5 takeaways from Minnesota's regular season finale loss against Rutgers

Minnesota had one final chance to head into next week's Big Ten Tournament with some momentum on Sunday afternoon against Rutgers. They did the exact opposite, and they lost four of their final five games to finish the regular season.

Free throw shooting

The Gophers have shot 66.2% from the free-throw line this season, which ranks 342nd in college basketball. It has been talked about enough, but Sunday was another close game where a 13-23 (56.5%) night from the charity stripe was massive in determining the outcome. It's not a new development for a Ben Johnson-led team to struggle from the line, but whoever is coaching this team in 2025-26 has to be better.

Frank Mitchell's overtime dissapearence

Canisius transfer big man Frank Mitchell has been a revelation over the last month of the season. He had his second straight double-double on Sunday against Rutgers, with 12 points and 11 rebounds on perfect 6-6 shooting from the field. His energy was a big reason for Minnesota's second-half comeback. For some reason, he did not play a single minute in overtime. It did not seem like there was an injury, but it raises some serious questions after the Gophers were outscored 14-6.

Mike Mitchell Jr.'s slump

When Mike Mitchell Jr. came back from injury in December, he had four straight games with more than 10 points. He has done it only four times in the 18 games since, and Sunday was his third scoreless game, which have all come in Minnesota's four last games. He was up-and-down in January and February, but he has now made only one of his last 17 shot attempts from the field.

1-4 finish to the regular season

It wasn't too long ago when Minnesota swept its Los Angeles road trip against USC and UCLA, and it looked like they could have some serious momentum heading into March. They responded with a 1-4 record in their final five regular-season games, and that momentum now seems like a distant memory.

Early Big Ten Tournament thoughts

Moving Brennan Rigsby and Frank Mitchell into the starting lineup could be something that Johnson could look at doing to regnite some energy into the team, but I would be pleasantly surprised if he makes a change at this point of the season. They open against a Northwestern team that has been playing better ball as of late, winning three of its last five. The Gophers will have a lot of doubters to prove wrong one last time this season.

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