The Golden Gophers are 0-11 in the Big Ten for the first time in 93 years and their current 12-game losing streak is the longest the program has suffered through since the 1986-87 Gophers lost 16 in a row.
With their NCAA Tournament bubble having burst more than a month ago, the Gophers are at a point in the season where it’s fair to question if they’ll even win one game in the Big Ten.
The next three
Minnesota hosts Michigan on Wednesday before taking on the No. 1-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes on the road on Valentine’s Day. That heartbreaker will be followed by a date with No. 2 Maryland at Williams Arena next Thursday.
The Iowa and Maryland games are virtual locks for losses, but the Michigan game could be the first win. Minnesota lost by 5 to the Wolverines in January in Ann Arbor.
Four of Minnesota’s next six games are against ranked teams, the Star Tribune notes.
The final four
This is where Minnesota could pick up a win or two. The Gophers finish the season versus Rutgers, at Illinois, versus Wisconsin and at Rutgers.
Wisconsin has gotten hot with five straight wins, but Illinois has collected only three conference victories while Rutgers, also 0-11 in the Big Ten, might be worse than the Gophers.
Big Ten Network‘s conference power rankings has Wisconsin at No. 6 and the Illini, Gophers and Rutgers as the bottom three.
It’s certainly possible the Gophers go 0-18 in the Big Ten, but from the outside looking in, it looks like Richard Pitino’s club will have a fighter’s chance in a handful of the seven remaining games.
