Nov 8, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Niko Medved looks on during the second half against the Alcorn State Braves at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
The Minnestoa Golden Gophers picked up their second win of the season on Saturday afternoon with a 95-50 win over the Alcorn State Braves. Here’s everything Gophers’ head coach Niko Medved had to say after his team’s second win of the season.
OPENING STATEMENT
**Medved: **You know, really, really happy with our guys’ mindset here this morning. We talked a lot about that — who’s going to be the more ready team at 11 o’clock — and the guys’ mentality was awe…
Nov 8, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Niko Medved looks on during the second half against the Alcorn State Braves at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
The Minnestoa Golden Gophers picked up their second win of the season on Saturday afternoon with a 95-50 win over the Alcorn State Braves. Here’s everything Gophers’ head coach Niko Medved had to say after his team’s second win of the season.
OPENING STATEMENT
**Medved: **You know, really, really happy with our guys’ mindset here this morning. We talked a lot about that — who’s going to be the more ready team at 11 o’clock — and the guys’ mentality was awesome. I thought we were really locked in defensively, we were hustling on the glass, all those things that you’re looking for. Our defense led to some early offense, and we just never looked back.
Again, the rebounding was terrific — Jaylon Crocker-Johnson, a career high in rebounds, guys were first on the floor. I just thought the team overall, their mindset was great, and hopefully that’s something we can continue.
Q: You mentioned the morning start and being ready, but you also had a great start at the beginning of the Gardner-Webb game. What are the things you’re emphasizing to have two great starts like that?
**Medved: **I think it starts with being intentional about the things we need to do to be successful against any opponent, but also opponent-specific things — something maybe from the scouting report or what they like to do. It’s about being locked in, communicating, and playing with great effort.
Every coach wants that, but give credit to the players — they’ve been really locked in, whether it’s been practice, walkthroughs, or film sessions. They take in information, they buy in, and they’ve been doing it.
Q: Jaylon didn’t have a double-double last year at Colorado State. Was this the kind of role you saw for him when you brought him to Minnesota?
Medved: That’s a great question. You’ve got to remember, Jaylon was a sophomore last year, and now he’s a junior. A lot of guys can really make a jump as they become upperclassmen. He’s gotten stronger, and he’s also played at a high level — he’s won a championship, played in the NCAA Tournament — so he knows what that looks like.
What’s interesting is, he hasn’t shot the ball well from the perimeter yet, but he did last year. I joke with him — and he played because I love him so much — he was unbelievable today. He guarded number seven, their best player, and that was a huge emphasis for us: to make seven have a tough day. I don’t think seven even scored for them.
That was Croc’s matchup — he did that, he got on the glass. I told him, “You were unbelievable defensively, career high in rebounds. You might’ve had a career high for missed shots too,” and he laughed. But again, it’s not just about scoring — you affect winning. It’s like Chauncey the other night. That’s what I love about these guys: they’ll do whatever it takes for the team to win. That’s why he’s so valuable.
Q: Last year’s team struggled from the free throw line. You guys shot it well tonight — how do you feel about this team’s free throw shooting?
**Medved: **Well, I hope it continues. We shoot pressure free throws every day in practice. I don’t say a lot to them about free throws, but we work at it. We were able to get to the line a lot tonight, and then we cashed in.
You don’t see many games where you only make five threes and still score 90 points, but a lot of that was our ability to get to the line and cash in. That was great to see. I hope that’s a good trend for us, because making free throws is critical to winning.
Q: You guys dominated on the glass again with Jaylon and Robert, both 6’8”. Some people might think you’re small going into Big Ten play. What encouraging signs have you seen from your frontcourt that make you confident against bigger competition?
Medved: Rebounding translates no matter what size you are. A high school player with high rebounding numbers usually rebounds in college. Guys with great rebounding efficiency in college usually rebound in the pros, even if they’re 6’4”.
Those two — Jaylon and Rob — are both great rebounders. When Rob was healthy in the Mountain West, he was terrific. And we’ve got some guards who rebound really well too. So I don’t think rebounding is all about size — it’s about nose for the ball, effort, and tenacity.
Yeah, we’ll lack some length at times and play against bigger, more athletic teams, but our guys have done a great job on the glass. That’s been a major point of emphasis in practice, because we know we’ll be undersized and we’ve got to mitigate that with effort and toughness.
Q: You’ve played some lower-level opponents so far, but that’s going to change this week. What are the main things you’re focusing on improving?
Medved: We had a lot of offensive rebounds. Coach Warner on our staff always says, “Proximity doesn’t mean permission.” Just because you’re close to the basket doesn’t mean you have permission to shoot.
Sometimes you get an offensive rebound — maybe you can stick it in. But sometimes, you’ve got three guys on you, so kick it out. Those are dagger threes, and sometimes we missed opportunities to do that.
Our paint poise wasn’t great — we drove it in and didn’t always finish well at the rim. That’s something we can improve. We also had a couple ball-screen errors in the second half. Our defense was good overall, but we can be a little sharper on decision-making offensively.
Q: There might’ve been some frustration with turnovers. Was that a concern?
Medved: We had 12 turnovers against a team that pressures a lot, which isn’t bad. I just thought we had a couple casual ones in the second half — sloppy passes, one on an outlet, one early in the half. You can’t play casual.
It’s not a huge thing, but it’s a reminder: no matter what the scoreboard says, you can’t practice playing casual. Mistakes happen, but we’ve got to stay sharp.
Q: Do you have any updates on BJ and Grayson?
Medved: Hopefully Grayson’s back for the Gardner-Webb game — he’s feeling better. Same with BJ — it’s something from the summer, kind of a nagging thing. Hopefully they’re making progress and can get back to the practice court soon. We’re a little thin and we need those guys back.
Q: And Isaac looked like he was dealing with something in his back?
Medved: Yeah, but he’s tough — that’s one thing about Isaac. He never complains, never does. He’s battled through it, but hopefully it continues to get better as the season goes on. He definitely hasn’t been 100%, but I think he felt better today than he has in a while.
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