MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota will start the Big Ten tournament with a play-in game against last-place Rutgers.

With a 6-12 record in conference play, the Gophers lost a tiebreaker with Northwestern and received the No. 11 seed. That means they must win five games in five days for the Big Ten’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. At 17-14 overall, they likely need multiple victories this week to even be considered for the NIT.

They’ll start in the first round on Wednesday evening in Chicago. If they beat Rutgers, they’ll advance to play No. 6 seed Ohio State on Thursday night.

The Gophers have never won the Big Ten tournament since the event began in 1998. They reached the championship game in 2010 and the semifinals in 1998, 2005 and 2008.