Most fans and pundits (myself included) thought it would be a Gophers slaughter, much like Vegas did. But… as the saying goes… ‘that’s why they play the game’. Dawson Garcia, Mike Mitchell Jr and a ragtag group of Golden Gophers that was 0-5 in the Big Ten, had other plans.

When the overtime dust settled in Dinkytown, it was Minnesota celebrating an impossible 84-81 upset victory over the No. 20 ranked team in the country, ending their 5-game losing streak, to begin conference play.

Dawson Garcia’s miracle OT heave clinches Gophers upset over No. 20 Michigan

And better yet, it came on an overtime heave from near half court by the aforementioned Garcia, a hometown kid who turned down hundreds of thousands of dollars to stay home for his senior season. Lu’Cye Patterson took the inbound pass up the court, seconds after the Wolverines tied the game 81-81, dribbled all the way to the top of the key, where he flipped it back to Garcia for a long-distance miracle.

BALLGAME pic.twitter.com/LnZG2D3JoU

— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) January 17, 2025

The Gophers’ hard-fought victory earned Ben Johnson — who is over half way through his fourth season as head coach — his first ever win over a ranked opponent… It took overtime but it is only the 3rd time all season that Minnesota has scored over 80 points in a game.

Senior transfer Lu’Cye Patterson had a big day for Minnesota Gophers too

Lu’Cye Patterson was probably the Minnesota Gophers co-MVP, next to Garcia. The senior transfer scored 22 points on 8-of-13 from the field, and grabbed 6 rebounds. But it was his play late in the game that continually took over late in the game. The senior guard also grabbed 6 rebounds in his 37 minutes of playing time.

Patterson with the CLUTCH triple! 🪣 @GopherMBB pic.twitter.com/gnIazcZi0y

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 17, 2025

Dawson Garcia, who hit the game-winner, scored 27 points, the most he has scored since opening night vs Oral Roberts, when he put up 30. The 5th year senior also added 12 rebounds, a season high, making for his 5th double-double of 2024-25. Mike Mitchell Jr, also score 20 points, shooting 4-of-12 from deep, and adding 4 assists.

Related: Minnesota Gophers Fans and Media Need to Stop Making Excuses for Ben Johnson

Will Ben Johnson be head coach of the Minnesota Gophers men’s basketball team beyond 2024-25? Probably not, but tonight at the historic Williams Arena, none of that matters. This was a great win for Johnson’s program, and a night that all of these kids will remember forever.

Minnesota fans celebrate on the court after Dawson Garcia's insane buzzer beater 🎉🚨 pic.twitter.com/2KiGPWu3S1

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 17, 2025

After trailing 21-3 going into halftime, PJ Fleck & Co surged all the way back, cutting the Michigan lead to just three points (24-27) with 1:37 remaining on the game clock. The Gophers had just one timeout remaining. But even if they had all three, there would have been little choice.

The Minnesota Gophers onside kick miracle that never happened

You have to try for an onside kick, in hopes of getting the ball back with an opportunity to tie or win. The chances of retrieving your own onside kick is miniscule, but it’s still a chance. And boy oh boy, did Minnesota kicker Dragan Kesich bounce a perfect end-over-end football into Michigan no-man’s land.

It was one of the most beautiful onside kicks I’ve ever seen. After Minnesota recovered, a flag was tossed for offsides, ruining what would have been one of the more miraculous plays in Minnesota Gophers history.

Minnesota, down 3, recovers the onside kick but gets called for a flag 😳 pic.twitter.com/BoUkcdDL2a

— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) September 28, 2024

Minnesota recovers the onside kick, but is ruled offside.

Here is when the ball was kicked.

Are we serious with this call? pic.twitter.com/ojVFjdtF5O

— Matt Schick (@ESPN_Schick) September 28, 2024

The Gophers would have had the ball back, near Michigan territory, only needing a field goal to force overtime. Instead, they lined up the onside kicking team and tried again. This time, the Wolverines recovered, ran the clock out, and the Gophers flew back to Minnesota as losers.

Big Ten admits mistake, changes referee position on onside kicks

Obviously, the Gophers were not offsides, but it’s not a reviewable play, so it didn’t matter. The Big Ten isn’t fighting their mistake. On Monday, just two days later, they made an official change to referee alignment during onside kicks. The change comes as a direct result of Minnesota getting screwed on Saturday. The Big Ten conference gave this statement to the Pioneer Press.

NEWS: After #Gophers offside call, @PioneerPress understands NCAA has approved Big Ten to modify officiating on onside kicks, moving head line judge and line judge to kicking team's restraining line for multiple officials in "best position to consistently make correct judgment."

— Andy Greder (@andygreder) September 30, 2024

“Effective immediately, the Big Ten has been approved by the NCAA to implement a modified officiating mechanic … on onside kicks by positioning the Line Judge and Head Line-Judge on the kicking team’s restraining line, thereby putting multiple officials in the best position to consistently make the correct judgment.”

Big Ten statement (via TwinCities.com)

PJ Fleck told Andy Greder (Pioneer Press) that he is happy to see the conference make a change like this so quickly. He also noted that Big Ten officials admitted the play was “too tight to flag”.

Related: Who Deserves the Most Blame for Minnesota Gophers Loss @ Michigan?

Unfortunately, those comforting words won’t give Minnesota the ball at their own 36 yard line, with 1:36 remaining and a chance to win vs last year’s National Champions at the Big House. Hey, maybe next time, though…

Because this is not the place for you. We don’t do moral victories at Minnesota Sports Fan, especially when you had a legitimate chance to go into Ann Arbor and pull one of the biggest upsets in modern Gopher football history, and failed.

This article is about who deserves the most blame for today’s L. And number one on the blame game list, is not the zebras who called an non-existent offsides on an amazing onside kick that the Gophers recovered, with over one minutes still left on the clock. We’re still going to talk about this call first, though.

Blame for Minnesota Gophers loss vs Michigan: Referees (19%)

Let’s just say what everyone else is thinking. How much money did this zebra have on today’s moneyline? We have seen a lot of onside kicks, which oftentimes come with penalities. It’s a desperation play, so everyone involved is trying to get that extra little advantage.

But not today. Today, Dragan Kesich kicked a perfect onside kick, and his teammates covered it just as impressively. Then… flag. Offsides on the kicking team. Obviously, the FOX broadcast went to the replay. Former head NFL referee, Mike Pereira, came onto the screen with a perplexed look on his face. “Umm… I don’t think that is offsides…”

MINNESOTA RECOVERS THE ONSIDE KICK BUT A FLAG IS CALLED 😱😱 pic.twitter.com/d8PUckrczb

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 28, 2024

Mike Pereira even says it’s not offside!

Refs love them some Michigan. #Gophers pic.twitter.com/rJ8mO9FimF

— Nadine Babu (@NadineBabu) September 28, 2024

While today’s zebras proved once again why they are the worst animal in the kingdom, they do not deserve the largest slice of blame pie. Without a doubt, that goes to Minnesota Gophers head coach PJ Fleck.

Blame for Gophers loss vs Wolverines: PJ Fleck (81%)

Instead of throwing the kitchen sink at the Gophers’ Little Brown Jug rival, early and often during Saturday’s contest, PJ played scared, and his team reflected that fear. Turnovers, slightly off-target passes and a clear fear to not make that big mistake.

It was pre-2024 Fleck all over again. His conservative gameplan and fear-based play-calling in the first half allowed Michigan to jump out to a 21-3 halftime lead. And those three points demonstrated the worst moment in that first half. Brosmer threw up a hail mary that landed at the 1 yard line, in the arms of Nick Kallerup.

Instead of rushing up to the line and attempting a last second goal line play to make it a 21-7 game, at half, Fleck raced the field goal kicking unit out onto the field. As soon as the ball was spotted, it was snapped, and Dragan Kesich hit a 20-yarder.

Minnesota with 9 seconds left in the first half:

3rd & 23: Deep pass caught at the 1 yard line
1st & Goal: Field goal team runs out and gets the kick off in time

What a way to score your first points of the game ⚡️😅 pic.twitter.com/DZIjaa5kYq

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 28, 2024

Clearly, PJ wanted to get points on the board before halftime, but what good was a field goal going to do your team, in that situation? Rush your offense up to the line of scrimmage and run a play that will get in the end zone. Little did Fleck know, just how much that field goal would come back to bit them.

The touchdown that should have lived in infamy…

Remember, Minnesota lost on Saturday by three points. Had the Gophers scored a touchdown on that last play of the first half, instead of kicking a field goal, then they wouldn’t have needed an onside kick to win.

Related: Minnesota Gophers Legend Should See His Role in LA Expand Big Time

The final touchdown of the game, an incredible pass and catch from Max Brosmer to Daniel Jackson, would have tied the game at 27-27. The following extra point would have given Minnesota the lead, 28-27.

Daniel Jackson with a legit catch of the year nominee

HOW DID HE DO THIS

pic.twitter.com/tue78ujCJ7

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) September 28, 2024

And that is why, folks, you don’t make dumb coaching decisions in the first half, like thinking three points is better than a one-yard TD opportunity, when down 21 points.

We know one thing will always be true in Minnesota. We are not going to have he referees on our side, especially when on the road at Michigan. Thus, it is impossible for me to put the biggest blame today on zebras we already know are corrupt.

Related: Minnesota Gophers Have a New Coach You Might Recognize

Fleck deserves credit for keeping his team emotionally and mentally engaged enough to nearly complete an unbelievable second half comeback at the Big House. But it didn’t happen. And when you look back for “why”. The evidence points at PJ. Stop playing not to lose. Play to win, or don’t play at all.

In 2024, the Gopher football team had one open-to-public practice on its fall schedule. That practice came and went Saturday night, along with an annual diaper drive, one of many reoccurring charity events that PJ Fleck holds in very high regard.

That weekend feeling!

Speaking of weekends, we have an open practice at 6:30 pm on Saturday, Aug. 3 at Huntington Bank Stadium.

This is also our annual diaper drive and oar collection! We will donate all diapers to the Diaper Bank of Minnesota and we will display your… pic.twitter.com/9rSfZ0oOH0

— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) August 2, 2024

In fact, my educated opinion says that this open-to-public practice only happened because of the annual diaper drive. Fans come to the fall diaper drive, so they can watch open practice. Without the practice, there is no formidable diaper drive.

Minnesota Gophers open-to-public practices are rare occurrence these days

Why are these open practices becoming less and less frequent? (Of note: The spring game was cancelled back in April, too.) We don’t know for sure… but again, the puzzle pieces aren’t that difficult to put together.

In all likelihood, PJ’s paranoia stems from the Michigan cheating scandal. According to the allegations, Michigan Wolverines former assistant, Connor Stalions (along with multiple other co-conspirators), was illegally filming the sidelines of football opponents, in an effort to steal their plays.

So much for the “nobody knew what Stalions was up to” narrative. https://t.co/W5pPseg6wP pic.twitter.com/QlJyNuDb2j

— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) August 4, 2024

The Big Ten’s original statement (from October, 2023) said there were two teams who brought the Michigan sideline spying concerns to the attention of conference officials. As we wrote back then, there’s a pretty decent chance one of those teams was Minnesota.

Related: Minnesota Gophers May Have Stumbled Upon Another Stud Running Back

How do we know that is why PJ Fleck is paranoid about holding open-to-public practices? We don’t. But what if I told you that both fans and media members who attended Saturday’s open practice were not allowed to record anything, or even have their phones out? Because that’s what happened.

Gophers were spying on fans during practice, to avoid being spied on

The Gophers were very serious about enforcing their no-recording policy, too. According to Ryan Burns (247Sports), there were members of the Minnesota football staff whose only job that evening was to scan the fan bleachers (with binoculars) for anyone who might be recording something.

I’d also tell you that Minnesota had a staff member tonight with some binoculars looking up into the stands to make sure no one was sitting there recording. Thanks, Connor Stalions. 

Ryan Burns – 247Sports

That was during the Gophers ONE open-to-public practice this year. And again, that is expected to be the only such practice this fall.

Related: Koi Perich is Trying to Make Up for Late Start with Gophers

We may never know for sure whether or not the Minnesota Gophers were one of the teams that Michigan was caught spying on, or if Fleck & Co were one of the two teams that turned the Wolverines in, originally. But one thing is for sure, Fleck is clearly acting as if it happened to them.

Happy Friday #Gophers!

Start your weekend early with highlights from our road win in Ann Arbor last night! 🎥 pic.twitter.com/7ny9HnHeFl

— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) January 5, 2024

Sure, this isn’t one of Juwan Howard’s best teams but there’s no weak Big Ten road win. And in reality, the Gophers find themselves in the middle of a weaker than normal Big Ten conference this season. If Minnesota can continually rise to the occasion like they did tonight, they could put a bunch more digits into the 2024 win column before we get to March.

Related: Ben Johnson’s 2023-24 Gophers Defying Odds, Climbing Rankings

Pharrel Payne is Minnesota Gophers MVP in team win

Pharrel Payne is one of the best young big men in the conference and he proved that on Thursday night. Off the bench, the Sophomore out of Cottage Grove, MN went for 12 points, 8 rebounds and 4 huge blocks.

Pharrel Payne with the SLAM. 😤 @GopherMBB

💻: Peacock pic.twitter.com/J3CYiPA2Tk

— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 5, 2024

But Thursday’s dub was a team effort, in just about every way. Minnesota won tonight’s game because they played like the ultimate team. Five Gophers scored in double figures and they put up 17 total assists.

Per usual, point guard Elijah Hawkins was the straw that stirred the drink (14 points, 7 assists) and got everybody involved. But Dawson Garcia dumped in 13 points and 12 rebounds, Mike Mitchell hit big outside shouts and finished with 18 points, a team high.

Related: Braeden Carrington Back with Gophers Basketball

Defensively, Minnesota had one of their best performances on the season, holding the Wolverines to just 42.1% from the field, the 3rd worst of their season, including 31.6% from 3PT. And they needed every possession, including the final one, which secured a 2-point Gophers victory.

Michigan was SO CLOSE to tying the game, but the Gophers escape with a win in Ann Arbor. pic.twitter.com/2WGUaS04vL

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) January 5, 2024

Michigan Wolverines accused of illegally scouting plays and signs of 2023 opponents

According to the report, Jim Harbaugh is being accused by two different Big Ten opponents of sending“unnamed individuals to attend games of both scheduled opponents and possible College Football Playoff opponents in an effort to gather information on the signs they use to call both offensive and defensive plays”.

“Late Wednesday afternoon, the Big Ten Conference and University of Michigan were notified by the NCAA that the NCAA was investigating allegations of sign stealing by the University of Michigan football program.”

“The Big Ten Conference has notified Michigan State University and future opponents. The Big Ten Conference considers the integrity of competition to be of utmost importance and will continue to monitor the investigation. The Conference will have no further comment at this time.”

Big Ten Statement

If true, this would be one of the biggest cheating scandals in college football history, which could mean significant punishment for Harbaugh and the Michigan football program. More on that momentarily.

First, let’s touch on what we know about this scandal, as it pertains to the Minnesota Gophers, who the Wolverines slaughtered two weeks ago at Huntington Bank Stadium, 52-10.

Related: Gophers Darius Taylor Expected to Play vs Iowa

Did Michigan illegally scout Minnesota Gophers?

The Pioneer Press’ Andy Greder, who covers the Gopher football beat (among a few others) for St. Paul’s historic newspaper, reached out to Big Ten officials, who would not confirm nor deny whether or not the Gophers were one of the two teams who helped launch their investigation against Michigan.

A Big Ten spokesman declined to provide more details to the Pioneer Press on whether the Gophers were one of two teams mentioned in the Yahoo report.

Andy Greder – Pioneer Press

If indeed the inquiring teams were previous 2023 opponents, which is how the report reads, then there’s a 33% chance (2/6) it was PJ Fleck & Co who contacted the NCAA.

Who helped launch Michigan investigation probably won’t matter

Whether it was Minnesota, who logged the complaint against Michigan, or not, is irrelevant to the possible ramifications. If the Wolverines are found guilty of stealing signs illegally, I can absolutely see a world where the Gophers’ 52-10 loss is flipped to a win, due to Michigan forfeit.

As of now, there are no reports of the possible punishments Michigan could be facing, should they be found guilty of cheating. But, these are very serious allegations. It’s worth noting that, when these scandals normally arise, the investigations take place after it is too late to rectify the alleged wrong.

In this case, that is not true. Should the NCAA investigation confirm that Michigan cheated their way to 6-0, to start the 2023 season, it would not surprise me if all six of Michigan’s 2023 wins are nullified and they are barred from postseason play for a number of years.

For the 3-3 (1-2) Gophers, that would mean their 52-10 loss on October 7 would cease to officially exist. The L that currently displays on their 2023 win/loss record, would be flipped to a W and their record improved to 4-2 (2-1).

Related: PJ Fleck Pleads Gophers Fans and Boosters for More NIL Money

An official record correction like that would launch Minnesota right back into the conversation for Big Ten West champs, should they go into Kinnick this weekend and defeat the (6-1) Iowa Hawkeyes. Kirk Ferentz & Co’s only loss on the season is vs Penn State and they do not have Michigan on their schedule in 2023.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Almost like a boxer who’s survived into the middle rounds of a heavyweight fight, the Gophers had already been beat up and knocked down through 5 rounds weeks, but somehow found a way to win a couple of rounds along the way.

Minnesota Gophers vs Michigan Wolverines got ugly fast

Related: How to watch Gophers football in 2023

Minnesota needed a miracle vs Michigan on Saturday night, if they were going to take any hope into their week 7 bye. Unfortunately, any chance at a miracle pretty much died on the Gophers’ first drive of the night, when QB Athan Kaliakmanis threw a pick-6 on the 2nd play of the game.

Starting FAST! pic.twitter.com/0hctinhXd4

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) October 7, 2023

Apologists will say that the Gophers should feel good about hanging with Michigan in the 1st half. But in all reality, they didn’t. Minnesota started their final drive of the 2nd quarter down 24-3. PJ Fleck was so afraid of the score getting more lopsided, before the break, that he actually started killing clock with 1.5 minutes left and the Gophers barely across midfield.

But, the football gods felt bad for Minnesota Gopher fans, so they paid Fleck off for his conservatism with a 45-yard bomb from Athan to Daniel Jackson for a touchdown, the only one the Gophers would get all night. In fact, it was pretty much their only explosive play on the evening.

35-yard touchdown with seconds left in the half!@GopherFootball | #BigTenSaturdayNight pic.twitter.com/oLvxvROxnl

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) October 8, 2023

The Minnesota Gophers may have went into halftime, after that play, with a little bit of hope. And, they even came out of the break with a few opportunities to make it a game, because their defense stopped Michigan from scoring on their first two drives of the 3rd quarter.

Related: PJ Fleck Pleads Gophers Fans and Boosters for More NIL Money

Joe Rossi’s defense continues to struggle

But, to no avail. And it wasn’t because of a couple of bad breaks or poor play on Minnesota’s part, that led to this blowout. Don’t let anyone tell you different. The 2023 Michigan Wolverines are just on a completely different level than the 2023 Minnesota Gophers.

Joe Rossi’s defense looks like a shell of itself this season and they were downright exhausted in the 2nd half, trying to hang with a Michigan offense that had them overpowered in every single facet of the game.

Hell, how are we to expect Minnesota defenders to tackle Michigan’s skill position players when they can’t even tackle their mostly pocket-passer quarterback, who ran for two touchdowns on the night.

Dual threat @jjmccarthy09 pic.twitter.com/C7EkHBoBlH

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) October 8, 2023

Athan Kaliakmanis downright scared of Michigan defense

It became clear, as the drubbing dragged on Saturday night, that Athan Kaliakmanis is nowhere near as ready to lead a Big Ten team through a gauntlet season, as we thought he was, entering fall camp. He looked flustered and downright afraid vs the Wolverines.

Kaliakmanis finished his night with an ugly 5 for 16 (31%) for 52 yards and 2 interceptions. His 35-yard end-of-half touchdown to Jackson accounted for nearly 2/3 of his passing production in the game.

First time since 2017 we’ve had two pick sixes in the same game! pic.twitter.com/J4Kq1Fisoa

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) October 8, 2023

I know PJ Fleck loves the kid, and I do too. He’s going to say all the right things at the end of the game and take responsibility for his part in tonight’s loss, which he’ll feel was enormous. But, this is power 5 college football and the Big Ten is only getting better and more explosive next season.

Related: Dinkytown Athletes Partners with Gray Duck on New Gophers NIL Beer

If Kaliakmanis doesn’t show an incredible amount of improvement over the final 6-7 games, Fleck needs to look in the mirror and then dive hard into the QB transfer portal. Maybe he doesn’t find a quarterback who’s hands-down a better option than Athan.

But if PJ were to find an obvious upgrade in said transfer portal hunt, it’s his responsibility to make a move.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

On Saturday night, Johnson’s newly-formed Gophers went into Ann Arbor as 13.5 point underdogs and beat the Michigan Wolverines outright 75-65. It was their first win at the Crisler Center since 2011 and moved Minnesota to 8-1 (1-1) on the season. The victory should guarantee them a top-25 ranking when the new polls release on Monday around noon.

How it happened

The Gophers did it behind more great play from Jamison Battle (25 pts, 7 reb) and Payton Willis (17 pts, 5 reb), who currently look like two of the biggest transfer gets in Gopher basketball history. Whenever Minnesota needed a basket on Saturday night, they turned to these two guys.

Bang bang Jamison Battle (@battletime510)!

3️⃣ for @GopherMBB. pic.twitter.com/Ix7YOrbPU8

— Minnesota on BTN (@MinnesotaOnBTN) December 12, 2021

Beauty of a ????.@UnlimitedRange0 // @GopherMBB pic.twitter.com/W7vvUrA2Nx

— Minnesota on BTN (@MinnesotaOnBTN) December 12, 2021

While it was Battle and Willis who hit big shot after big shot in the second half to build and maintain the Minnesota lead, the entire starting five contributed in big ways. Ways that showed up in the box score and ways that didn’t.

All starters except for Eric Curry scored in double figures and all eight Gopher contributors worked to rebound against a much bigger and taller Wolverines front court. At 7’1″, the 2020-21 All-American Hunter Dickinson towered over every Minnesota player that took the court. He still posted his standard double-double (19 pts, 10 reb) but he had to work for it and was often frustrated, especially during the second half.

The undersized Gophers even stuck with the Wolverines on the glass, which was a big area of concern for Ben Johnson entering the season. Juwan Howard had a clear goal on offense to get the ball inside, where he thought Michigan could take advantage of their size advantage. In theory, the strategy was sound. But Ben Johnson’s Golden Gophers were ready.

That first B1G road win feeling ???? pic.twitter.com/pbRx15IPKH

— Minnesota Men’s Basketball (@GopherMBB) December 12, 2021

What’s next?

Early Big Ten play is now over and the Minnesota Gophers finished 1-1 against both of Michigan’s Big Ten teams. Now 8-1, Minnesota will take a three-week break from conference play, which will resume after the new year. Their schedule for the rest of December is nothing but home games and their opponents are small schools like Texas A&M-CC (8-1), Green Bay (1-7) and Alcorn State (1-7).

As long as they can avoid letdown over the next three games, Minnesota should be 11-1 and entrenched in the top-25 when conference play starts back up vs Illinois on January 2.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

The Minnesota Golden Gophers men’s basketball team was happy to hear pregame names called from a familiar voice, out of a familiar speaker at Williams Arena this afternoon, as they took to the raised hardwood vs the undefeated #7 Michigan Wolverines.

Saturday’s game was Minnesota’s 15th of the season and they had yet to lose at home (10-0) and were winless (0-4) on the road. But we’ll worry about those road woes another time because today… we’re celebrating another HUGE home victory!

Michigan Slow Out of Gates

The first half of this contest was all Golden Gophers. The Wolverines struggled from the field early and Minnesota was able to take advantage. Liam Robbins worked for all 6 of his points and 4 of his rebounds.

Michigan’s freshman center, Hunter Dickinson, is a load and he can ball. But, Robbins and the Gophers held him to just 5 points and 2 rebounds in that first 20 minutes.

Brandon Johnson and Eric Curry contributed with their own baskets, while Marcus Carr struggled to find his rhythm again (2/9). The Gopher offense was at its best, however, when Carr was getting to the rim. He did finish the half with 3 assists and 3 rebounds.

When the dust settled on the first half, the Gophers went into the locker room with a 7-point (30-23) lead.

No. 23 @GopherMBB is off to a fast start.

It leads No. 7 Michigan, 8-2, five minutes in. pic.twitter.com/zunsXE1aUx

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 16, 2021

No. 23 Minnesota has doubled up No. 7 Michigan. ????@liamrobbins_ // @GopherMBB pic.twitter.com/Vrkc61bmqu

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 16, 2021

Hard at work. pic.twitter.com/sFoLPS6BWF

— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) January 16, 2021

Liam Robbins dominates 2nd Half

On the road, the Minnesota Gophers have come out of halftimes like they napped for the entire 15 minutes. At home, just like today against the Wolverines, they like to pounce on opponents.

The second half on Saturday was driven by the play of Liam Robbins, with Brandon Johnson and Gabe Kalscheur playing more than capable wing men. Liam was completely dominant, adding 16 points (22 total), 4 more (8) rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

????@liamrobbins_ and No. 23 @GopherMBB have upset on their minds. pic.twitter.com/3feeiTOjCh

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 16, 2021

Steal on one end ✅
3 on the other end ✅@liamrobbins_ adds to No. 23 @GopherMBB's large lead. pic.twitter.com/m91P33cjRN

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 16, 2021

After a bit of early foul trouble, Robbins finished the game with just 3 of total. It was his best game of the season… and he’s been really good all year. He had Hunter Dickinson crying on the sideline by the end of the game… or that’s what I saw at least.

Marcus Carr up and down day

Marcus Carr was good today when he was playing good basketball. He took some really stupid shots, but when that man has a desire to get to the rim, there isn’t a better point guard in this country.

Marcus Carr's doing Marcus Carr things today. ???? pic.twitter.com/xwxVvTCO6R

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 16, 2021

And defenses have to commit so much attention to him that there are always teammates open when he has the basketball. This Gopher team has a lot of talent and can really go as far as Marcus Carr takes them.

He doesn’t have to wear the Superman cape this year, however. The smarter he plays, the farther this team will go.

Easier schedule upcoming

Home or away, this was a massive win for the Gophers and one they badly needed. Now, they’ll enter a much easier portion of their schedule and they can feel good about their 11-4 (4-4) record.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

All conversation surrounding the Minnesota Gophers men’s basketball program recently has been focused on the team’s stunning road woes. It started at #13 Illinois, where they hit their first 2020-21 speed bump.

Then, losses at #6 Wisconsin, #10 Michigan and #5 Iowa have piled up in the last couple of weeks, making Minnesota losers in three of their last four and 0-4 on the road this season. The formula for road losses has been pretty consistent.

Minnesota has trailed at halftime of all four games with combined halftime deficits of 26 points. The combined final deficits… 79 points. Yikes.

That includes a game at Wisconsin that was WAY worse in the 2nd half than what the final score shows. The Gophers trailed by 26 points that night, with just 8 minutes remaining.

Back at home this weekend

Luckily, none of that matters Saturday at 1:00 PM, when the Michigan Wolverines will hit the Williams Arena raised hardwood. The Gophers’ story has been much different this season at The Barn.

How different? Richard Pitino’s Gophers are 10-0 at home and that record includes victories over Saint Louis, #4 Iowa, #17 Michigan State and #25 Ohio State.

At home during conference play, they control pace, they play aggressive and they hit a lot more shots. So I’m expecting to see the Minnesota Gophers put up a much better fight Saturday than they did vs Michigan last week.

Gopher bball on the road vs at home pic.twitter.com/INDobcBsRu

— sadam (@Spoornts) January 11, 2021

Starts with Marcus Carr

If Minnesota is going to upset Michigan tomorrow at The Barn then Marcus Carr will have to be better than he’s been recently, especially in losing efforts.

After scoring 20 points in six of his first eight games, Marcus Carr has been held under that mark for SIX consecutive contests. Big Ten teams have decided that stopping Carr is the easiest avenue to success against the Gophers… and they’ve been right.

While playing on the road, teams have had success forcing Carr into a lot of bad outside jumpers, as opposed to getting into the lane and creating great opportunities for himself and for his teammates. The “getting into the lane part” is crucial for Carr’s success.

In their four losses, Marcus Carr is 16/61 (26%) from the floor and has only shot 14 total free throws, 10 of which came vs Illinois. He shot ZERO free throws in their last loss vs Iowa.

Even in their last home game vs Ohio State, Carr didn’t play up to his standards. He shot 3/12 from the floor and scored just SEVEN points off field goals. That night, however, Carr stayed aggressive and shot 11 free throws. He hit eight of them and the Gophers won big, 77-60.

Richard Pitino needs make sure he has plays called that aim to get Carr into the lane early and often. And Marcus needs to bring his A+ game. He’s been underwhelming for SIX straight games…

I thought this dude was trying to play in the NBA?

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan