Dawson Garcia is on best Gophers men’s basketball scoring streak in six years to lead turnaround

Nothing seems more guaranteed right now in the Big Ten than Dawson Garcia getting his buckets.

The 6-11 senior and former Prior Lake High School standout led the Gophers with 31 points in their third consecutive victory in Saturday’s 77-69 upset against No. 15 Oregon.

His scoring streak of five consecutive 20-point games hasn’t been done with the Gophers since former Hopkins star Amir Coffey in 2019.

“Ultimate competitor,” Gophers coach Ben Johnson said. “He’s brought everybody up to his level. That’s been a huge part to what we’re doing here. He’s forced with his play for everybody to elevate and have a new standard.”

Coffey’s 20-point streak was also the last time the Gophers made the NCAA tournament. With Garcia playing about as well as any big man in the country, who knows what’s possible?

OK, maybe NCAA tourney talk is still far-fetched for the Gophers (11-9, 3-6 Big Ten), who will try to keep their winning streak alive Tuesday at conference-leading Michigan State.

But Garcia is making a case to be a Big Ten Player of the Year candidate. That isn’t as crazy as it sounds for a below-.500 conference team. And it’s not just his offensive numbers.

The Gophers’ defensive effort set the tone behind Garcia as well. He dominated his frontcourt matchup with Oregon 7-footer Nate Bittle, who went scoreless in 24 minutes. Garcia’s size and length on the perimeter also made it tough on Ducks guard Jackson Shelstad switching on ball screens.

“Dawson obviously had 31, but what he does defensively I don’t think there’s a 6-11 guy in our league who can guard Shelstad like that for 40 minutes,” Johnson said. “We treat him like a big wing with his defensive assignments and he just responds every single game.”

Garcia had three blocks Saturday, including a rejection on Bittle’s shot midway through the second half when the Ducks went without a field goal for five minutes.

Parker Fox, who has been Garcia’s teammate for three years, got choked up after Saturday’s victory about how much his fellow frontcourt senior means to the program.

“You go back and watch just little possessions, the dude makes every single play,” said Fox, who had 13 points and 11 rebounds. “It’s not just in games. It’s every single day in practice. His energy is never off. His vibe is never off. He’s never negative ... He’s thinking about his teammates. It’s a huge testament to who he is not only as a basketball player but as a man of faith. I’m proud to call him my brother.”

Garcia, who shot 13-for-19 from the field Saturday, has 13 games with 20 points or more this season, which leads all Big Ten players. He is the first Division I player since Oklahoma’s Trae Young in 2018 to have at least 27 points in back-to-back wvictories against ranked opponents at home, according to OptaSTATS.

“He’s almost got like a possessed mentality right now,” Johnson said.

Oregon tied it 56-56 after TJ Bamba’s layup at the 9:14 mark, but the Gophers wouldn’t fall behind with Garcia leading the way on both ends.

Garcia’s third three-pointer of the game made it a five-point lead with just over six minutes to play. Oregon got within 70-68 in the last 90 seconds, but Garcia forced Shelstad into a turnover in the waning seconds. After a steal from Femi Odukale, Garcia caught a pass in transition and flushed for the exclamation point on the second straight ranked win at home.

“It was great to be a part of,” said Garcia, who hit the long buzzer-beater in overtime against Michigan for his team’s first Big Ten victory this season. “This will be a lifelong memory. I will truly cherish it.”

Entering the weekend, the Gophers were barely ahead of last-place Washington in the Big Ten standings, but just one victory pushed them out of the bottom three spots. That position is where nobody wants to end up, since only 15 teams qualify for the Big Ten tournament this year.