Gophers men's basketball gameday preview vs. Indiana

GOPHERS GAMEDAY

5 p.m. vs. Indiana • Williams Arena • ESPN2, 100.3 FM

Preview:  The Gophers (13-13, 4-13 Big Ten) play their final home game of the regular season Sunday against Indiana. After winning consecutive home games against Penn State and Northwestern, Ben Johnson's team fell just short of its fourth Big Ten home victory Wednesday in a 68-67 loss to No. 13 Wisconsin. That dropped Minnesota to 0-7 this season against ranked foes. The Hoosiers (17-10, 8-9) ended a five-game losing streak Thursday in a 74-64 home victory vs. Maryland. Four of those five losses were against ranked opponents. Indiana has won nine of the past 11 games in the series, including four in a row against the Gophers since 2019.

Gophers update: Senior guard Payton Willis returned from COVID-19 protocol to come off the bench for the first time this season in Wednesday's loss against the Badgers. Willis, who had 10 combined points in two games suffering from illness, had 11 of his 13 points in the second half. … Luke Loewe, one of eight seniors being honored Sunday, needs two points to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career, which started with four years at William & Mary.

Indiana update: Race Thompson and Xavier Johnson combined for 43 points vs. Maryland. Thompson, a former Armstrong athlete and the son of Gophers football great Darrell Thompson, and Johnson also combined for 24 points in a 73-60 home victory over the Gophers Jan. 19.