GOPHERS GAMEDAY
Gameday preview: Gophers men's basketball vs. Fort Wayne
Minnesota returns home Friday to play against Purdue Fort Wayne.
November 18, 2021 at 11:42PM
6 p.m. vs. Ft. Wayne • Williams Arena • No TV (BTN-Plus subscription stream), 100.3 FM
Preview: The Gophers (3-0) return to Williams Arena with momentum coming off victories over Missouri Kansas City, Western Kentucky and Princeton. Fort Wayne (2-0) was picked to finish ninth in the Horizon League preseason poll, but the Mastodons are still unblemished after defeating Austin Peay 65-60 on Tuesday.
Players to watch: Sophomore Jamison Battle leads the Gophers with 20.7 points per game, ranking third in the Big Ten through three games. Battle, who had a combined 44 points vs. Western Kentucky and Princeton, and Payton Willis were name to the Asheville Championship all-tournament team last week. Fort Wayne big man Ra Kpedi had a team-high 17 points and two blocks against Austin Peay.
Numbers: Willis (29 points and 10 rebounds) and Battle (24 points and 11 rebounds) became the first Gophers players to record at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in the same game since Jordan Murphy and Daniel Oturu against North Carolina A&T in the 2018-19 season.
He improved to 86-2 in his college career in his first action for the Gophers since March 2022.
