The Gophers men’s basketball team made its debut for the 2024-25 season Saturday afternoon with a newcomer-laden group and a second-half surge led to a convincing 90-65 exhibition win against Division II Bemidji State at Williams Arena.
After losing three starters from an NIT team, fourth-year Gophers coach Ben Johnson hit the transfer portal hard for immediate impact talent. A few of those players were sidelined with injuries Saturday, but returning seniors Mike Mitchell Jr., Dawson Garcia and Parker Fox combined for 48 points.
Potential starters Lu’Cye Patterson and Femi Odukale, who transferred from Charlotte and New Mexico State, were in street clothes. So was arguably the team’s best defender, Tyler Cochran, a Toledo transfer.
Missing some of their top playmakers and facilitators, the Gophers’ offense stalled early. They trailed Bemidji State 27-23 midway through the first half. But Mitchell and Garcia combined for 19 points with their team leading 41-40 at halftime.
In the second half, Mitchell continued to shoot the lights out, but he got help. Fox muscled in a basket plus the foul to start an 11-0 run that provided a comfortable separation. Brennan Rigsby also scored six straight points to make it 72-52 with just under eight minutes left.
Both Patterson and Odukale are expected back sooner than later while nursing minor injuries. Cochran could be out until December after having foot surgery this month.
The Gophers started newcomers Rigsby and Frank Mitchell alongside Mike Mitchell and Garcia and returning sophomore Kadyn Betts on Saturday.
Rigsby, a 6-3 senior and Oregon transfer, got the Gophers faithful’s attention quickly with a baseline two-hand slam on the second basket of the game. The top athlete on the team with a 40-inch vertical, Rigsby’s game isn’t solely about playing above the rim. He also penetrated, found open looks for teammates and knocked down jumpers. He finished with 17 points on 3-for-6 threes, to go with four rebounds and two assists.
