Gophers Host Badgers in Border Battle

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Broadcast: BTN (Cory Provus, pbp), Shon Morris (color)
Tip Time: 6:01 p.m. CT
Radio: KTLK AM 1130 / FM 103.5 (Mike Grimm, Al Nolen)
Sirius: SiriusXM 372 and on the SiriusXM App

SERIES INFORMATION*
202nd Meeting (98-103 all time)
Home Record vs. Wisconsin: 64-37
Gophers All-Time vs. Big Ten: 790-904
* - excludes vacated games

STARTING FIVE
• The University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to Williams Arena Tuesday night when it faces the No. 11 Wisconsin Badgers at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Network. It marks the first ranked opponent the Golden Gophers have faced this season.
• Minnesota is 98-103 all-time against the Badgers, dating back to 1900. Wisconsin has won the last six contests, including the past four games by six or less points. Tuesday's game marks the only contest between these border rivals this season. The last time Minnesota only faced the Badgers once in a season was 2020-21, a road contest that year in Madison, Wis.
• Tuesday's game marks Minnesota's annual Coaches vs. Cancer game. Custom player warm-up shirts with the name of someone they know affected by cancer will be featured and the coordinating cancer designation ribbon on the back. Fans in the stands have the ability to stop by the marketing table for "I Stand For" cards that individuals can fill out. At halftime, there will also be a Hardwood Heroes Halftime Scrimmage - a group put together by Dr. Karim Sadak, a pediatric oncologist at U of M, from the Children's Hospital and Cancer Center that includes doctors, nurses, researchers, dieticians, pharmacists, child & family life specialists, social workers and patients. Also included will be Gopher men's basketball's Team Impact signee, Josh Hansen.
• In the past two games, Dawson Garcia has produced 52 points with a 30-point performance against Iowa and 22 points at Michigan State. Garcia is the first Gopher to earn 30-point games against a league opponent since Marcus Carr in 2020-21 when he accomplished the feat at Nebraska (41 points) and Iowa (30 points). Should he reach another 30-point game he would tie Amir Coffey's 30-plus game performances in 2018-19 when Coffey scored 32 points vs. Ohio State, 31 at Northwestern and 32 vs. Purdue.
• Despite missing the Michigan State game due to injury, Elijah Hawkins tops the nation in assists per game (7.8). He also ranks third nationally in total assists at 132. The junior transfer from Howard has had two double-double point/assist games. Hawkins also had four-straight games in which he had double-digit points, including two against Big Ten opponents.

LAST GAME RECAP
• Dawson Garcia had 22 points and nine rebounds and Mike Mitchell Jr. added 14 points and five assists, but short-handed Minnesota (12-6, 3-4 Big Ten) fell to Michigan State 76-66 at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich.
• The Gophers were playing without starting point guard Elijah Hawkins, who leads the Big Ten in assists. Pharrel Payne added seven points and a team-high 10 rebounds for Minnesota, while Cam Christie had eight points, Braeden Carrington had seven points, and Joshua Ola-Joseph finished with four points and five boards.

ABOUT WISCONSIN
• The Wisconsin Badgers are 14-4 overall and lead the Big Ten with a 6-1 mark in league play. The Badgers rebounded after a loss at Penn State Jan. 16 and defeated Indiana, 91-79, Friday in Madison, Wis. After losing its first two of three games this season, Wisconsin has gone 13-2 since Nov. 17.
• Wisconsin has balanced scoring with three averaging double-digits and another two over nine points per game. St. John's transfer AJ Storr leads the team averaging 15.3 points, followed by Steven Crowl at 12 and Tyler Wahl at 11.5. Crowl also leads the team with 7.8 rebounds per game. Max Klesmit averages 9.9 ppg, but averages over 16 a game the past five games. John Blackwell also averages 9.1 points, while Chucky Hepburn leads the team in assists (70) and steals (35) and 7.9 ppg.
• As a team, the Badgers average 76.5 points and allow just 67.3. They are shooting 47.8 percent from the field, including 35.9 beyond the arc that ranks fourth in the league. They also average 33.8 rebounds and shoot a league-best 77.7 from the free throw line.

ON THE DOCKET
• Minnesota returns to road action when it travels to Penn State, Saturday, Jan. 27 5:30 p.m. CT. The game will also be televised on Big Ten Network. It is PSU's annual THON Game, where a portion of the ticket cost will go toward THON's fundraising efforts. THON is the world's largest student-run philanthropy that aims to provide emotional and financial support to Four Diamonds families at Penn State Health Children's Hospital who have been impacted by childhood cancer.
• Mike Grimm and Al Nolen will provide the radio broadcast on Gopher Radio Network and KTLK AM 1130 / FM 103.5.

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Players Mentioned

Braeden Carrington

Cam Christie

Dawson Garcia

Elijah Hawkins

Mike Mitchell Jr.

Joshua Ola-Joseph

Pharrel Payne