Michigan's Dusty May Heaps Praise on Minnesota, Niko Medved

Dusty May, the head coach of a true national title contender, has an appreciation for Niko Medved after the fight the Gophers gave the No. 3-ranked Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor on Tuesday night.

"Minnesota is an extremely well-coached team. Their starting group, they really only play five guys, and the conditioning, the connectivity that they play with, they challenge you on a number of areas," May said after Michigan survived in a 77-67 win to clinch at least a share of the Big Ten title.

"I thought their zone was incredibly effective. They get to the ball quickly. Their anticipation skills are second to none. And that's a sign of a well-trained, well-coached basketball team. We're very happy to get out of here with a win."

Minnesota absorbed punches from Michigan, which is now 26-2 and a heavy favorite to secure a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and they hung in there despite playing only six guys and getting only seven minutes (and zero shot attempts) from the lone bench contributor, Kai Shinholster.

"I am really proud of my team, man," Medved said. "I think to come in here, I mean, this Michigan team is as good analytically as any team in college basketball in the last 15 years. They just showed a ton of heart, man. Every time we took a punch, we punched back. Did a lot of good things, man. We just battled our tail off and refused to give in."

Feb 1, 2026; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Niko Medved reacts from the bench during the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Bryce Jordan Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Minnesota had been shorthanded all season because of injuries to Chansey Willis Jr., Robert Vaihola, and B.J. Omot, but they were dealt an even bigger blow last week when Jalen Crocker-Johnson was ruled out with a season-ending foot injury.

Despite being outmanned, the Gophers found a way to play a methodical game — zone on defense and eating most of the shot clock on offense — to keep it close against a national power. Doing that with zero bench points was remarkable.

"If they had a full roster this year, their record would look a lot different, because they're playing different on both sides of the ball," May said of Minnesota, which is 13-15 overall and 6-11 in conference play.

"They made us pay for every error," May added. "We did a solid job overall of simply using our versatility, our speed and athleticism, to force some of the non-playmakers into playmakers, but it's tough defending for 29 seconds every single possession like we had to, like they make you."

For context, losing by 10 at Michigan isn't all that bad, especially when considering Minnesota's circumstances. Other than Nebraska losing by three and Wisconsin pulling off an upset to beat the Wolverines in Ann Arbor, every other Big Ten opponent has been beaten by more than Minnesota was on Tuesday night.

Penn State: 41-point loss at Michigan
Rutgers: 41
UCLA: 30
USC: 30
Indiana: 14
Ohio State: 12
Minnesota: 10
Nebraska: 3
Wisconsin: 91-88 win

"I will ride with the crew that plays like that anywhere," Medved said. "So, this was a heck of an effort from our guys tonight."