After going 4-16 in Big Ten in Year 1 and 2-17 in Year 2, Minnesota improved to 9-11 in conference play (ninth place) last season, then lost center Pharrel Payne and point guard Elijah Hawkins to bigger NIL deals at Texas A&M and Texas Tech, respectively, and freshman shooting guard Cam Christie to the NBA draft.

The Gophers fired men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson early Thursday morning, following his third losing Big Ten season in four years, a decision which will cost the University of Minnesota a $2.93 million buyout of his contract.

Johnson, a Minneapolis native, is a Minnesota alum, having finished his playing career there after spending his first two seasons at Northwestern.