Indiana men’s basketball’s nonconference slate was filled with highs and lows. After starting the season with four straight double-digit wins, the Hoosiers lost a pair of games in blowout fashion to the University of Louisville and Gonzaga University during the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Indiana closed out its stay in the Bahamas with a convincing victory over Providence College and rides a three-game winning streak into its Big Ten opener against Minnesota on Monday night inside Simon Skjdot Assembly Hall in Bloomington.
Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Ben Johnson, the Golden Gophers (6-4, 0-1 Big Ten) are led by senior forward Dawson Garcia. The 6-foot-11, 234-pound veteran is averaging team highs with 19 points and 7.4 rebounds per game and will likely be matched up with Indiana sixth-year center Oumar Ballo.
Following Ballo’s 14-point 18-rebound double-double against Miami University on Dec. 6, Hoosiers head coach Mike Woodson foreshadowed the added layer of difficulty for his team that comes with conference play.
“The Big Ten is big, everybody's got big guys,” Woodson said. “Four and fives are huge in the Big Ten. It won't be a surprise when we play Big Ten schools that got the five and four that matches Ballo and (junior forward Malik Reneau).”
Garcia is supported by a Minnesota cast of guards that recently recovered to full health. Senior guard Mike Mitchell Jr. returned to the court for the first time in nearly a month in the Golden Gophers’ 90-72 loss to Michigan State on Dec. 4.
After spending the first two years of his career at Pepperdine University, the sharpshooting Mitchell provided valuable floor spacing in his debut season wearing the Maroon and Gold during 2023-24, shooting 39.9% from beyond the arc. He posted 17 points against the Spartans in just 23 minutes with a 5 for 9 clip after his time off due to an ankle injury.
Mitchell will look to provide a spark to a Minnesota team that enters Monday night’s matchup ranked 164th in the NCAA NET rankings, the lowest of any Big Ten team. A win on the road in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall against Indiana, currently 60th in the NET, would qualify as a Quad 1 victory and skyrocket the Golden Gophers up the list.
Additionally, he’ll hope to break Minnesota’s streak of eight straight losses to the Cream and Crimson.
Even with the discrepancy in rankings and recent series success, the Hoosiers fifth-year senior guard Trey Galloway is cautious not to underestimate conference competition.
“The Big Ten is real,” Galloway said. “Anybody can win on any given night. You got to be prepared and practice with urgency and with a purpose.”
Both head coaches will look to come away with wins for their respective alma maters when the Hoosiers host the Golden Gophers at 6:30 p.m. Monday night. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network with Dave Revsine and LaPhonso Ellis on the call.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
