U of M Gophers 2016-17 Men’s Basketball Schedule Announced

The Minnesota men’s basketball team will take the court 21 times this upcoming season, as the Gophers 2016-17 schedule was unveiled Thursday in conjunction with the Big Ten Conference schedule announcement.

Unless otherwise listed, game times and television broadcast information will be announced at a later date.

The season will unofficially begin on Thursday, November 3, as the Gophers welcome Bemidji State for an exhibition. Eight days later, Minnesota opens its 2016-17 campaign hosting Louisiana Lafayette (Fri., Nov. 11).

In a busy week at the Barn, the Gophers will host Texas-Arlington (Mon., Nov. 14) and Mount St. Mary’s (Wed., Nov. 16) before their first competition as part of the Gavitt Tipoff Games. On Friday, November 18, the Maroon and Gold will host St. John’s from the BIG EAST Conference, a game that will be televised live at 8:00 p.m. on BTN.

Another major conference opponent will come to Williams Arena four days later, as the Gophers will host Arkansas from the Southeastern Conference on Tue., Nov. 22. On Fri., Nov. 25, Minnesota finishes the season-opening six-game homesstand against Southern Illinois.

Three days later, the Gophers travel to Tallahassee for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge against Florida State (Mon., Nov. 28, 6:00 p.m., ESPNU), and will make a return to Sioux Falls later in the week to face Vanderbilt at the Sanford Pentagon on Sat., December 3.

Minnesota will host five straight opponents at the Barn to conclude non-conference play, beginning with NJIT (Tue., Dec. 6, 7:00 p.m., BTN) and Georgia Southern (Fri., Dec. 9, 8:00 p.m., BTN). A Sunday date with Northern Illinois (Dec. 11) is followed by a Wednesday home game against LIU Brooklyn (Dec. 14), before a nine-day break for exams. The non-conference schedule concludes at home on Fri., Dec. 23 hosting Arkansas State (6:00 p.m., BTN).

A home opener against perennial power Michigan State kicks off the nine home Big Ten Conference games for the Minnesota men’s basketball team.

The Gophers begin B1G play on Tuesday, December 27 hosting the Spartans, and will be followed by a two-game road trip. Minnesota visits Purdue on New Year’s Day Sunday, followed by a trip to Northwestern on Thursday, January 5.

A break from the road comes on Sunday, January 8 when the Gophers host Ohio State. Three days later, Minnesota travels to East Lansing for a January 11 matchup with Michigan State, and a trip to Penn State on Saturday, January 14 follows.

The first of two battles with border rival Wisconsin comes to Williams Arena on Saturday, January 21, followed by a visit to Columbus to play Ohio State on Wednesday, January 25. A home date against Maryland on Saturday, January 28 closes out the month.

Minnesota will have its first of two midweek byes before traveling to Illinois on Saturday, February 4. The following Wednesday, February 8, the Gophers will welcome Iowa in their lone regular-season meeting. Three days later, Minnesota’s only matchup with Rutgers will come on Saturday, February 11 in Piscataway.

Back-to-back home games against Indiana on Wednesday, February 15 and versus Michigan on Sunday, February 19 will heat up the Barn, followed by a trip to College Park to face Maryland on Wednesday, February 22.

Two straight games close out the home schedule, with the Gophers hosting Penn State on Saturday or Sunday, February 25 or 26. Minnesota’s final home game will be Thursday, March 2, in the lone meeting against Nebraska.

The regular season concludes on Sunday, March 5, in Madison as the Gophers travel to face the Badgers.

This year, the Big Ten Tournament shifts eastward to a new location, as the 14 teams will battle for the conference’s automatic berth in Washington, D.C. The outcome will be decided over five days beginning Wednesday, March 8 at the Verizon Center, home of the NBA’s Washington Wizards and NHL’s Washington Capitals.

Single-game tickets for non-conference games, along with pick your packs, will go on sale Wednesday, September 14. More information on tickets can be found by visiting MyGopherSports.com.