them into strengths,” he said. “Ball handling, creating off the dribble for myself and my teammates and I would also say finishing at the rim. I’ve got way better at that through contact.”

Bridges primarily handled the bulk of his shots from either inside the paint or the three-point line, but there are more opportunities for him to score off the bounce or in the mid-range. While analytics would tell you that isn’t the best shot, Bridges begs to differ.

“A lot of times when you put the ball down the defender is going to expect you to get all the way to the basket so if you pull up a lot of times you’ll have a wide-open shot,” he said.

And it isn’t just offensively where Bridges is going to be asked to take leaps, as he has to pick up a big chunk of the rebounding with Derek Culver off the roster. The Mountaineers teach opposite and inside to create opportunities on the glass and it’s something Bridges has focused on improving.

“A lot of times just being opposite two bigs go up sometimes it get tapped and it gets tapped right to you,” Bridges said.

The Mountaineers are going to need more out of Bridges in year two on the floor and he is ready to embrace all that comes with that.

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