ESPN: Two Teams We Pounded the Table For (Myron: Minnesota)

BleedGopher

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Per Myron:

Former Minnesota head coach Ben Johnson had everything you would think a head coach would need to get proper support from a school. He played high school basketball and football in Minneapolis, was a star for Minnesota in college, then spent time as an assistant under Richard Pitino before succeeding him. But Johnson ultimately landed the Gophers' head coaching gig amid the most turbulent time in recent college basketball history, and the school and its boosters failed to offer the NIL support they needed to compete.

By contrast, Niko Medved -- also a Minneapolis native -- navigated those challenges at a program (Colorado State) that had more resource limitations than Minnesota. He understands this landscape and program. And he has assembled a team full of underdogs, including former North Carolina reserve Cade Tyson.

This is where the portal is a plus for a coach like Medved: this team doesn't know or care about the past at Minnesota, they just want to win. And Medved has won 20 or more games in five of the past six seasons, reaching the NCAA tournament three times during that stretch, too. The Gophers, meanwhile, have just one winning season in that same span. Medved could make an immediate impact at Minnesota.


Go Gophers!!
 









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