Gophers are 'stuck' after failing to capitalize on favorable home schedule

After back-to-back upset wins in Los Angeles, the Gophers had a golden opportunity to solidify their standing in the Big Ten with two favorable home matchups against Penn State and Northwestern. But they couldn't capitalize, losing both games by a combined 21 points.

Minnesota now finds itself back on the Big Ten Tournament bubble, tied for 15th place after Tuesday night's loss. The Gophers are 10-8 at home this season, with four of those losses coming against teams outside the top 50 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings.

"This one felt—it's just we're stuck, and that's what we got to fight through. We've got to fight through being stuck," Johnson said after the loss to Northwestern. "We're just really mentally stuck right now. I can't pinpoint what it is necessarily about when we're not on the road, but we're a totally different team."

The Gophers have a respectable 4-4 record on the road this season, with wins over UCLA, USC, Iowa, and Penn State. Their road losses include a 15-point defeat against Indiana, a 21-point loss to Wisconsin, a six-point loss to Maryland, and a 22-point loss to Michigan State.

Ben Johnson said the Gophers did everything they could to recreate the magic they had in LA.

They even set up the locker room like a visiting locker room. 🤨 pic.twitter.com/ylQR1HyYwo
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) February 26, 2025

Johnson even said he and his coaching staff attempted to recreate the energy from their LA road trip. They set up the locker room like a visiting locker room, and he even delivered his pregame talk as if they were on the road.

Minnesota is approaching its fifth straight full season without an NCAA Tournament berth, making it increasingly difficult to generate fan excitement. Johnson has repeatedly urged Gophers fans to show up at the Barn this season, with mixed results.

Despite hosting no more than six at-large NCAA Tournament bid-caliber teams at the Barn this season, the Gophers have suffered notable home losses to North Texas, Washington, Penn State, and Northwestern. They also scraped by with narrow non-conference wins against Omaha, Yale, and Central Michigan.

Any Division I basketball coach will tell you that winning on the road is hard. The Gophers have proven they can compete away from home this season, but their inability to protect their home court could ultimately cost them a postseason opportunity.

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