INDIANAPOLIS – Former Tri-Village basketball player Tyler VanWinkle was a point guard on the 2015 Patriots boys 30-0 State Championship team. Ten years from that historic win in Columbus, he is a champion again. This time, as an assistant coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers women’s college basketball team.
The Lady Gophers defeated Belmont 75-63 on Wednesday, April 2nd at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis to win the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament (WBIT) Championship.
Minnesota had a successful regular season, finishing 20-11, 8-10 in the Big 10 and just missed out on qualifying for the NCAA tournament. But they did get an invite to the WBIT… which is equivalent to the men’s (National Invitational Tournament) NIT.
They received a 2nd seed in the tournament and defeated Toledo in the first round 65-53, Missouri State in the second round 78-71, Gonzaga in the third round 82-77 in OT, Florida 66-52 in the final four and Belmont in the Championship game.
It would be the first-ever postseason championship in Minnesota women’s basketball history.
“We were obviously disappointed that we were not selected to play in the NCAA tournament this season, as we thought we were worthy of an at-large bid. Fortunately, we had the opportunity to continue playing in the WBIT and our young women took full advantage of playing in the postseason. It’s always a joy to cut down nets and end your season with a win. We are excited about the future of the program and the opportunity for this championship to propel us moving forward,” Assistant Coach Tyler VanWinkle said.
Since graduating from Tri-Village, Tyler has been involved in coaching and has made steady progress. Here is the timeline and highlights in his career as a coach.
Coaching Timeline:
2020-2021 Graduate Assistant, Illinois State 16-9 WNIT 3rd Round
2021-2022 Graduate Assistant, Illinois State 19-14 NCAA Tournament First Round
2022-2023 Director of Video Services, West Virginia 19-12 NCAA Tournament First Round
2023-2024 Assistant Coach, Minnesota 20-16 WNIT Runner-Up
2024-2025 Assistant Coach, Minnesota Currently 25-11 – WBIT Champions
Highlights:
Illinois State – Won the MVC Tournament Championship. Coached All MVC players, Juju Redmond and Deanna Wilson. Assisted in player development, advanced scouting of opponents and video analysis.
West Virginia – Coached All Big12 guard JJ Quinerly. Coordinated all practice and game video, as well as assisted with player development and scouting of opponents.
Minnesota – Coached and developed unanimous Big Ten All-Freshman team member Grace Grocholski, Big Ten Honorable Mention Guards Mara Braun and Amaya Battle. Responsible for in-game analysis, advanced scouting of all opponents, on-floor coaching, and on-campus evaluation / recruitment of prospective student athletes. The 2024-2025 team ranked as high as #23 in the AP poll.
Congratulations to Tyler VanWinkle and the Minnesota Golden Gophers women’s basketball team on winning the WBIT Championship.
