# 2023–24 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Gophers, led by third-year head coach Ben Johnson, played their home games at Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota as members of the Big Ten Conference.

## Previous season

The Gophers finished the 2022–23 season 9–22, 2–17 in Big Ten play, to finish in last place in the conference. The team once again saw major roster turnover, with eight players graduating from the 2021–22 team. In addition, two of the four returning players, Parker Fox and Isaiah Ihnen, suffered season-ending knee injuries prior to the start of the season.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Taurus Samuels | 0 | G | 6'1" | 195 | Graduate student | Oceanside, CA | Graduated |
| Jamison Battle | 10 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Junior | Robbinsdale, MN | Transferred to Ohio State |
| Jaden Henley | 24 | G/F | 6'7" | 200 | Freshman | Ontario, CA | Transferred to DePaul |
| Treyton Thompson | 42 | C | 7'0" | 210 | Sophomore | Glenwood, MN | Transferred to Stetson |
| Ta'Lon Cooper | 55 | G | 6'4" | 195 | Junior | Roebuck, SC | Transferred to South Carolina |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Elijah Hawkins | 0 | G | 5'11" | 160 | Junior | Washington, D.C. | Howard |
| Mike Mitchell Jr. | 2 | G | 6'2" | 190 | Junior | San Jose, CA | Pepperdine |
| Jack Wilson | 33 | C | 6'11" | 290 | Graduate student | Montara, CA | Washington State |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Cam Christie SG | Rolling Meadows, IL | Rolling Meadows High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Jul 29, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Kristupas Keinys SF | Klaipėda, Lithuania | Klaipedos Vytauto Didžiojo gimnazija | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Jun 20, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 85 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 17, 2023. ||||||

#### 2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2024) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Isaac Asuma PG | Mountain Iron, MN | Cherry School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Mar 2, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Grayson Grove PF | Alexandria, MN | Alexandria Area High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | May 13, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 17, 2023. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 2, 2023* 7:00 p.m., B1G+ | | Macalester | W 97–73 | | 21 – Ola–Joseph | 11 – Garcia | 9 – tied | Williams Arena (2,604) Minneapolis, MN |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., B1G+ | | Bethune–Cookman | W 80–60 | 1–0 | 23 – Garcia | 14 – Garcia | 6 – Garcia | Williams Arena (7,132) Minneapolis, MN |
| November 10, 2023* 6:30 p.m., Peacock | | UTSA | W 102–76 | 2–0 | 22 – Garcia | 10 – Hawkins | 8 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (6,973) Minneapolis, MN |
| November 16, 2023* 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Missouri | L 68–70 | 2–1 | 16 – Garcia | 13 – Carrington | 6 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (7,975) Minneapolis, MN |
| November 18, 2023* 1:00 p.m., Peacock | | USC Upstate | W 67–53 | 3–1 | 14 – Garcia | 6 – Garcia | 5 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (7,347) Minneapolis, MN |
| November 21, 2023* 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Arkansas–Pine Bluff | W 86–67 | 4–1 | 19 – Garcia | 9 – Garcia | 4 – tied | Williams Arena (6,591) Minneapolis, MN |
| November 26, 2023* 7:30 p.m., CBSSN | | vs. San Francisco | L 58–76 | 4–2 | 19 – Garcia | 6 – tied | 5 – Hawkins | Chase Center (3,682) San Francisco, CA |
| November 30, 2023* 6:00 p.m., BTN | | New Orleans | W 97–64 | 5–2 | 20 – Christie | 7 – Carrington | 9 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (6,797) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 3, 2023 5:30 p.m., BTN | | at Ohio State | L 74–84 | 5–3 (0–1) | 36 – Garcia | 11 – Garcia | 5 – Hawkins | Value City Arena (10,481) Columbus, OH |
| December 6, 2023 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Nebraska | W 76–65 | 6–3 (1–1) | 15 – Ola-Joseph | 6 – Hawkins | 11 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (6,899) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 9, 2023* 11:00 a.m., BTN | | Florida Gulf Coast | W 77–57 | 7–3 | 17 – Ola-Joseph | 7 – Fox | 11 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (7,317) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 12, 2023* 7:00 p.m., B1G+ | | IUPUI | W 101–65 | 8–3 | 19 – Christie | 8 – Payne | 17 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (6,581) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 21, 2023* 7:00 p.m., B1G+ | | Ball State | W 80–63 | 9–3 | 20 – Mitchell Jr. | 7 – tied | 9 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (7,261) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 29, 2023* 6:00 p.m., Peacock | | Maine | W 80–62 | 10–3 | 18 – Mitchell Jr. | 8 – Payne | 10 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (8,658) Minneapolis, MN |
| January 4, 2024 8:00 p.m., Peacock | | at Michigan | W 73–71 | 11–3 (2–1) | 18 – Mitchell Jr. | 12 – Garcia | 7 – Hawkins | Crisler Center (10,493) Ann Arbor, MI |
| January 7, 2024 4:30 p.m., BTN | | Maryland | W 65–62 | 12–3 (3–1) | 12 – Christie | 6 – tied | 9 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (8,583) Minneapolis, MN |
| January 12, 2024 5:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Indiana | L 62–74 | 12–4 (3–2) | 17 – Payne | 10 – Payne | 6 – Hawkins | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| January 15, 2024 5:00 p.m., BTN | | Iowa | L 77–86 | 12–5 (3–3) | 30 – Garcia | 5 – tied | 9 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (8,379) Minneapolis, MN |
| January 18, 2024 5:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Michigan State | L 66–76 | 12–6 (3–4) | 22 – Garcia | 10 – Payne | 5 – Mitchell Jr. | Breslin Center (14,797) East Lansing, MI |
| January 23, 2024 6:00 p.m., BTN | | No. 13 Wisconsin | L 59–61 | 12–7 (3–5) | 16 – Hawkins | 7 – Payne | 9 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (10,013) Minneapolis, MN |
| January 27, 2024 5:30 p.m., BTN | | at Penn State | W 83–74 | 13–7 (4–5) | 22 – Garcia | 8 – Christie | 5 – tied | Bryce Jordan Center (12,336) University Park, PA |
| February 3, 2024 1:00 p.m., BTN | | Northwestern | W 75–66 $^{OT}$ | 14–7 (5–5) | 20 – Garcia | 9 – Payne | 10 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (9,492) Minneapolis, MN |
| February 6, 2024 8:00 p.m., Peacock | | Michigan State | W 59–56 | 15–7 (6–5) | 19 – Christie | 7 – Payne | 6 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (8,239) Minneapolis, MN |
| February 11, 2024 2:00 p.m., BTN | | at Iowa | L 85–90 | 15–8 (6–6) | 18 – tied | 7 – Garcia | 6 – Hawkins | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (9,768) Iowa City, IA |
| February 15, 2024 7:30 p.m., BTN | | at No. 2 Purdue | L 76–84 | 15–9 (6–7) | 24 – Garcia | 5 – Payne | 7 – Hawkins | Mackey Arena (14,876) West Lafayette, IN |
| February 18, 2024 5:30 p.m., BTN | | Rutgers | W 81–70 | 16–9 (7–7) | 21 – Payne | 11 – Payne | 7 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (9,680) Minneapolis, MN |
| February 22, 2024 7:00 p.m., BTN | | Ohio State | W 88–79 | 17–9 (8–7) | 24 – Hawkins | 9 – Garcia | 7 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (8,558) Minneapolis, MN |
| February 25, 2024 5:30 p.m., BTN | | at Nebraska | L 55–73 | 17–10 (8–8) | 14 – Christie | 9 – Fox | 2 – Hawkins | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,920) Lincoln, NE |
| February 28, 2024 8:00 p.m., BTN | | at No. 13 Illinois | L 97–105 | 17–11 (8–9) | 29 – Garcia | 9 – Payne | 12 – Hawkins | State Farm Center (15,544) Champaign, IL |
| March 2, 2024 2:15 p.m., BTN | | Penn State | W 75–70 | 18–11 (9–9) | 19 – Christie | 6 – Fox | 8 – Hawkins | Williams Arena (11,318) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 6, 2024 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Indiana | L 58–70 | 18–12 (9–10) | 14 – Fox | 12 – Garcia | 6 – Mitchell Jr. | Williams Arena (9,002) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 9, 2024 8:00 p.m., BTN | | at Northwestern | L 66–90 | 18–13 (9–11) | 30 – Garcia | 9 – Garcia | 10 – Hawkins | Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039) Evanston, IL |
| Big Ten tournament |||||||||
| March 14, 2024 11:00 a.m., BTN | (9) | vs. (8) Michigan State Second round | L 67–77 | 18–14 | 19 – Garcia | 4 – tied | 7 – Hawkins | Target Center Minneapolis, MN |
| NIT |||||||||
| March 19, 2024 8:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at (4) Butler First round – Indiana State bracket | W 73–72 | 19–14 | 25 – Garcia | 6 – Hawkins | 15 – Hawkins | Hinkle Fieldhouse (3,478) Indianapolis, IN |
| March 24, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at (1) Indiana State Second round – Indiana State bracket | L 64–76 | 19–15 | 16 – Payne | 12 – Garcia | 3 – Payne | Hulman Center (8,239) Terre Haute, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||