The Gophers fired men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson early Thursday following his third losing season in four years. The decision will cost the University of Minnesota a $2.93 million buyout of his contract.

After going 4-16 in Big Ten in Year 1 and 2-17 in Year 2, Minnesota improved to 9-11 in conference play (ninth place) last season, then lost center Pharrel Payne and point guard Elijah Hawkins to bigger NIL deals at Texas A&M and Texas Tech, respectively, and freshman shooting guard Cam Christie to the NBA draft.