Missed free throws and bad decisions: How Minnesota blew its NCAA chances

Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, right?

That saying rings true for the Minnesota Gophers men's basketball team, who—after failing to hit clutch free throws (again)—found themselves on the losing end of another winnable game Wednesday night.

Overall, Minnesota sits at 15-15 overall and 7-12 in conference play. But if you analyze their losses, six stick out like a sore thumb. Had the Gophers hit their free throws and made smarter decisions when it mattered most, they very well might be boasting a 21-9 overall record and a 10-9 mark in Big Ten play.

Let's rewind and look back at the six games that killed Minnesota's NCAA tourney hopes.

North Texas: 54-51

Minnesota trailed 52-51 and had the ball with a chance to take the lead, but Lu'Cye Patterson missed a three with eight seconds left. The Gophers made just three shots in the first half—the second of which didn’t come until there was only 3:15 remaining.

Wichita State: 68-66 (OT)

Minnesota led 57-54 and could’ve fouled the Shockers to force them into two free throws with almost no chance to tie. Instead, they let Harlond Beverly take a three—and he didn’t miss. The Shockers went on to win in OT in a game that never should’ve gotten that far.

Wake Forest: 57-51

The Gophers shot 3-of-18 from three-point range and a brutal 6-of-15 at the free-throw line. Wake Forest, on the other hand, went 14-of-16 at the charity stripe.

Ohio State: 89-88 (2OT)

This might be the worst loss of the season. Minnesota shot 12-of-27 at the free-throw line and blew multiple chances to win. Ohio State forced overtime after a Minnesota turnover led to a game-tying bucket with five seconds left in regulation. Then, in the first OT, Mike Mitchell missed two free throws with the Gophers up 73-71 and six seconds to play. The Buckeyes went 29-of-33 at the free-throw line.

Washington: 71-68

A home loss to a reeling Huskies team was a bad look, especially considering Minnesota shot itself in the foot multiple times late in the game. After tying it at 64-64 with 2:44 left, Dawson Garcia missed three straight free throws. Then he and Patterson combined for three straight turnovers, killing any chance of a win.

Wisconsin: 74-67

The Gophers rallied from a double-digit deficit to take a 55-53 lead with 7:12 to go. But in the final six minutes, Minnesota went 2-of-8 at the free-throw line, while the Badgers knocked down 7-of-9. If the Gophers had made their free throws, this could’ve been a one-possession game in the final seconds.