University of Minnesota Athletics
Wednesday, April 1
Las Vegas, NV
9:30 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Baylor
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard/Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Jerod Ringwald
Gophers Ready For Vegas and College Basketball Crown
3/30/2026 12:26:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: FS1 (Tim Brando- play-by-play, Jim Jackson - analyst))
Tip Time: 9:35 p.m.
Radio: KTLK-AM 1130 / FM 103.5 - Mike Grimm, Al Nolen)
STARTING FIVE
• The University of Minnesota men's basketball program is one of eight teams selected to participate in the College Basketball Crown (CBC), April 1-5 in Las Vegas. Minnesota will face Baylor on April 1 at 9:30 p.m. CT. The Minnesota vs. Baylor matchup will be the first meeting between the teams in school history. The game will be played at MGM Grand Garden Arena and televised on FS1. Should Minnesota win, the Golden Gophers would face the winner of the Oklahoma/Colorado quarterfinal on April 4 in a semifinal matchup.
• The Golden Gophers enter the Crown with a 15-17 record. Minnesota went 8-12 in Big Ten action to finish 11th in the league standings. The Big Ten sent nine teams to the NCAA Tournament and two to the CBC. During the regular season, Minnesota defeated ranked teams Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State and also defeated NCAA-tourney-bound UCLA.
• The 2026 season marks Minnesota's first appearance in the CBC and first postseason action since 2024, when the Gophers were selected for the National Invitation Tournament. Minnesota defeated Butler that season and fell to NIT runner-up Indiana State.
• Minnesota's last action came in the Second Round of the 2026 TIAA Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament at the United Center in Chicago. Cade Tyson scored 24 points, Bobby Durkin had 15 points, and Grayson Grove added 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists, but 14th-seeded Rutgers rallied for a 72-67 win over the 11th-seeded Minnesota. The Gophers led 52-47 with 9:49 remaining, but Rutgers went on a 13-2 run over the next five-plus minutes to take control of the game. Tyson made 9-of-13 field goals, including 3-of-7 three-pointers
• Due to injuries this season, Minnesota has shortened its bench to six players since mid-February. In that span, however, the Gophers went 4-4, with a road win at Oregon, split with Rutgers, and won over the UCLA Bruins and Northwestern to end the regular season on senior day. Of the four losses, three came on the road at Washington, then-No. 3 Michigan and Indiana, while the last came in the Big Ten Tournament vs. Rutgers.
ACADEMIC HONORS
• Isaac Asuma, Grayson Grove and RJ Spencer were all named Academic All-Big Ten selections. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students are enrolled full time at the institution for a minimum of 12 months and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.
• In addition, Grove and Cade Tyson were named Academic All-District by College Sports Communicators (CSC). Both sports management majors, it marks the first honor for each. to achieve this honor, both held a GPA of above 3.5 and been a starter or key contributor to the team.
ABOUT THE FIELD
• Now in its second year, the College Basketball Crown features an eight-team, seven-game format with four quarterfinals, two semifinals and a championship game. Quarterfinals will be held April 1-2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena, while semifinals will be held on April 4 at T-Mobile Arena. Teams that advance to the championship game play on April 5 at 4:30 p.m. CT.
• Minnesota and Rutgers represent the Big Ten in the eight-team CBC, while Baylor, Colorado and West Virginia will represent the Big 12. Creighton will join the Crown from the Big East, while Stanford represents the ACC and Oklahoma will represent the SEC.
• This marks the second year of the College Basketball Crown, the first with an eight-team field. The Nebraska Cornhuskers won the inaugural CBC event in Las Vegas last season in a two-week, 16-team field.
IN THE RECORDBOOKS
• Cade Tyson, Bobby Durkin and Langston Reynolds have already made their mark in the Minnesota season history records. Cade Tyson ranks seventh in points in a season (609), while his 19.6 points per game ranks fifth among Gophers players since 1978-79. His 42.2 three-point shooting currently ranks eighth in school history. His 166 free throws is third all time in a season. Bobby Durkin's 78 threes currently ranks sixth in school history, while his 196 attempts is seventh. Reynolds' 146 assists is tied for 10th-most in a single season with Adam Boone and Kevin Burleson.
ABOUT THE BAYLOR BEARS
• Baylor is 16-16 overall and finished 6-12 in the Big 12. The No. 13-seed Bears fell on March 10 to No. 13-seed Arizona State, 83-79, at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City. The Bears earned league road wins at Oklahoma State (1/13) and at West Virginia (1/31), before home wins over Colorado (2/4) and Arizona State (2/21). The Bears earned their last wins at UCF (2/28) and their regular-season finale at home vs. Utah (3/7).
• The Bears have four averaging double-digit points. Cameron Carr leads the teams in points per game (19.2), points (613) and minutes played (33.5). Carr's ppg ranks fourth in the Big 12. Tounde Yessoufou averages 17.8 points and ranks third in the Big 12 in steals (65) and steals per game (2.03). Obi Agbim and Isaac Williams average 10.7 and 10.5 points, respectively. Agbim leads the team with 72 threes in 204 attempts. Defensively, five Bears average over four rebounds a game, led by Caden Powell with 201 rebounds and 6.3 per game. He and Carr have 28 and 41 blocks.
• As a team, Baylor averages 82.6 points and allows 77.2 per game. They enter the Crown with a 47.9 shooting percentage and 34.5 percent from three. The Bears average 36.8 rebounds per game.
TV: FS1 (Tim Brando- play-by-play, Jim Jackson - analyst))
Tip Time: 9:35 p.m.
Radio: KTLK-AM 1130 / FM 103.5 - Mike Grimm, Al Nolen)
STARTING FIVE
• The University of Minnesota men's basketball program is one of eight teams selected to participate in the College Basketball Crown (CBC), April 1-5 in Las Vegas. Minnesota will face Baylor on April 1 at 9:30 p.m. CT. The Minnesota vs. Baylor matchup will be the first meeting between the teams in school history. The game will be played at MGM Grand Garden Arena and televised on FS1. Should Minnesota win, the Golden Gophers would face the winner of the Oklahoma/Colorado quarterfinal on April 4 in a semifinal matchup.
• The Golden Gophers enter the Crown with a 15-17 record. Minnesota went 8-12 in Big Ten action to finish 11th in the league standings. The Big Ten sent nine teams to the NCAA Tournament and two to the CBC. During the regular season, Minnesota defeated ranked teams Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State and also defeated NCAA-tourney-bound UCLA.
• The 2026 season marks Minnesota's first appearance in the CBC and first postseason action since 2024, when the Gophers were selected for the National Invitation Tournament. Minnesota defeated Butler that season and fell to NIT runner-up Indiana State.
• Minnesota's last action came in the Second Round of the 2026 TIAA Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament at the United Center in Chicago. Cade Tyson scored 24 points, Bobby Durkin had 15 points, and Grayson Grove added 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists, but 14th-seeded Rutgers rallied for a 72-67 win over the 11th-seeded Minnesota. The Gophers led 52-47 with 9:49 remaining, but Rutgers went on a 13-2 run over the next five-plus minutes to take control of the game. Tyson made 9-of-13 field goals, including 3-of-7 three-pointers
• Due to injuries this season, Minnesota has shortened its bench to six players since mid-February. In that span, however, the Gophers went 4-4, with a road win at Oregon, split with Rutgers, and won over the UCLA Bruins and Northwestern to end the regular season on senior day. Of the four losses, three came on the road at Washington, then-No. 3 Michigan and Indiana, while the last came in the Big Ten Tournament vs. Rutgers.
ACADEMIC HONORS
• Isaac Asuma, Grayson Grove and RJ Spencer were all named Academic All-Big Ten selections. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students are enrolled full time at the institution for a minimum of 12 months and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.
• In addition, Grove and Cade Tyson were named Academic All-District by College Sports Communicators (CSC). Both sports management majors, it marks the first honor for each. to achieve this honor, both held a GPA of above 3.5 and been a starter or key contributor to the team.
ABOUT THE FIELD
• Now in its second year, the College Basketball Crown features an eight-team, seven-game format with four quarterfinals, two semifinals and a championship game. Quarterfinals will be held April 1-2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena, while semifinals will be held on April 4 at T-Mobile Arena. Teams that advance to the championship game play on April 5 at 4:30 p.m. CT.
• Minnesota and Rutgers represent the Big Ten in the eight-team CBC, while Baylor, Colorado and West Virginia will represent the Big 12. Creighton will join the Crown from the Big East, while Stanford represents the ACC and Oklahoma will represent the SEC.
• This marks the second year of the College Basketball Crown, the first with an eight-team field. The Nebraska Cornhuskers won the inaugural CBC event in Las Vegas last season in a two-week, 16-team field.
IN THE RECORDBOOKS
• Cade Tyson, Bobby Durkin and Langston Reynolds have already made their mark in the Minnesota season history records. Cade Tyson ranks seventh in points in a season (609), while his 19.6 points per game ranks fifth among Gophers players since 1978-79. His 42.2 three-point shooting currently ranks eighth in school history. His 166 free throws is third all time in a season. Bobby Durkin's 78 threes currently ranks sixth in school history, while his 196 attempts is seventh. Reynolds' 146 assists is tied for 10th-most in a single season with Adam Boone and Kevin Burleson.
ABOUT THE BAYLOR BEARS
• Baylor is 16-16 overall and finished 6-12 in the Big 12. The No. 13-seed Bears fell on March 10 to No. 13-seed Arizona State, 83-79, at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City. The Bears earned league road wins at Oklahoma State (1/13) and at West Virginia (1/31), before home wins over Colorado (2/4) and Arizona State (2/21). The Bears earned their last wins at UCF (2/28) and their regular-season finale at home vs. Utah (3/7).
• The Bears have four averaging double-digit points. Cameron Carr leads the teams in points per game (19.2), points (613) and minutes played (33.5). Carr's ppg ranks fourth in the Big 12. Tounde Yessoufou averages 17.8 points and ranks third in the Big 12 in steals (65) and steals per game (2.03). Obi Agbim and Isaac Williams average 10.7 and 10.5 points, respectively. Agbim leads the team with 72 threes in 204 attempts. Defensively, five Bears average over four rebounds a game, led by Caden Powell with 201 rebounds and 6.3 per game. He and Carr have 28 and 41 blocks.
• As a team, Baylor averages 82.6 points and allows 77.2 per game. They enter the Crown with a 47.9 shooting percentage and 34.5 percent from three. The Bears average 36.8 rebounds per game.
Highlights: Gophers 67, Rutgers 72
Wednesday, March 11
Play in Focus: Cade Tyson
Tuesday, March 10
Cinematic Recap: Gophers-Wildcats
Tuesday, March 10
Highlights: Gophers 67, Northwestern 66
Saturday, March 07