Gophers piece together a tight men’s basketball victory over Central Michigan

Central Michigan was the latest opponent of the Gophers men’s basketball team thinking about leaving Williams Arena with an upset — and it nearly did.

Middle-of-the-road programs from the Mid-American Conference, Summit League, American Athletic Conference, Ivy League and Horizon didn’t fear playing a team picked to finish last in the Big Ten.

This gave the Gophers experience in close games that served them well Monday night.

Dawson Garcia and Lu’Cye Patterson hit big shots and free throws late and combined for 41 points in a 68-65 win against the Chippewas.

“We’re going to be in tight games from here on out more times than not,” Gophers coach Ben Johnson said. “Never apologize for getting a win — ugly or pretty. I think all of this just hopefully makes you battle tested.”

Garcia, who finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, was in a familiar spot when he had to seal the game at the foul line. He hit four straight free throws to help the Gophers escape Yale 59-56 on Nov. 16.

After making four in a row again, the senior forward missed two straight but hit his last one with 15 seconds to play for the three-point final margin.

“When I go to the line, I’m thinking I’m making them,” Garcia said. “I got a lot of confidence in myself, so I’m surprised when I miss.”

The Gophers (5-1) also got a free throw with 17 seconds left from Patterson, who finished with a season-high 19 points plus four rebounds and three assists.

A week ago, Johnson decided to go with freshman Isaac Asuma instead of Patterson in the last 15 minutes for defensive purposes in a 58-47 win against Cleveland State. But Patterson’s hot hand this time around kept him on the floor.

The biggest shot of his Gophers season so far came on Patterson’s fourth three-pointer, from the top of the key to put his team ahead 62-58 with 1:52 to play.

Patterson was shooting 6-for-29 from the field in his previous three games. The Minneapolis native broke out of a slump with 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting in the second half Monday.

“It feels good for sure,” Patterson said. “My coaches and teammates, they always tell me it’s going to fall. They put that confidence even in the struggles I had shooting early.”

BOXSCORE: Gophers 68, Central Michigan 65

For the fourth time this season, the Gophers were part of a game decided by four points or fewer. They looked to pull away early in the first half with a 14-0 run to take a 10-point lead, but the Chippewas (3-3) had other plans.

One of the lowest-scoring Big Ten teams, the Gophers didn’t help themselves with eight turnovers that led to nine points in the first half. The game was tied 34-34 at halftime.

Minnesota’s turnover issues led to North Texas getting a 54-51 upset on Nov. 13. But the Gophers took care of the ball in the second half Monday, and also leaned on a defense ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten in fewest points allowed (55.6).

MAC preseason player of the year Anthony Pritchard made back-to-back jumpers for a 53-50 Central Michigan lead. But Frank Mitchell’s block on Pritchard on the next defensive possession helped spark a 9-2 run.

Johnson hoped Monday might be a nice confidence boost for the Gophers going into their biggest test this season, two games over Thanksgiving. They face undefeated Wichita State on Thursday to open the ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando. A matchup Friday would be against the winner or loser of Wake Forest vs. nationally ranked Florida.

Looking ahead to Orlando was definitely not on the Gophers’ minds as they tried to avoid a second home loss to a non-power conference foe for the first time since 2015.

“We don’t want to be in close games early,” Garcia said. “But at the end of the day, it’s giving us experience. We are a new team. We’re continuing to gel and get things right down the stretch.”