Gophers men’s basketball loses Isaiah Ihnen for 2022-23 season
Bad injury luck continues to strike the Gophers men’s basketball program.
Isiah Ihnen suffered a season-ending knee injury during summer workouts last week and it will require surgery, the U said Monday. Fellow U forward Parker Fox suffered a season-ending right knee injury in June.
Ihnen and Fox both missed the 2021-22 season with knee injuries. Ihnen’s injuries were both to his left knee. Fox injured his left a year ago and his right in late July.
Head coach Ben Johnson was enthusiastic in June about the versatility the 6-foot-8 Ihnen, a former four-star recruit, could provide Minnesota this season. That tune changed Monday.
“It’s disappointing to see Isaiah go through this after he worked hard to get back on the court this year and made significant strides to his game this summer,” Johnson said in a statement. “We will be with him every step of the way in his road to recovery.”
Fox sent a supportive tweet Monday. “They(’re going to) feel us, kid,” he wrote. “Might not be today, tomorrow or the next day but they(‘re going to) feel us, kid.”
Ihnen, of Boeblingen, Germany, averaged 2.8 points and 3.5 rebounds in 14.3 minutes across 29 games as a sophomore in 2020-21. He averaged 3.4 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11.4 minutes across 21 games as a freshman in 2019-20.
