If the Minnesota Golden Gophers are going to pick up their first conference win of the season on Thursday night, they'll have to go through the 20th-ranked Michigan Wolverines.

The Gophers enter Thursday evening's matchup at Williams Arena with an 8-9 overall record and 0-6 in Big Ten play. Michigan, on the other hand, is 13-3 and 5-0 in conference play. The Wolverines have won each of their last five games since suffering back-to-back losses in mid-December.

Last time out, the Gophers fell to the Maryland Terrapins 77-71. It was the Gophers' fourth straight loss to start 2025 as they look for their first win since December 29.

Ben Johnson's program dating back to last season has lost each of their last nine conference games. Their last win was on March 2 against Penn State, a 75-70 win at Williams Arena.

The Wolverines are currently in their first year of play under head coach Dusty May who came to Ann Arbor this offseason after a successful stint at FAU from 2018-29 through the 2023-24 season including back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Notably, May's FAU squad made the Final Four in the 2022-23 season.

Nonetheless, after taking over a program that went just 8-24 last season under head coach Juwan Howard, May was able to turn the Wolverines around in just one offseason. The Wolverines are led by a high-powered offense averaging 85.1 points per game, their defense is solid but not elite, allowing 68.1 points per contest.

It's fair to say the Gophers will have their hands full on Thursday night.

WHEN: Thursday, January 16 , 2024 - 6:00 p.m. CT

WHERE: Williams Arena

TELEVISION: FS1 (Cory Provus (play-by-play) and Brian Butch (analyst)

RADIO: KTLK 1130 AM/103.5 FM or iHeart App (Mike Grimm, Al Nolen)

Michigan holds a 96-64 lead all-time between the two programs leading into Thursday night's 159th all-time matchup.

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