Minnesota Golden Gophers Basketball 2026-27 Season Preview

The Minnesota Golden Gophers had plenty of growing pains during their first season under head coach Niko Medved. While they didn’t sniff the postseason in 2025-26, the Gophers had plenty of steps in the right direction.

Minnesota Golden Gophers Basketball 2026-27 Season Preview

That should give Medved some confidence coming into the 2026-27 season. Getting Jalen Crocker-Johnson to hang around was quite possibly the most important move of the offseason, even when Minnesota once again brought in a massive new group of talent. Despite losing a nearly 20-point-per-game scorer in Cade Tyson, Minnesota has some real talent to work with this coming season.

Let’s dig a little deeper into the 2026-27 Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Roster Make-Up

Crocker-Johnson isn’t the only key returner for the Gophers, as both Isaac Asuma and Bobby Durkin are back in the Gopher uniform. Asuma started all 33 games last season as a sophomore, giving Coach Medved a steady lead guard heading into the new season. As for Durkin, he has a chance to take that next step as a senior, after averaging 10 points per game last season. Minnesota was able to grab a couple of national champions from the transfer portal, as Malick Kordel and Winters Grady come over from defending national Champion Michigan.

Kordel is a big-body center at 7-foot-2, and certainly will be right in the rotation for the Gophers. As for Grady, he was a highly touted recruit out of high school, and now gets a chance to fully showcase what he can do.

The headliner from the Gophers’ three-man freshman class is small forward Nolen Anderson, who comes in ranked 130th in the class. The pair of Michigan transfers weren’t the only major adds, as Medved sured up his backcourt with guard transfers from North Carolina and Villanova. Those players are Kyan Evans and Malachi Palmer.

Returners: Crocker-Johnson, Grayson Grove, Asuma, Max Lorenson, Durkin, and Kai Shinholster

Newcomers: Kordel, Cedric Tomes, Grady, Blake Nixon Jr, Anderson, Nolan Groves, Evans, Chadrack Mpoyi, and Palmer.

Another year of JCJ at the Barn 🔜

Crock averaged 13.4 PPG and 6.8 RPG last season.#TeamTogetherpic.twitter.com/LtwjZrZTVt

— Minnesota Men’s Basketball (@GopherMBB) August 5, 2026

Schedule Outlook

The Minnesota Golden Gophers finished 15-18 last season, but they fought hard in all of their games. It was highlighted by home wins against a ranked Indiana team, and by far their biggest surprise win was against Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans. They will need to play with that same kind of grit and intensity if they want to finish higher in year two under Medved.

The Gophers have some massive non-conference games, including a road trip to Cincinnati. They will also partake in the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic. That event also features Dayton, Oklahoma State, Utah, and Virginia Tech. They also have two other massive non-conference games that could make or break their NCAA hopes, with a neutral-site game against the California Golden Bears and a road visit to Frisco, Texas, to play SMU.

As for Big Ten play, they get home and road visits against Michigan, Northwestern, and Wisconsin. Those clashes with the Wolverines should be exciting, as the Gophers have always given them a fight. Their home slate is pretty favorable, with both Illinois and Indiana having to go to the Barn in Minneapolis. Going to Michigan State, UCLA, and USC will be tough, especially with the Spartans looking for revenge.

B1G Home & Away Schedule is HERE 〽️

📰 : https://t.co/UxrUxTUM97
🎟️ : https://t.co/2JZMHsst32#TeamTogetherpic.twitter.com/xYKm2NnP75

— Minnesota Men’s Basketball (@GopherMBB) May 12, 2026

Showing Growth in Year Two

Most had the Gophers likely finishing near the bottom of the Big Ten in 2025-26, especially with a whole new system and team. Medved defied expectations, winning 15 games and eight in the Big Ten. A couple more major wins, and they could’ve been flirting with the postseason. The non-conference schedule features some real quality teams for Minnesota this season, and if they can show growth in their second season under Medved, they might find their way into the Big Dance, especially with a much larger field.

Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

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