Related: Minnesota Gophers Cam Christie Earns Big Ten Freshman of the Week Honors

Elijah Hawkins and Pharrel Payne got themselves into early foul trouble, but the Gophers didn’t skip a beat. Dawson Garcia and Mike Mitchell Jr calmly took the game into their hands and built up a 13-point lead by halftime.

Minnesota Gophers Dominate 1st half in Iowa

Garcia went 7-for-8 from the field and scored 18 points in the first 20 minutes. Mike Michell Jr went 3-for-5 from deep and added two free throws for 11 points of his own. As a team, the Gophers shot 55% from the field and 67% from deep. They could not have dreamed up a better 1st-half scenario.

Mike Mitchell hits b2b 3s from the same spot. 🔥🔥@HoopDreams2021 x @GopherMBB

📺: @BigTenNetwork pic.twitter.com/jSsRVSQAvD

— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 11, 2024

Yet somehow they came out of halftime even hotter than they went into it. This time, it was Cam Christie leading the charge, scoring 10 of the Gophers’ first 14 points in the 2nd half. With just over 14 minutes left, the Gophers held a 19 point lead.

But around that same time, Dawson Garcia fell to the floor after successfully blocking a shot on defense. He came out of the game shortly after and never returned. From that moment on, the Minnesota Gophers were not the same team.

Dawson Garcia leaves game; Gophers Blow 19-point lead

From the 14:20 mark to the 4:34 mark, Iowa outscored the Gophers 31 to 11 to take a one-point lead. When the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard showed a 90-85 Iowa win and I sat witness to one of the most epic 2nd half Gophers meltdown in men’s basketball history. The refs deserve some blame. They were brutal and the 22-11 foul differential speaks for itself.

It’s difficult to blame the referees when you play as poorly as the Golden Gophers did during the 2nd half on Sunday. After the game, Ben Johnson didn’t have an update on Dawson Garcia’s injury, but told us after the game that Minnesota ‘lost its edge’ when he exited.

Just got out of Ben Johnson’s postgame presser. He had no update on Dawson Garcia, and said that without him tonight, the #Gophers ‘lost our edge’ in more ways than one. pic.twitter.com/1xcgBpwx8R

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) February 11, 2024

Carver-Hawkeye Arena was quiet for the entire 1st half, outside of a few fans screaming their dismay at Fran and his players, who could have heard a pin drop, let alone a rowdy season ticket holder from 25 yards away. This isn’t the first 2nd-half disaster of the season (remember what happened vs Mizzou?) but it has to be the most deflating.

Related: Gophers Legitimate Contenders for Double-Bye in Big Ten Tournament at Target Center

Instead of a four-game winning streak that sling-shots them up the NET rankings and into NCAA Tournament conversations, we’re left to wonder if Ben’s 2024 squad is in for a season-flattening disaster on Thursday night in West Lafayette vs Purdue.

Related: Elijah Hawkins Tweets “lol” Over No-Call that Cost Gophers vs Badgers

On Friday, Ben Johnson met with reporters and told them that he and his team remained optimistic about where their season was heading, that they were so close to being a good team, “it’s scary”. Well, their play at the end of the first half Saturday vs the Nittany Lions was legitimately terrifying too, which is why the Gophers entered the 2nd half down 14 points.

Minnesota Golden Gophers shine in 2nd half @ Penn State

A different team came out of the Bryce Jordan Arena locker room following the halftime intermission, though. And whatever “secret stuff” Ben Johnson had them drink kicked in immediately. Penn State scored the first two points out of the break, temporarily pushing their lead to 16.

Then, the Gophers rattled off 10 points in two minutes and cut the lead to six, before the home team needed a timeout. Cam Christie, Dawson Garcia, Mike Mitchell and Elijah Hawkins took the game over and never gave it back.

He almost flew. 😳@show_time_josh x @GopherMBB pic.twitter.com/54lnZOWldA

— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 28, 2024

It was like they suddenly realized in the locker room, ‘hey, we three are better than just about everyone on their roster minus maybe one dude (Kanye Clark)’, who didn’t have a very good game. Once that happened, the Nittany Lions never really stood a chance.

Minnesota outscored Penn State by a whopping 23 points and struggled to even keep it close, late. In the end, the whistle blew with Ben Johnson’s squad up a rather comfortable nine points, 83-74. Reminder: the Gophers were down 16 points with slightly over 19 minutes remaining in this contest.

This dunk by Parker Fox broke hearts in Happy Valley.

Huge turning point in the game. pic.twitter.com/KJAsOi9fm0

— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) January 28, 2024

When the dust settled, Dawson Garcia led the way with 20 points and 4 rebounds; Cam Christie ended two rebounds away from a double-double with 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists to boot.

How good is Mike Mitchell Jr?

Mitchell Jr was the 27th ranked transfer in the portal and carried a 4-star value, according to 247Sports.com. He visited Dinkytown over the weekend and carried interest from a bunch of other power five schools, including Clemson, Oregon State and Utah. UNLV and San Diego State also showed interest.

NEWS: Pepperdine transfer Mike Mitchell Jr. tells me he’s committed to Minnesota.

The sophomore guard averaged 11.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, and five assists this season. Shot 43.3% from the field and 44% from three.

Story: https://t.co/rWhLtHSRmZ pic.twitter.com/Gtst4kSRSA

— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) March 29, 2023

Mitchell Jr’s numbers at Pepperdine pop out in a few areas. He started every game he wore a Waves jersey. That’s 32 starts as a Freshman, 31 starts as a Sophomore and over 33 minutes per game in both seasons. In his final season with Pepperdine, Mike averaged 11.4 points on 43% shooting, including 44% from the 3 pt line. He can dish the ball too, averaging 5 assists per game.

I watched parts of a few games Mike Mitchell Jr played in last season and it doesn’t take long to see what Ben Johnson liked when he turned on Mitchell’s tape. He loves to push pace up the floor and he’s very good at creating his own shot off the dribble or creating offense for others off the pick and roll. Mike’s size limits him in the lane but he isn’t afraid of going there and can finish near the rim if given a little bit of space.

Mike Mitchell Jr flaws

Mike Mitchell Jr is far from a perfect basketball player. He doesn’t get to the free throw line very often and his turnovers can be a problem. He only averaged 2.9 turnovers per game but did have some nights where he racked up as many as 7.

That will happen when you’re the main ball-handler and Mike was definitely that for the Waves. But tape doesn’t lie and it’s clear Mitchell can struggle with on-ball pressure, at times, and will at times make questionable passing decisions when trying to push the ball up the floor.

He can be had off the dribble by quicker ball-handlers and tends to get lost sometimes off the ball. Both of those things will have to improve if he is going to get major minutes with the Gophers. It’s important to remember that Pepperdine went 16-47 in Mitchell’s two years there, which certainly played into the type of player he and others became while there.

Ben Johnson looking for more transfer portal talent

With Ta’Lon Cooper transferring to South Carolina and Jamison Battle possibly on his way to Indiana, Ben Johnson had to find another scoring option who can handle a lot of time with the ball in his hands. He absolutely gets that with Mike Mitchell Jr. He could be a huge get if he can take his game to the next level in a more structured system vs better competition.

The Minnesota Gophers are far from done with the portal. According to Ryan James (247Sports.com), Ben Johnson is still seeking two backcourt players in the portal who can contribute immediately. This is a win or die season for the 3rd-year head coach.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan