After a frustrating and disappointing home loss to Michigan on Friday, Michigan State needs to get back on track Wednesday in Minneapolis. The Spartans currently sit in a tie with Nebraska for third place
in the conference standings at 9-2, one game behind 10-1 Michigan and Illinois, who MSU will host Saturday night. So, after tripping up against UM, a couple of wins this week are probably required to keep MSU in the thick of the Big Ten race.
The first challenge will be Wednesday in Minneapolis against the Golden Gophers (7 PM, Big Ten Network). Let’s take a closer look at Minnesota.
Minnesota Overview
In what might be fortunate for Michigan State, Minnesota comes in under .500 at 10-12 overall, 3-8 in conference. The Gophers are on a seven game losing streak after a comeback bid at Penn State fell just short on Sunday. Or, if you’re a pessimist, you might say Minnesota is playing at home and due for a win.
The Gophers have been close several times in their winless streak, which started with a one point overtime loss to USC and continued on Sunday with the 77-75 loss to the Nittany Lions. In between, Minnesota fell twice to Wisconsin by a total of seven points, by ten at Illinois, and eight at Ohio State. The only game in these last seven where Minnesota wasn’t very competitive was in a 19 point loss to Nebraska.
Before they fell on tough times, the Gophers were actually off to a decent start in conference play. They were blown out by Purdue but had wins against Indiana, at Northwestern, and Iowa in their first four conference games.
As expected with their 3-8 record, Minnesota ranks closer to the bottom in some key team statistics in the Big Ten. They are 17th in scoring at 72 points per game while giving up 69 (14th), and 13th in both overall field goal percentage (45.5), and three point percentage (32.7). The Gophers also do not rebound their misses at a high rate, ranking 14th in offensive boards at just under 10 per game. So, scoring against MSU, who gives up less than 65 points per game, could be tough for Minnesota.
Minnesota Rotation
Depth and size could also be significant challenges for the Gophers against MSU. Only seven players see significant minutes for Minnesota compared to the Spartans 10-deep rotation and their tallest rotation player is only 6-9. Minnesota’s most recent starting five has featured:
- #3 6-7 JR F – Bobby Durkin. 9 ppg, 3 rpg, 42.2% FG, 34.3% 3FG. Davidson transfer. First year at MN.
- #5 6-8 JR F – Jaylen Crocker-Johnson. 13.6 ppg, 7 rpg, 42% FG, 33% 3FG. Colorado State transfer. First year at MN.
- #1 6-3 SO G – Isaac Asuma. 10 ppg, 4 apg, 36% FG, 36% 3 FG.
- #10 6-7 SR G – Cade Tyson. 20 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 50% FG, 40% 3 FG. Belmont and North Carolina transfer. First year at MN.
- #6 6-4 SR G – Langston Reynolds. 11 ppg, 4 apg, 53% FG, 21% 3FG. Northern Colorado transfer. First year at MN.
In what seems to be the norm at places not named Michigan State, Minnesota is starting four transfers in their first year in Minneapolis. Former North Carolina Tar Heel Cade Tyson is the leader of this group with 20 points per game while shooting well from inside and outside the arc.
The Gophers’ other starters complement Tyson nicely. Asuma is the only non-transfer in the starting line up and Durkin, Crocker-Johnson, and Reynolds have all made the jump from mid-major programs to the Big Ten.
Minnesota relies heavily on this core group and only regularly brings two freshmen off the bench:
- #2 6-9 FR F – Grayson Grove. 15 mpg.
- #9 6-5 FR G – Kai Shinholster. 14 mpg.
Minnesota Coaching
Niko Medved is in his first year leading the Gophers after first becoming a head coach in 2013 at Furman. Medved has also spent time at Drake and, most recently, Colorado State. In seven years at CSU, Medved went 143-85 and led the Rams to three NCAA tournament appearances and five 20-win seasons.
Medved’s 2025 Colorado State team won the Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. In 2024, the Rams were ranked as high as 13th in the AP poll and defeated Virginia in the NCAA tournament.
What to Watch for from MSU
Michigan hangover? If they want to stay in the Big Ten race, the Spartans don’t have time to sulk. Michigan State opened conference play last season with a 90-72 at Minnesota’s Williams Arena (“The Barn”). The Spartans lost at Minneapolis, 59-56, during the 2024 season but Tom Izzo owns a 17-7 record in The Barn. A 91-48 win like MSU had a few games ago against Maryland might be way too much to ask for on the road but it would be nice to see the Spartans put together a complete game again after unsteady production in the last two games against Rutgers and Michigan.
Big Man Resurgence? Jaxon Kohler scored 12 against Michigan but hit only 4 of 13 field goal attempts and went 2-7 on three pointers. Kohler has cooled off a bit since the start of MSU’s West Coast trip so it would be nice to see him back on track against Minnesota. Meanwhile Carson Cooper, who has been the definition of solid all season, had just six points and two rebounds against UM. MSU struggled with the Wolverines’ length at times but will be the bigger team on the interior in this matchup.
Will the 3-Ball Fall? Michigan State is seventh in the Big Ten at 35% three point shooting – a big improvement over last year. However, in the loss to Michigan, who sit just behind the Spartans at 34.6%, MSU went just 4-23 on three point attempts while UM was just above their average in hitting 8-21. Michigan State might be able to get by Minnesota if the threes aren’t falling but they can’t regularly go 4-23 and expect to stay in the Big Ten race or make a deep tournament run.
More domination from Fears? MSU point guard Jeremy Fears has markedly increased his scoring output over the last several games. He dropped 31 against the Wolverines and played a big role in bailing the Spartans out at Rutgers with a 29 point performance. Prior to that, Fears put up 17, 14, 19, and 23 points against Maryland, Oregon, Washington, and Indiana. Hopefully MSU doesn’t need another 30 out of Fears on Wednesday and in addition to a little more production from Kohler and Cooper, it would also be nice to see Coen Carr have a steady performance against the Gophers.
Lineup Change? After starting the second second half against Michigan and helping MSU climb back into the game, freshman Jordan Scott might be pushing for a permanent starting role. We’ll see if it happens tomorrow. Tom Izzo hinted at possible changes after the Michigan game and has expressed some frustration with the defensive execution of Kur Teng and Divine Ugochukwu. Scott’s active defense and ability to get to loose balls might finally give him the edge here.
What do you see happening against the Gophers, TOC, and what are your keys to the game?
