Gopher Basketball’s Dawson Garcia Crowned by Big Ten After Huge Week
It’s been a mostly tumultuous season for the Minnesota Gophers men’s basketball team. After being picked to finish last in the Big Ten preseason poll, they started conference play with six straight losses. Head coach Ben Johnson was on the hottest of seats. Until this week, where the seat may possibly have chilled a bit.
The Gophers have rattled off three straight wins after their 0-6 start. They have beaten 20th-ranked Michigan, Iowa and 15th-ranked Oregon. That moves them out of last place in the conference and into the last spot for the Big Ten Tournament in March.
Minnesota’s Dawson Garcia named Player of the Week
A big reason for the turnaround the past few games has been the play of Senior Dawson Garcia. The senior forward averaged 26 points, eight rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game in the Gophers’ last three wins. Those number have earned him Big Ten Player of the Week honors on Monday. It’s the second time he’s won the award in his career.
The best in the B1G 🗣@Dawson23lee
— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) January 27, 2025
📰: https://t.co/zq3i1TenE9 pic.twitter.com/WbtKmp9Hmz
On the season, Garcia is averaging 19.7 points per game, good for third in the Big Ten and 21st in the NCAA. He’s shooting an efficient 49.8%, including a 37.3% mark from three. He’s had five straight games of 20 or more points, tying him with Amir Coffey for the longest streak in Minnesota Gopher program history.
Related: What We’ve Learned About Gophers Men’s Basketball During Impossible 3-Game Win Streak
In all, Garcia has 13 games with 20-plus points, the most in the Big Ten, with two of those being 30-point performances. He’s also added double-digit performances in four more contests, making him the Gophers’ one-man wrecking crew.
Garcia’s journey home to MN
The Big Ten Player of the Week honor is a testament to Dawson Garcia’s perseverance. Coming out of Prior Lake High School in Savage, MN, Garcia was a four-star prospect according to 247Sports. He initially committed to play at Marquette before the 2020-21 season. He started all 27 games and averaged a team-high 13 points, but a ninth-place finish in the Big East caused a coaching change and led Garcia into the transfer portal.
Garcia made his way to North Carolina for the next season, and was part of a Tar Heel team that made it to the national championship game. This came with a decrease in playing time, and the reduced minutes. In addition, a family illness ultimately forced Garcia to step away from the team midway through the year.
That led him back home to Minnesota and into a Gopher uniform. In three years donning the maroon and gold, Garcia has steadily improved both his scoring and his shooting, raising both marks by over four points. In the best season of his career, he’s playing like a Player of the Year candidate. The Gophers have been reaping the rewards, especially the past week.
DAWSON GARCIA!
— Big Ten Conference (@bigten) January 17, 2025
AT THE BUZZER. FROM THE LOGO. FOR THE WIN.@GopherMBB x #B1GMBBall pic.twitter.com/4DAwJ1u1ch
The Minnesota Gophers’ rest of season outlook
There’s still a lot of season left before the Big Ten Tournament, so the recent stretch of play does not guarantee Minnesota gets in. The good news is the hardest part of their schedule is behind them, but challenges still await.
It starts with a big test on Tuesday, where the Gophers head to Michigan State to take on the seventh-ranked Spartans. The Spartans are undefeated in Big Ten play at 8-0. When the two teams met earlier this year, the Gophers fell 72-90, where Garcia had a team-high 18 points. Minnesota will need more of that from him if they want to compete with one of the best teams in the country.
Related: Dawson Garcia Gave Minnesota Gophers a Massive 50% Off NIL Discount to Stay Home
Eleven days after, they get Illinois at home who is a team that has had a rough patch as of late. However they still sit tied for fifth in the Big Ten with nice wins over Arkansas, Wisconsin and Oregon. They also have close losses to Alabama, Tennessee and Michigan State.
If the Gophers can string a few more wins together, they’ll be a shoo-in to make it to Indianapolis, but they’d need to win the whole thing in order to make the NCAA Tournament. If they keep playing like they have the last three games, they’ve got a shot at least.
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