Johnson, a Minneapolis native, is a Minnesota alum, having finished his playing career there after spending his first two seasons at Northwestern.

Ben Johnson was a Xavier Musketeers assistant for three seasons before Minnesota named him its head coach in March 2021.

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,