Gophers men's basketball gameday preview at Nebraska

GOPHERS GAMEDAY

8 p.m. at Nebraska • Pinnacle Bank Arena • Big Ten Network, 100.3 FM

Preview: The Gophers (11-9, 2-9 Big Ten) have dropped eight of their past nine games entering Wednesday's game at Nebraska. Ben Johnson's first season in the Big Ten couldn't have started with a tougher schedule. All nine of Minnesota's losses have been against teams in the NET's top 30, including six games against currently ranked opponents. The last-place Cornhuskers (6-17, 0-12) are the first team in the bottom four of the Big Ten to play the Gophers this season. The Huskers have 10 straight losses since a Dec. 22 victory against Kennesaw State, including 87-63 Saturday against Northwestern at home. Third-year Huskers coach Fred Hoiberg has only two wins in his past 22 Big Ten games dating back to last season, but one of them was against Minnesota in Lincoln, Neb.

Players to watch: Senior guard Payton Willis, who had 16 points, eight rebounds and three assists in Sunday's 71-59 loss at Iowa, is averaging 20.2 points in his past five games. Nebraska's Bryce McGowens leads all Big Ten freshmen in scoring with 16.7 points per game. McGowens had four straight 20-point games before being held to just 10 points in Saturday's loss against Northwestern.

Numbers: Minnesota's conference strength of schedule ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten behind only Penn State's conference slate so far, according to KenPom.com.