Gophers men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson made progress last season, but key players entering the transfer portal set him and his team back. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

After going 4-16 in Big Ten in Year 1 and 2-17 in Year 2, Minnesota improved to 9-11 in conference play (ninth place) last season, then lost center Pharrel Payne and point guard Elijah Hawkins to bigger NIL deals at Texas A&M and Texas Tech, respectively, and freshman shooting guard Cam Christie to the NBA draft.

The University of Minnesota is parting ways with Gopher men's basketball head coach Ben Johnson after a disappointing exit at the men's Big 10 Basketball Tournament.The Gophers finished 15-17 after losing to Northwestern on Wednesday in the first round of the conference tournament.