Go back and watch the video of Ben Johnson’s men’s basketball team opening Big Ten play against Michigan State in early December. And then compare it to the Gophers’ current three-game win streak.
Gophers head to Michigan State as a different team from the one Spartans routed Dec. 4
The Gophers men’s basketball team is on a three-game win streak but faces a Michigan State squad that’s won 12 in a row.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 28, 2025 at 12:43AM
It’s almost like watching two completely different teams.
The Gophers (11-9, 3-6 Big Ten) take a three-game winning streak into Tuesday’s game against the No. 7 Spartans in East Lansing, Mich. Minnesota is carrying the confidence and identity lacking in their last meeting.
“I just think so much of it is getting a new group from different levels acclimated to what it takes at this level,” Johnson said.
Dawson Garcia, who had 31 points in Saturday’s 77-69 win against No. 15 Oregon, was named Big Ten player of the week Monday. He was the best player on the court Dec. 4 against Michigan State, with 18 points and 11 rebounds, but the Gophers still lost 90-72 at home. They failed their first Big Ten test.
“Watching our Michigan State game to preview for what we’ve got [Tuesday], you just notice everything,” Johnson said. “Our attention to detail. How we run our plays. How we execute. How we’re running the lanes. Defensively, all of our rotations. Our coverages defensively. The physicality.”
But six of the 10 players taking the court for the Gophers in the last Michigan State game were newcomers, including four of the five starters.
Mike Mitchell Jr. had just returned from missing seven games because of an ankle injury. Parker Fox was coming off the bench. But Mitchell and Fox have now started nine consecutive games, including the three victories in a row. Out of the newcomers in the rotation, Lu’Cye Patterson, Femi Odukale, Frank Mitchell and Isaac Asuma have figured out their roles.
A turning point for the Gophers nearly came Jan. 6 against Ohio State in double overtime at home, but they suffered a heartbreaking 89-88 loss. Competitiveness carried over to the first half of the next game, but Minnesota’s one-point halftime deficit turned into an 80-59 loss at rival Wisconsin on Jan. 10.
That second-half collapse in Madison prompted a players-led meeting in the postgame locker room. They talked about what changes were needed from everyone to not let that happen again. So far, it hasn’t.
“At first when we were losing, we were still saying the same things,” Garcia said. “But it’s tough to hear and understand. But now that you’re on a winning streak, you’re really buying into that identity. And looking forward to keeping this thing moving.”
On Jan. 16, Garcia’s buzzer-beater upset No. 20 Michigan 84-81 in overtime at home. Skeptics might have called that a fluke, but the Gophers then won 72-67 at Iowa, their first win in Iowa City since 2015.
That gave them the confidence to take it to Oregon early with an 18-point first-half lead Saturday, but the Gophers held on to win their third consecutive game with more than offense.
Defense and rebounding have become part of their winning identity.
The Gophers were minus-9 on the glass in their first three Big Ten losses vs. Michigan State, Indiana and Purdue, but they’ve outrebounded Ohio State, Maryland, Iowa and Oregon since then. They also won the battle of the boards against Michigan in the second half, 20-13.
Michigan also committed 13 turnovers against the Gophers. Iowa was held to its lowest scoring game this season against the Gophers. Oregon’s leading scorer, Nate Bittle, went scoreless in 24 minutes Saturday.
“That’s just what we made our identity as a tough and gritty team,” Garcia said. “When we bring that consistently, we’re going to be in every single game and have a chance to win.”
It wasn’t just about Minnesota’s players gaining experience together and holding each other accountable. Johnson needed to grow as a coach. He now understands what this year’s team is good at and how to put the Gophers in the best position to compete. The coaching staff made tweaks to their offense and defense, he said.
“I just think you see the growth of a team,” Johnson said. “With a new team, as you stick with it as the year progresses, they continue to get more comfortable and they get better. I think that’s what you’re seeing across the board from everybody right now. Our challenge is to not be satisfied and to be able to handle winning.”
Gophers at Michigan State
7 p.m., Tuesday at Breslin Center
TV; radio: Peacock (streaming); 100.3-FM
The Spartans (17-2, 8-0 Big Ten) are off to their best conference start since opening 9-0 in Big Ten play in 2018-19. They have won 12 consecutive games — all since Cretin-Derham Hall graduate Tre Holloman entered the starting lineup in the backcourt. Holloman is the team’s fifth-leading scorer, but he started the win streak off with a team-high 19 points in an overtime win vs. North Carolina on Nov. 27. He also had 17 points in a Jan. 19 win vs. Illinois. Jaden Akins leads Michigan State with 13.8 points per game.
Turnovers and transition buckets were among the factors that ended the Gophers' three-game win streak.
