Indiana basketball is back inside of Assembly Hall on Monday night to open its Big Ten slate against Minnesota at 6:30 p.m. ET in Bloomington.
The Hoosiers (7-2 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten play) come into the contest fresh off of another double-digit win over a non-conference opponent in Miami (OH). The Gophers (6-4 overall, 0-1 in Big Ten play) are set for their first conference road game of the year after falling 90-72 to Michigan State at home on Wednesday.
Before Monday night's Big Ten battle, preview the matchup between Indiana and Minnesota.
HEAD COACH PROFILE
Head Coach: Ben Johnson
Record: 47-58 in 4th year overall, same at Minnesota
Last season, Johnson led the Golden Gophers to a postseason appearance, earning a spot in the NIT. There, Minnesota defeated Butler, before losing to Indiana State.
Johnson's coaching career began back in 2005, when he took a position as a graduate assistant at Dayton. He then parlayed that into a job as an assistant the following year at Texas-Pan American, working primarily as a recruiter.
In 2008, Johnson made the jump up to Division I, serving as an assistant at Northern Iowa for four years before joining the staff at Nebraska for a single season.
From there, Johnson became an assistant at Minnesota in 2013. Initially he worked as a primary recruiter, helping bring in the likes of Daniel Oturu and Amir Coffey to Minnesota. Johnson's first stint with the Gophers lasted until 2018, when he was hired to be on Travis Steele's staff at Xavier.
After a few seasons at Xavier, Johnson returned back to Minnesota, being named the head coach of the Gophers in March of 2021.
Before turning to coaching, Johnson spent time as a player in the Big Ten at both Northwestern and Minnesota. It was with the Gophers that he spent his final two seasons, averaging just over nine points per game.
THIS SEASON
Coming into Monday night's clash with Indiana, Minnesota sits at 6-4 on the young season.
The Gophers started the year strong, winning five of their first six games, including wins over Oral Roberts and Yale. However, following an 0-2 appearance in the ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando, Florida--which included losses to Wichita State and Wake Forest--Minnesota has now lost three of its last four games.
On the season, Minnesota is averaging 65.2 points per game, while shooting 42.9% from the field and 29.7% from 3-point range--which ranks 313th in the country. The Gophers have also struggled mightily from the charity stripe this year, converting on just 61.7% of their free throws to begin the season.
Minnesota shares the ball well, averaging 15.6 assists per game on 23.7 made field goals a contest. The Gophers also don't turn the ball over a ton, averaging 10.1 giveaways a night.
So far this year, opponents are averaging 62.0 points a game against Minnesota. The Gophers are holding their opponents to 41.8% shooting from the field and 33.3% shooting from distance.
Minnesota forces an average of 12.1 turnovers a night, while collecting 5.9 steals and 4.9 blocks a contest.
The Gophers ranked 111th in the country in Kenpom, possessing the countries 160th-best offense and 87th-best defense.
KEY PLAYERS
- Forward, Dawson Garcia: Dawson Garcia is one of the most experienced player in the Big Ten. He's in his fifth season of college basketball, having made over 100 starts throughout his career. This season, Garcia is averaging a team-best 19.0 points per game, while shooting 48.0% from the floor and 35.9% from downtown. He's also pulling down 7.4 rebounds a contest and as a positive assist-to-turnover ratio. Garcia is the top returning scorer in the Big Ten this season.
- Guard Lu'Cye Patterson: A transfer from Charlotte, who earned a second team All-AAC selection a year ago, Lu'Cye Patterson is averaging 10.0 points a night this season for the Gophers. He's struggled so far this year shooting the ball, converting at a 32.7% clip from the field and a 23.1% clip from 3-point territory. The 6-foot-2 guard from Minneapolis has been a great playmaker so far this season for the Gophers, averaging 3.9 assists a game. His assist-to-turnover ratio rests at 4.3.
- Forward Parked Fox: Parker Fox is averaging 7.0 points per game this season for Minnesota. He's appeared in every game this year, but as made just two starts, primarily acting as the sixth-man and a scorer off the bench for the Gophers. Standing at 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, Fox, a Minnesota native, has a team-best 10 blocks on the season. He's averaging a block a night.
STORYLINES TO MONITOR
Indiana needs to start off Big Ten play the right way...
While the Hoosiers may have struggled mightily in The Bahamas just a few weeks ago, that could all be forgotten if Indiana competes in the Big Ten. Indiana's early seasons woes against power conference competition could prove meaningless this season if the Hoosiers can make a run in conference play. On the flip side, a slow start to league play could spell trouble for Indiana. That's why Monday night's Big Ten opener against Minnesota is such a big game early in the season for Indiana. This is a game the Hoosiers should be winning, against a Gopher squad projected to finish near the bottom of the conference. On top of that, a loss to Minnesota would put Indiana in a difficult spot with a road trip to Nebraska on Friday. An 0-2 start to Big Ten play could send the Hoosiers down an unrecoverable spiral, something the Hoosiers can avoid by taking care of business against the Gophers.
Can Mackenzie Mgbako bounce back...
Indiana's sophomore forward was putrid against Miami (OH). He managed just four points on 2-of-7 shooting from the floor and 0-for-3 shooting from deep in the Hoosiers' win over the RedHawks. Aside from his offensive struggles, the reigning Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Year, looked lost defensively as well. Countless time, Mgbako gave up a bucket via a simple back cut, or was late on a rotation resulting in an easy basket. Mgbako has been Indiana's best scorer throughout much of the early part of the season. The Hoosiers need him to find his groove again and bounce back after his worst performance of the year.
QUICK HITTERS
Who: (RV) Indiana (7-2) vs. Minnesota (6-4)
Series History: Indiana leads the all-time series 109-69 (Last Meeting: Indiana won 70-58 on March 6, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota)
When: Dec. 9, 2024, 6:30 p.m. ET
Where: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Bloomington, Indiana
TV: Big Ten Network: Dave Revsine (play-by-play), LaPhonso Ellis (analyst)
Radio: IU Radio Network: Don Fischer (Play-by-Play), Errek Suhr (Analyst), John Herrick
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