Minnesota and Ohio State are raising awareness for Hoops4ALS game on January 6. Both Minnesota and Ohio will be wearing Hoops4ALS shooting shirts, while each coaching staff will be wearing pins to raise awareness for ALS.
Tip Time: 8:10 p.m.
SERIES INFORMATION*
150th Meeting (56-93 all time)
Minnesota home vs. Ohio State: 38-33
Last Meeting: Feb. 22, 2024 (MN W, 88-79)
* – excludes vacated games
STARTING FIVE
• The University of Minnesota men’s basketball program hosts its second-straight Big Ten game when the Ohio State Buckeyes come to town Monday night. Game time is set for 8 p.m. on FS1 and Gopher Radio Network. Minnesota is playing Ohio State for the first and only time this year and second straight at Williams Arena. Minnesota is 56-93 all-time against the Buckeyes, dating back to 1904, and a 38-33 record at home.
• The Gophers earned a win the last time these two teams met on Feb. 22, 2024, when OSU visited Williams Arena. Minnesota earned an 88-79 win over the Buckeyes and split action with OSU last season. Elijah Hawkins scored a career-high 24 points, while Dawson Garcia had 22 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Pharrel Payne added 15 points and four rebounds, and Parker Fox scored nine points and four boards in the win.
• Minnesota is looking to return to the win column and first win of the Big Ten schedule after dropping an 81-61 contest to No. 20 Purdue. Dawson Garcia led Minnesota with 20 points, followed by Lu’Cye Patterson with 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds. After a one-point lead at the half, Purdue made nine second-half three-pointers and scored 53 points en route to their 10th win.
• In the loss to Purdue, Dawson Garcia had his eighth game with 20 or more points this season, including his second in Big Ten play for Minnesota. Garcia, who ranks fourth in the league in scoring, established 22 against Purdue, 20 against Indiana and 18 against Michigan State, averaging 20 per Big Ten games.
• Lu’Cye Patterson has also scored in double-figures for the seventh time in the past nine games. His Minnesota best of 19 points came against Central Michigan. He has scored double-digit points against all three Big Ten teams in Michigan State (12), Indiana (10) and Purdue (14).
GARCIA IN THE RECORDBOOKS
• Dawson Garcia has scored 1,211 points as a Golden Gopher and 1,706 as a collegiate athlete. That number ranks 26th in school history (excluding vacated games). His 20 points vs. Purdue surpassed him over Archie Clark, who played for the Gophers from 1964-66.
WHERE THEY RANK
• Minnesota’s scoring defense ranks third in the Big Ten. Minnesota has allowed 65.1 points per game (911 total) in its 14 games into the season, which trails only UCLA and Maryland. Minnesota holds the Big Ten lead in blocks averaging 5.4 and that ranks 20th nationally.
• Dawson Garcia is fourth in the Big Ten in scoring, averaging 19.1 points per game and also ranks 11th in rebounds per game (7.2). Garcia’s eight 20-point games is tied for second in the league behind Rutger’s Dylan Harper with 10.
• Lu’Cye Patterson ranks second nationally and first in the Big Ten in assist/turnover ratio. Patterson has 13 turnovers with 54 assists this season.
SCOUTING OHIO STATE
• Ohio State enters the Minnesota contest with a 9-5 overall record and 1-2 in Big Ten play. The Buckeyes are looking to return the win column after dropping a 69-62 contest to Michigan State Friday. OSU split the opening week of Big Ten play when it lost to Maryland, 59-83, but won vs. Rutgers, 80-66. The Buckeyes have won three of their last four, including an 85-65 win vs. Kentucky.
• The Buckeyes have four that average double-digit points. Bruce Thornton leads the team with 16.9 points per game, followed by Devin Royal (14.3), John Mobley Jr., and Micah Parrish (11.9). Both Thornton and Royal are shooting over 50 percent from the field, while Mobley Jr., has 34 treys.
• As a team, the Buckeyes are shooting 49.5 from the field and 38.4 percent from three, which ranks only behind league-leading Purdue. OSU shoots 69.6 from the charity stripe and averages 35.3 rebounds per game.
(info and stock photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
