MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota hired Colorado State’s Niko Medved on Monday, agreeing to a six-year contract with the Twin Cities-area native and former student manager for the Gophers who had the Rams within one basket of the Sweet 16.

Medved was the front-runner from the start to succeed Ben Johnson, who was fired on March 13 after going 56-71 overall and 22-57 in the Big Ten in four years on the job. Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle has been eager to revitalize a struggling program that has made the NCAA Tournament twice in the last 12 seasons.

“This really is a dream job for me,” Medved said in a statement distributed by the university. “I loved my time at Colorado State, and I worked with tremendous people who made a lasting impact on my life. Those are memories that I will cherish forever. This job was too special to pass up, and when the opportunity presented itself, I had to take it.”

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Colorado State Finishes 26-10 in 2025

Colorado State went 26-10 this season, upsetting No. 5 seed Memphis 78-70 in the first round and losing 72-71 in the second round to No. 4 seed Maryland on a buzzer-beating bank shot. This was the third time in seven years under Medved that the Rams hit the 25-win mark and made the NCAA Tournament out of the Mountain West, perennially one of the strongest mid-major conferences in the country.

“I’ve had as much fun and joy coaching this group as any group I’ve ever been a part of, and they just keep giving us more,” Medved said Sunday in Seattle after the loss to Maryland. “It’s just gut-wrenching. It’s just a season you never want to end. It’s just been an incredible ride, and it goes by so fast.”

Medved, 51, has been a head coach for 12 seasons, including four years at Furman and a one-year stop at Drake.