Minnesota fired coach Ben Johnson early Thursday morning, in an announcement posted to social media at 2:19 a.m. ET, following the team's season-ending loss Wednesday in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament to Northwestern.

Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle released a statement on Thursday detailing his decision to move on from Ben Johnson. “I met with Ben in-person early this morning when the team returned to Minneapolis from the Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament and informed him that we were making a change in leadership,

Johnson, 44, coached the Gophers for four years with one trip to the NIT and one winning season. This year, Minnesota finished 15-17 overall and 7-13 in Big Ten play but won five games on the road. Johnson was 56-71 in four seasons and 22-57 in league competition. He was 1-4 in the Big Ten tournament.

For the first time since 2022, the Wildcats have won a Big Ten Tournament game. No. 13 seed Northwestern (17-15, 7-13 Big Ten) defeated No. 12 Minnesota, 72-64, in Wednesday's first round of the 2025 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament.

Martinelli has scored 15 or more in 17 straight games and been in double figures in 25 straight, the longest such streak for a Northwestern player in 25 years.

The Minnesota Golden Gophers play in the Big Ten Tournament against the Northwestern Wildcats. Wednesday's game will be the second meeting this season between the two teams.