The Gophers men’s basketball teams has struggled with slow starts to games this season, and one big remedy might be sitting on their bench.

Minnesota had fallen into a 10-2 hole in the first four minutes of a 74-62 loss at Indiana on Friday when Dawson Garcia got into early would trouble and center Pharrel Payne subbed in. Payne would end up leading the U with 17 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in 29 minutes.

Head coach Ben Johnson said Sunday he contemplates different starting lineups before every game, but didn’t say if a change is forthcoming for the Gophers (12-4, 3-2) vs. Iowa (10-6, 2-3) at 5 p.m. Monday at Williams Arena.

“We will continue to look at that and whether a lineup adjustment would help depending on our status and who we are playing and definitely take that game-by-game,” Johnson said.

Johnson said factors he mulls over include who would need to come out of the starting five and how does an alteration work big picture. Johnson said one benefit to starting Garcia at center is mismatches he can create with his quickness. Then there’s a possible benefit with Payne coming in against an opponent’s tired first unit or a backup post player.

“You are always trying to think about mismatches — offensive, defensive,” Johnson said. “I just told those guys when they are in there, it has to be smash mouth. We have to do a better job from here on out of getting the ball inside and establishing a low-post threat and presence from both of those guys.

“And both those guys, if they have a one-on-one, they got to do a great job of getting to the rim,” Johnson said. “If they get post-doubled, they got to do a great job of reading it and getting the pass out.”

Regardless, Johnson said the team needs to go back to its inside-out mentality.

“We as a team got to make a much better conscious effort of getting the ball inside and playing with more force, especially when those two guys (Garcia and Payne) are in the game,” Johnson said.

Payne has started four of his 15 games played this season, but only once has that come with Garcia, in the season opener against Bethune-Cookman on Nov. 6.

Cusp of history

The Gophers want to avoid becoming a footnote in the rival Hawkeyes’ record books on Monday.

With Iowa’s 94-76 home win over Nebraska on Friday, head coach Fran McCaffery earned his 271st overall win at Iowa, moving him into a tie with Tom Davis for most in program history.

McCaffery, whose career record is 271-184 since 2010, can now set a program record at The Barn. Davis went 271-138 from 1986-99.

McCaffery’s teams are known for their offensive scheme and pace in transition. Johnson said the U’s defense will need to get back well in transition and be cognizant of Iowa’s motion actions.

Briefly

The Gophers will wear a Martin Luther King Jr., shooting shirt to commemorate MLK Day on Monday. … During its previous seven-game winning streak, U has had better attendance in recent games. That is expected to continue with students back on campus for spring semester. … Johnson said Sunday the U does not have any player health concerns going into the game.

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