Making the Case for Niko Medved to Win Big Ten Coach of the Year

The Gophers have been ravaged by injuries, with six scholarship players out for the majority of Niko Medved's first season as head coach. They've still scrapped to put together a 7-11 campaign in conference play. Medved should be firmly in the conversation to win Big Ten Coach of the Year — and here's why.

Coach of the year awards in any sport are typically given to the head coach of whichever team exceeded expectations the most. Nebraska's Fred Hoiberg is probably the heavy favorite to win this year's award. The Cornhuskers are 25-4 overall and 14-4 in the Big Ten, tied for second in the standings, and they were projected to finish near the bottom of the conference before the season. So it makes sense.

Hoiberg deserves to be the favorite, and the job he has done this season with the Cornhuskers is remarkable. But Medved is making a late push to enter the discussion.

Programs near the top of the conference like Michigan, Michigan State, Illinois and Purdue all had high expectations this season, and they have some of the most talented rosters in the Big Ten. Outside of Dusty May leading Michigan to an all-time great regular-season, it's hard to find a coach who has gotten the most out of his team more than Medved.

The Gophers are just 14-15 this season, but they've been playing with only six players since Feb. 14. They've dealt with injuries all season, so short rotations have become commonplace for this year's team. Really, it's closer to a true five-man group, as freshman Kai Shinholster is averaging just 13.0 minutes per game off the bench.

Minnesota has three wins this season over ranked opponents: No. 10 Michigan State, No. 19 Iowa and No. 22 Indiana. Doing that in year one at a new program would be impressive in its own right, but doing it severely shorthanded is nothing short of remarkable.

The Gophers last four games might be their most impressive. After suffering a 12-point loss at Washington in their first game without Jaylen Crocker-Johnson, they've elevated their game to another level. They beat Oregon by 17 points on the road, beat Rutgers by 19 at home, gave Michigan all they could handle on the road, and they most recently beat UCLA by five points at home on Saturday.

Since that Feb. 17 game against Oregon, Minnesota is the 20th-best team in college basketball, according to popular analytics site barttorvik.com. They found their identity since December without starters Chansey Willis Jr. and Robert Vaihola, but taking their game to another level without Crocker-Johnson doesn't even make sense.

In the modern era of college basketball, it has never been harder for coaches to keep their teams bought in when a season seems lost. Players begin looking ahead to the transfer portal and plans for next season. The Gophers' season felt lost at multiple different times this season, but Medved's team has never lost its focus.

Winning coach of the year in a power conference when falling short of the NCAA Tournament is admittedly unlikely. Hoiberg will likely win the award this season in the Big Ten, but Medved has proven he deserves to at least be in the discussion.