Minnesota’s non-conference slate is finally locked in, and the Gophers are staring at a much more demanding setup than they had a year ago. Niko Medved said it plainly earlier in the summer: “Our schedule is going to be significantly tougher than it was last year. If it shapes up the way that we want we are going to have games with five power conference high major opponents on the schedule.
"It's twelve non-conference games (allowed) now. (The NCAA has) added one game to the non-conference schedule.
It's a little tricky, they have added another game but the calendar of when you can play is still essentially the same. In basketball it becomes tricky when you have finals, you have Christmas break, and you have got two Big Ten games that first week of December so it makes it tricky getting all twelve games in."
Now the full picture is in place. Minnesota’s schedule includes two exhibitions - Oct. 15 against Omaha and Oct. 23 at Creighton - before the real thing starts Nov. 2 against North Dakota.
From there, the Gophers will face St. Thomas, Cincinnati, Southern, Western Illinois, Oklahoma State, Utah, California, SMU, Texas Southern, Alcorn State and USTA.
That mix gives Minnesota a little bit of everything: a handful of local and regional matchups, several buy-game style home dates, and a stretch of games against the kind of opponents Medved clearly wanted to load up on. The Gophers are set to see five power conference teams, plus one more in an exhibition game.
North Dakota comes first on Nov. 2.
The Fighting Hawks finished 18-17 last season, made a nice run in the Summit League Tournament, and ended up 279th in KenPom. Former Gopher recruit Jayden Moore is now a freshman there, while Zach Kraft and Josh Jones are among the few returning pieces.
Kraft is a six-foot-3 guard entering his fourth year as a junior, and Jones is a 6'9, 245-pound senior center.
The St. Thomas game on Nov. 6 stands out for another reason: it will be the first Division I basketball meeting between the schools, and it comes at Williams Arena.
The Tommies were the top low-major team in the preseason at 152nd, but Jonny Tauer is dealing with a roster that lost a lot. They have three returners, including fifth-year player Carter Bjerke.
Cincinnati is next on Nov. 9, and that trip lands at an interesting time for the Bearcats. Jerrod Calhoun, who came over from Utah State, is taking over a roster that went 18-15 and 9-9 in the Big XII last season.
Cincinnati finished 43rd in KenPom a year ago, but Minnesota will catch them early while they’re still sorting out a brand-new group. Tylen Riley, a point guard from Tulsa, and MJ Collins, who followed Calhoun from Utah State, are two of the key additions.
Southern, which went 17-17 last season and finished second in the SWAC, visits Nov. 12.
Western Illinois follows on Nov. 16, and that’s the kind of game Minnesota will expect to handle. The Leathernecks were 5-26 last year, won only two games against Division I opponents, and one of those was against North Dakota.
They finished 364th out of 365 in KenPom.
The tougher tests keep coming in late November and December. Oklahoma State meets the Gophers on Nov. 20 in Charleston during the Charleston Classic, and Utah is next on Nov. 22 in Charleston as well.
Oklahoma State was 20-12 and finished 79th in KenPom, with a 6-12 Big XII mark. Senior guard Kanye Clary is back after averaging 10.6 points and 4.6 assists, and the Cowboys also added the highest-ranked transfer Minnesota will see in the non-conference season: seven-footer Julius Halaifonua.
They also brought in two top 35 high school recruits.
Utah is coming off a 10-22 season and finished 122nd in KenPom, which was the fourth-lowest ranking for a high major team. Totino-Grace product Taison Chatman signed with the Utes for next season.
Minnesota’s Nov. 28 game against California will be played at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls. Cal is the lowest-ranked high major on the schedule, sitting at 86th entering the year. The Gophers are hoping that trip ends a rough stretch in Sioux Falls.
The final stretch sends Minnesota to Frisco, Texas, for a neutral-site game against SMU on Dec. 12, which is 26 miles from the Mustangs’ campus. SMU finished 20-14 last season, ranked 48th in KenPom, and went 8-10 in the ACC before reaching the NCAA Tournament on the strength of several quality wins.
The last two games on the list are Texas Southern on Dec. 16 and Alcorn State on Dec. 20.
Texas Southern went 12-18 last season but was 10-8 in league play. Alcorn State was a nine-win team and, after past cancellations, the hope is simply that this one happens; the Braves canceled on Minnesota in 2021 and 2022, once because of Covid and once because of travel issues.
Alcorn State finished 346th in KenPom.
The schedule as posted also includes USTA on Dec. 19.
That team went 5-? actually, the source lists USTA as a five-win team from last season with three wins against Division I opponents, a 1-17 record in the American Conference, and a 338 KenPom finish.
It’s a low-major matchup, but one Minnesota will still need to navigate cleanly as the non-conference slate winds down.