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Gophers basketball: KenPom, Cade Tyson's eligibility, St. Thomas and more early-season storylines
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- Gophers basketball: KenPom, Cade Tyson's eligibility, St. Thomas and more early-season storylines
Gophers men's basketball comfortably won its regular-season opener by 35 points against North Dakota on Monday. A fun in-season showdown with St. Thomas at The Barn awaits Friday night before a key nonconference test against Cincinnati on the road Monday night. Here are some early-season storylines to keep an eye on.
KenPom outlook
We're only one night into the 2026-27 college basketball regular season, but it's never too early to begin talking about metrics. A 35-point win is only going to help things, and the Gophers rose from No. 42 to No. 36 in KenPom.com's ratings after Monday night's win. North Dakota is currently the 336th-ranked team, and Minnesota faces a much stiffer test Friday against St. Thomas, which is No. 161 after winning its season opener on the road against Presbyterian on Monday.
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Cade Tyson isn't the only eligibility drama
There were numerous players across the country in the exact same, if not more confusing, eligibility situation as Tyson, who played on Monday's college basketball opening night. There's still no firm timeline for when we'll get a final answer on Tyson's eligibility status for the 2026-27 season, but we can still point out how poorly the NCAA has handled his and another Gopher's situation.
First-year big man Chadrack Mpoyi didn't play in either of Minnesota's two exhibitions or in Monday night's season opener. He's an intriguing 6-foot-11, three-star prospect from Likasi, DRC, who played high school basketball in California, but we haven't been able to see that potential in live action.
"Chadrack is still dealing a little bit with an eligibility thing," head coach Niko Medved reiterated after Monday's win. "Again, nothing at all that serious. We're just trying to figure out if he's going to be held to the new (five-for-five) rules, eligibility-wise, or the old rules. I don't want to put him in a game potentially and do anything to risk a year of eligibility for him. So until we get clarity, that's kind of what's going on."
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Isaac Asuma looks ready to become a go-to guy
Asuma opened some eyes with a 32-point performance in Minnesota's final exhibition against Creighton on the road. He carried that momentum into Monday night with 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting, adding six rebounds, six assists and three blocks. It's his third season with the program, and he looks ready to become a go-to guy.
"He has been good all summer, guys. He has really played well," Medved said Monday night. "He has got a great mindset about him. You could see it obviously in the Creighton exhibition too; he played so well for us. Man, he's doing so many great things. It's great to see, as now he's an upperclassman. I think that's a big factor, and it's also a factor having some continuity with us, the coaches. You have a great spring, you have a great summer, and it's showing up on the court."
Kyan Evans' slow start
After Tyson quickly transformed into a new player with the Gophers last season following a down year at North Carolina, there's hope that Evans will have a similar year with Minnesota. It might not happen as quickly. He played just 13 minutes after getting injured in the second exhibition against Creighton, so we'll exclude that data, but his first two games with the Gophers have been quiet.
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Against two Summit League opponents at home, Evans is averaging 6.0 points on 28.6% shooting, including 33.3% from three-point range. He is averaging 5.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds. The most encouraging part of his game has been defensively, where he's averaging 3.0 steals. It's still far too early to make any sweeping judgments, but he might not hit the ground running like Tyson did last season.
Other notes
When you win by 35 points, a lot of players are typically going to play well, and that happened for the Gophers on Monday.
Bobby Durkin, Grayson Grove, Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and Malick Kordel all scored in double figures alongside Asuma. Kai Shinholster and Nolan Groves also continue to look like great weapons off the bench. Villanova transfer Malachi Palmer looks to be the odd man out as the eighth player in the rotation, and Michigan transfer Winters Grady missed the game with what Medved called a "little foot thing."
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This story was originally published by Bring Me The Sports on Nov 3, 2026, where it first appeared in the MN Gophers section. Add Bring Me The Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
