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.

Gophers men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson made progress last season, but key players entering the transfer portal set him and his team back. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota fired coach Ben Johnson on Thursday after four years of repeatedly rebuilding rosters at his alma mater without coming close to an NCAA Tournament appearance, which has become a fleeting accomplishment for a program that has fallen behind in the rugged and expanded Big Ten.