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…

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Publish date : 2026-11-03 16:22:00

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