Minnesota seeks convincing win with Cleveland State in town

Minnesota coach Ben Johnson believes his team is on the right track toward success.

Would Johnson and the Golden Gophers prefer to have cleaner early-season victories against nonconference opponents?

Yes, of course.

But according to the coach, the early bumps are all part of a new roster coming together.

"The hardest part is we all want it now," Johnson said. "But it's just such a work in progress. We just need to get game reps for guys to get comfortable."

Minnesota (3-1) will get its next repetition when it hosts Cleveland State (3-2) on Tuesday evening in Minneapolis. The Golden Gophers will go for back-to-back wins after rallying for a 59-56 victory over visiting Yale on Saturday.

Cleveland State will aim for its third victory in a row. The Vikings beat Eastern Michigan 71-63 in their most recent game on Saturday, which followed a 75-67 win at Valparaiso on Nov. 12.

Tevin Smith led Cleveland State with 24 points and seven rebounds against Eastern Michigan. He shot 7 of 13 from the field, 2 of 5 from 3-point range and 8 of 11 from the free-throw line.

Smith is averaging 11.8 points on 45.7 percent shooting this season. Dylan Arnett leads the team with averages of 13 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while shooting 68.2 percent from the field.

Cleveland State won 20-plus games in each of the previous three seasons. They played in the College Basketball Invitational tournament in each of the past two seasons.

"Our guys that have played, their expectation now is to play in the postseason," Vikings coach Daniyal Robinson said. "They know what that feels like. That helps when the new guys come in, they see the standard is set."

Minnesota is led by Dawson Garcia, who is averaging 25.5 points and 7.3 rebounds through the first four games of the season. Lu'Cye Patterson is next on the scoring list with 8.5 points per game, and Brennan Rigsby ranks third with 7.5 points per contest.

Golden Gophers guard Mike Mitchell Jr. has missed two games in a row due to an ankle injury. His status was uncertain for Tuesday night.

--Field Level Media