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2020–21 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team

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2020–21 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record14–15 (6–14 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Ed Conroy (5th season)
  • Kyle Lindsted (3rd season)
  • Jeff Mailhot (1st season)
Home arenaWilliams Arena
Seasons
2020–21 Big Ten Conference
men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Michigan 14 3   .824 23 5   .821
No. 2 Illinois 16 4   .800 24 7   .774
No. 8 Iowa 14 6   .700 22 9   .710
No. 20 Purdue 13 6   .684 18 10   .643
No. 7 Ohio State 12 8   .600 21 10   .677
Wisconsin 10 10   .500 18 13   .581
Rutgers 10 10   .500 16 12   .571
Maryland 9 11   .450 17 14   .548
Michigan State 9 11   .450 15 13   .536
Indiana 7 12   .368 12 15   .444
Penn State 7 12   .368 11 14   .440
Northwestern 6 13   .316 9 15   .375
Minnesota 6 14   .300 14 15   .483
Nebraska 3 16   .158 7 20   .259
Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2020–21 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Gophers were led by eighth-year head coach Richard Pitino and played their home games at Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota as members of the Big Ten Conference. The Gophers finished the season 14–15, 6–14 in Big Ten play to finish in 13th place. They defeated Northwestern in the first round of the Big Ten tournament before losing to Ohio State in the second round.

Following the season, the school fired Richard Pitino after eight years at the school.[1] On March 23, 2021, the school named Minnesota alum and former Minnesota assistant coach Ben Johnson the new head coach.[2]

Previous season

[edit]

The Gophers finished the 2019–20 season 15–16, 8–12 in Big Ten play to finish in 12th place. The Gophers defeated Northwestern in the first round of the Big Ten tournament[3] before the tournament was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[4] All other postseason tournaments including the NCAA tournament were later canceled effectively ending the season.[5][6]

Offseason

[edit]

Departures

[edit]
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Payton Willis 0 G 6'4" 200 RS Junior Fayetteville, AR Transferred to College of Charleston
Bryan Greenlee 3 G 6'0" 175 Freshman Gainesville, FL Transferred to Florida Atlantic
Brady Rudrud 10 G 6'2" 190 Senior Eden Prairie, MN Graduated, walk-on
Daniel Oturu 25 C 6'10" 225 Sophomore Woodbury, MN Declared for NBA Draft[7]
Alihan Demir 30 F 6'9" 235 Senior Ankara, Turkey Graduated
Michael Hurt 42 F 6'7" 220 Senior Rochester, MN Graduated

Incoming transfers

[edit]
Name Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Brandon Johnson F 6'8" 200 Senior Chicago, IL Western Michigan
Liam Robbins C 7'0" 235 Junior Davenport, IA Drake
Both Gach[8] G 6'6" 183 Junior Austin, MN Utah

Recruiting classes

[edit]

2020 recruiting class

[edit]
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Martice Mitchell
PF
Chicago Heights, Illinois Bloom High School 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Oct 7, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 79
Jamal Mashburn Jr.
CG
Miami, Florida Brewster Academy 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Oct 14, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 80
David Mutaf
CG
Istanbul, Turkey Fenerbahce Basketball Subesi 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) May 24, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2021 recruiting class

[edit]
US college sports recruiting information for 2021 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Treyton Thompson
PF
Alexandria, Minnesota La Lumiere School 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Nov 30, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

[edit]
2020–21 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
C 0 Liam Robbins 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Assumption
Drake
Davenport, IA
G 1 Tre' Williams 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Wasatch Academy Dallas, TX
F 2 Martice Mitchell 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Bloom Chicago, IL
G 4 Jamal Mashburn Jr. 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Brewster Academy Miami, FL
G 5 Marcus Carr (C) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Montverde Academy
Pittsburgh
Toronto, ON
G 11 Both Gach 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Arizona Compass Prep
Utah
Austin, MN
G 13 Hunt Conroy (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sr Jesuit New Orleans, LA
F 21 Jarvis Omersa 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Orono Orono, MN
G 22 Gabe Kalscheur (C) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr DeLaSalle Edina, MN
F 23 Brandon Johnson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Sr Thea Bowman Leadership Academy
Western Michigan
Chicago, IL
F 24 Eric Curry (C) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Sr Southwest Christian Academy Memphis, TN
C 32 Sam Freeman 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) So Northwest Dallas, TX
F 35 Isaiah Ihnen 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So IBA Munich Böblingen, Germany
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020*
6:00 p.m., BTN Plus
Green Bay W 99–69  1–0
 35  Carr   9  Robbins   4  Tied  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
November 28, 2020*
5:00 p.m., BTN
Loyola Marymount W 88–73  2–0
 28  Carr   8  Robbins   8  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
November 30, 2020*
7:00 p.m., BTN
Loyola Marymount W 67–64  3–0
 26  Carr   7  Carr   4  Gach  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 4, 2020*
8:00 p.m., BTN
North Dakota W 76–67  4–0
 21  Gach   9  Gach   9  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 8, 2020*
6:00 p.m., ESPNU
Boston College
ACC–Big Ten Challenge
W 85–80 OT 5–0
 22  Carr   9  Gach   6  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 10, 2020*
7:00 p.m., FS1
Kansas City W 90–61  6–0
 27  Robbins   11  Ihnen   7  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 15, 2020
6:00 p.m., ESPN2
at No. 13 Illinois L 65–92  6–1
(0–1)
 16  Carr   8  Johnson   4  Carr  State Farm Center (173)
Champaign, IL
December 20, 2020*
7:30 p.m., FS1
Saint Louis W 90–82  7–1
 32  Carr   10  Ihnen   7  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 25, 2020
7:00 p.m., BTN
No. 4 Iowa W 102–95 OT 8–1
(1–1)
 30  Carr   9  Johnson   8  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 28, 2020
7:00 p.m., BTN
No. 21 No. 17 Michigan State W 81–56  9–1
(2–1)
 19  Carr   9  Tied   5  Carr  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
December 31, 2020
3:30 p.m., BTN
No. 21 at No. 6 Wisconsin L 59–71  9–2
(2–2)
 15  Kalscheur   9  Tied   7  Carr  Kohl Center (0)
Madison, WI
January 3, 2021
4:30 p.m., BTN
No. 21 No. 25 Ohio State W 77–60  10–2
(3–2)
 27  Robbins   14  Robbins   4  Robbins  Williams Arena (0)
Minneapolis, MN
January 6, 2021
7:30 p.m., BTN
No. 16 at No. 10 Michigan L 57–82  10–3
(3–3)
 14  Carr   6  Johnson   2  Tied  Crisler Center (64)
Ann Arbor, MI
January 10, 2021
1:30 p.m., BTN
No. 16 at No. 5 Iowa L 71–86  10–4
(3–4)
 13  Tied   8  Johnson   4  Carr  Carver–Hawkeye Arena (569)
Iowa City, IA
January 16, 2021
1:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 23 No. 7 Michigan W 75–57  11–4
(4–4)
 22  Robbins   8  Robbins   6  Carr  Williams Arena (38)
Minneapolis, MN
January 23, 2021
1:00 p.m., BTN
No. 17 Maryland L 49–63  11–5
(4–5)
 25  Carr   10  Johnson   3  Tied  Williams Arena (44)
Minneapolis, MN
January 30, 2021
6:30 p.m., BTN
No. 21 at Purdue L 62–81  11–6
(4–6)
 15  Robbins   7  Robbins   5  Carr  Mackey Arena (250)
West Lafayette, IN
February 4, 2021
8:00 p.m., FS1
at Rutgers L 72–76  11–7
(4–7)
 18  Carr   10  Robbins   7  Carr  Louis Brown Athletic Center (0)
Piscataway, NJ
February 8, 2021
7:00 p.m., BTN
Nebraska W 79–61  12–7
(5–7)
 21  Carr   10  Johnson   8  Carr  Williams Arena (29)
Minneapolis, MN
February 11, 2021
4:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 24 Purdue W 71–68  13–7
(6–7)
 19  Carr   10  Robbins   5  Carr  Williams Arena (44)
Minneapolis, MN
February 14, 2021
6:00 p.m., FS1
at Maryland L 59–72  13–8
(6–8)
 14  Mashburn Jr.   7  Ihnen   3  Mashburn Jr.  Xfinity Center (0)
College Park, MD
February 17, 2021
8:00 p.m., BTN
at Indiana L 72–82  13–9
(6–9)
 19  Tied   7  Johnson   4  Carr  Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (0)
Bloomington, IN
February 20, 2021
2:30 p.m., FOX
No. 5 Illinois L 63-94  13–10
(6–10)
 16  Mashburn Jr.   6  Mashburn Jr.   4  Robbins  Williams Arena (56)
Minneapolis, MN
February 25, 2021
8:00 p.m., BTN
Northwestern L 59–67  13–11
(6–11)
 21  Carr   8  Curry   7  Carr  Williams Arena (23)
Minneapolis, MN
February 27, 2021
6:00 p.m., BTN
at Nebraska L 74-78  13-12
(6-12)
 41  Carr   8  Curry   3  Carr  Pinnacle Bank Arena (0)
Lincoln, NE
March 3, 2021
6:00 p.m., BTN
at Penn State L 65–84  13–13
(6–13)
 22  Carr   10  Ihnen   4  Carr  Bryce Jordan Center (258)
University Park, PA
March 6, 2021
11:00 a.m., FOX
Rutgers L 70–77 OT 13–14
(6–14)
 19  Johnson   11  Johnson   3  Gach  Williams Arena (52)
Minneapolis, MN
Big Ten tournament
March 10, 2021
5:30 p.m., BTN
(13) vs. (12) Northwestern
First round
W 51–46  14–14
 14  Williams   12  Curry   6  Carr  Lucas Oil Stadium (5,909)
Indianapolis, IN
March 11, 2021
1:00 p.m., BTN
(13) vs. (5) No. 9 Ohio State
Second round
L 75–79  14–15
 24  Carr   8  Tied   4  Tied  Lucas Oil Stadium (6,206)
Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Rankings

[edit]
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
APRVRV21т16231721RVRVNot released
CoachesRV24т17191720RVRV

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Minnesota fires coach Richard Pitino after eight seasons leading Gophers basketball program". CBSSports.com. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  2. ^ "Ben Johnson named Gophers men's basketball coach". Star Tribune. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  3. ^ "Northwestern vs. Minnesota - Game Recap - March 11, 2020 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  4. ^ Solari, Chris. "March Madness cancellation inevitable, unavoidable: 'Bigger than basketball'". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  5. ^ Almasy, Steve. "The NCAA is canceling March Madness". CNN. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  6. ^ "2020 NCAA Tournament canceled due to growing threat of coronavirus pandemic". CBSSports.com. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  7. ^ "Gophers sophomore Daniel Oturu declares for NBA draft". Star Tribune. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  8. ^ "Utah's Gach headed home, transfers to Minnesota". ESPN.com. June 18, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.