Gophers men’s basketball coach Niko Medved used sarcasm to deflect the difficulty going into Wednesday’s matchup against No. 10 Michigan State and Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo. “Maybe we can take advantage of Michigan State’s youth and inexperience, particularly in their coaching, take advant age of Coach Izzo,” Medved said Tuesday, joking about Izzo’s 31 years leading the Spartans. “They won’t be very well prepared. They haven’t been in these situations before, so maybe that’s exactly a good thing for us.” The satire masked the serious challenge Medved knew the ultra-consistent Spartans represented, but Minnesota rose to the occasion with a nothing-to-scoff-at 76-73 upset win at Williams Arena. The Gophers (11-12, 4-8 Big Ten) had lost seven in a row and were 8 1/2-point betting underdogs, but produced their first win against a Top-10 team since 2021 when they topped No. 7 Michigan. The Gophers beat ranked Indiana and Iowa teams earlier this season. “It means a ton; it’s crazy, three ranked wins,” Medved said postgame. “Coach Izzo, I have as much respect for him as anyone in the country. He’s one of the best, if not the best to ever do it, so to have the opportunity to beat a team like that is really cool for the program.” Minnesota led 69-56 with two minutes left, but the Spartans stormed back to cut the lead to 73-71 with 20 seconds remaining. Isaac Asuma made two free throws and Langston Reynolds added one to put it out of reach. Jaylen Crocker-Johnson led all scorers with 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds. All five Minnesota starters scored in double figures. “It kind of reassures us what we are doing is good and is right,” said Cade Tyson, who added 17 points. The Gophers led 32-21 at the half on the back of strong 3-point shooting and stout defense. Minnesota was 7 for 14 from deep, while the Spartans were 2 for 8. The U held Michigan State to 33% shooting in the opening 20 minutes and forced five turnovers. “I think (the coaches) prepared us very well,” Tyson said. “We like to switch defenses a lot, especially in the first half, we did it more than the second half, just throwing them off a little bit. I think that helped us.” Related Articles Men’s basketball: Gophers underlying positive amid long losing streak Gophers men hit new low in 77-75 loss to last-place Penn State Gophers’ Niko Medved calls out lack of ‘respect’ from Badgers Men’s basketball: Badgers rally past visiting Gophers Men’s basketball: Gophers’ Cade Tyson doubtful to play vs. Wisconsin ...read more read less