Gophers Get Really Bad News on Injured Guard

The Minnesota Gophers aren’t yet into the meat of their regular season, but Big Ten play opens on Wednesday night. A season ago, Ben Johnson led the group to an underwhelming 15-17 record before being shown the door.

Niko Medved was the guy athletic director Mark Coyle zeroed in on, and ultimately hired. Transition to a new program will always take time, but Medved worked quickly to revamp the roster this season. Unfortunately adversity has hit his team hard before conference play begins.

Minnesota Starting PG Chansey Willis Jr. out for season

Back in April, Chansey Willis Jr. transfered to Minnesota after playing at Western Michigan. He has bounced around a bit in college, but is a former Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year in high school. Sadly, his first season with the Gophers will end after just eight games.

News: #Gophers starting point guard Chansey Willis Jr. is out for the rest of the season, head coach Niko Medved announced on coaches radio show.

Context: Minnesota (4-4) will miss Willis’ ability to score, create as they begin Big Ten play against No. 22 Indiana on Wednesday.

— Andy Greder (@andygreder) December 2, 2025

Playing against Stanford, Willis Jr. injured his foot and left after just four minutes of play. He was then with the team the following day, but rocking a boot.

Willis Jr. was averaging 6.3 points per game, which ranks fifth on the team. Former North Carolina forward Cade Tyson is leading the Minnesota Gophers with 22.4 points per game. Right now, that also leads the Big Ten Conference.

Willis sat out in the loss against Santa Clara, but started all seven previous contests. He was averaging 26.7 minutes per game for Medved, and was the team’s primary ball handler. He logged 3.3 assists per game and his 2.3 steals per game led the conference.

Now Medved will be tasked with finding someone to step up for the rest of the season. Minnesota native Isaac Asuma has been a key member of the starting lineup, and will likely now have expanded opportunities. Northern Colorado transfer Langston Reynolds will also see responsibilities fall on his plate.

Freshman guard Kai Shinholster has averaged just over 11 minutes per game as the last backcourt member. He could absorb some of the minutes vacated by Chansey Willis Jr.’s absence as well.