What we learned from Minnesota's statement upset win over No. 22 Indiana

Minnesota entered Wednesday's Big Ten opener battered and bruised, but it delivered its most impressive performance of the season in a 73-64 upset win over No. 22 Indiana. Here's what we learned.

Niko Medved made a statement

There were more than a handful of reasons that made it seem like Minnesota might struggle against the No. 22-ranked Hoosiers. Indiana closed as an 8.5-point favorite on FanDuel Sportbook, which marked the Gophers' largest spread of the season as an underdog. They used only eight scholarship players and handed a top 25 team its first loss of the season. If there were any questions about Medved's coaching prowess, he gave you plenty of reason to believe he will turn this thing around.

Home crowd

Wednesday night was the first Big Ten game of the season for Minnesota, and Medved's first as head coach of the program. The team announced a sellout for the student tickets, and it was relatively close to a full student section. Williams Arena hasn't felt "full" for quite some time, but it was a comparatively solid turnout for a team that was carrying a three-game losing streak.

Relatively impressive crowd tonight for a 4-4 Gophers team. Games like this remind me how hungry this fanbase is for a tournament team. pic.twitter.com/nOQoynER3N
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) December 4, 2025

Rotation

G: Isaac Asuma
G: Langston Reynolds
F: Bobby Durkin
F: Cade Tyson
F: Jaylen Crocker-Johnson
6th: Kai Shinholster
7th: Grayson Grove
8th: Nehemiah Turner

Subscribe: Sign up to receive the free Gophers On SI newsletter

Wednesday was Minnesota's first game since starting point guard Chansey Willis Jr. was ruled out for the season, and they were still without starting center Robert Vaihola and Cal transfer B.J. Omot. Medved opted to deploy only a seven-man rotation in the first half without Turner. Shinholster was the first player off the bench for the first time this season. Turner saw the floor early in the second half due to some foul trouble, but shorter rotations are likely the norm going forward.

Frontcourt energy and foul trouble

Grove's first half stat-line of one point on one of four shooting from the free throw line, two rebounds and three fouls in seven minutes is certainly nothing to write home about. But when Jaylen Crocker-Johnson picked up his second foul with 6:13 to go, Grove's final first-half run might've been his best stretch against a major opponent this season. He came up with two huge blocks, and he was a big reason why Minnesota went into halftime tied.

Crocker-Johnson picked up his third foul just over 30 seconds into the second half, and then Grove picked up his fourth foul less than 20 seconds later. Turner entered the game and proceeded to pick up three fouls in less than four minutes. Minnesota's frontcourt combined for 10 of its first 13 fouls as a team. All three players were huge reasons why the Gophers were able to pull off the upset.

Durkin's first game starting

Durkin was viewed as Minnesota's biggest addition from the transfer portal in the offseason. 247Sports even had him ranked as a top 100 player from the portal. His first season in the Big Ten didn't get off to an ideal start. He entered Wednesday's game shooting 30% from three, after shooting 35.5% from long range last season at Davidson. He finished with a season-high 12 points on 3 of 7 shooting from the field, in easily his best performance of the season.