Big Ten Basketball power rankings: Rutgers falls while Michigan moves up

It was a rough stretch for the Gophers, having lost four straight games in league play to go back towards the bottom of the Big Ten. None of them were to bad teams (Michigan State, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana) but the lack of depth was starting to catch up to them. And with starting forward Eric Curry going down with an injury, that made matters even worse.

Then came the game against Rutgers this past weekend, with several key players out for Minnesota due to injuries and covid protocols. One of them was leading scorer Jamison Battle (18.0 ppg and 6.3 rpg), leaving the team to play just seven guys and all five starters combining to play 194 of a possible 200 total minutes.

The good news was that the other key player for the Gophers’ offense was available in Payton Willis. He stepped up big time, going for a career-high 32 points and seven assists on 11/17 shooting from the field and 8/13 from three-point range. Guard Luke Loewe had 19 points and freshman forward Treyton Thompson had 10 in Minnesota’s 68-65 win over Rutgers.

It’s a testament to the Gophers and first-year head coach Ben Johnson of the fight they have, regardless of who is on the court. And the two wins in Big Ten Basketball play are already more than many suspected they would get this season. It also helps prevent a potential long losing streak, as matchups against a trio of ranked opponents (Wisconsin, Ohio State, Purdue) are looming.