Rigsby, a springy 6-3 Oregon transfer, got the Gophers faithful’s attention quickly with a baseline two-hand slam on the second basket of the game. The top athlete on the team with a 40-inch vertical, Rigsby’s game isn’t solely about playing above the rim. He finished with 17 points on 3-for-6 threes, to go with four rebounds and two assists.

“I try to get to all three levels and be able to score not just in one way and be one dimensional,” Rigsby said. “It’s pretty easy when you have weapons like Dawson and Mike out there.”

Listed at 6-8, 260 pounds, Mitchell looked even bigger compared to Bemidji State’s undersized frontcourt. He definitely threw his weight around to grab a team-high seven boards. Deceptively bouncy, Mitchell also stole the ball at midcourt and threw down a dunk. He’ll likely replace the physical inside presence of former starting center Pharrel Payne, who transferred to Texas A&M.

Former four-star recruit and freshman Isaac Asuma from Cherry contributed to the defensive dominance in the second half. Asuma also had eight points and finished tied with Mitchell with a team-high eight assists in 30 minutes off the bench.

The Gophers hoped to have one of the top returning backcourts in the Big Ten with last season’s conference-assist leader Elijah Hawkins and Mitchell. But Hawkins transferred to Texas Tech.

Mitchell looked motivated Saturday to show he can step into the main floor leader role. The Gophers’ best shooter last season at nearly 40% from beyond the arc, the San Jose native went 4-for-7 on threes.