INDEX MATCH plus MINIFS

Hi,

I have a table with data. That contains temperatures and dates, but it's not every day. For example:

DATA

Main Goal: I want to create a formula to pull the minimum temperature between the three stations for a specific date if there is data available (e.g. what's the lowest temperature on Nov 1).

Secondary Goal (Optional): Pull the station associated with the min value.

My set up to populate the table:

RESULT

When I write my formula, I assume I believe I need an INDEX/MATCH to see if the raw DATA has data for that date. For example, Nov 1 has DATA, so my formula should detect that 1 is the minimum value in the row, and my RESULT in B3 should return 1. There is no DATA for Nov 4, so my RESULT in B6 would just be #N/A.

If anyone could provide any ideas, that would be greatly appreciated!

Extra Information

I have done some research and I found two sites that give two different formulas (for my main goal, I haven't looked at my second goal yet).

Option A - It works, but I don't understand a portion of the formula

https://www.exceldemy.com/index-match-minimum-value/

• Under section 4, "Fusing SMALL Function with Index-Match"
• =SMALL(INDEX($C$4:$G$14, MATCH($E$16, $B$4:$B$14, 0), 0), ROWS($D$17:$D17))

My formula is:

=SMALL(INDEX($B$2:$D$7,MATCH(A12,$A$2:$A$7,0),0),ROWS(A12:A12))

• I understand the formula up until ROWS. I have no clue what it's doing there, and the formula doesn't work without it, so hopefully someone can explain it to me. Thanks!
• I also like how this is dynamic. I can click and drag and the other cells below will populate correctly

Option B - Couldn't get it to work

https://www.mrexcel.com/board/threads/using-minifs-with-dynamic-row.1124635/

• =MINIFS(AF1:AL1,INDEX(AF2:AL15,MATCH(AQ3,D2:D15,0),0),0 --> Feb 19, 2020 comment

Option C - Seems straightforward, but seems to have some faults

https://superuser.com/questions/1797826/excel-minifs-formula-to-return-another-value-in-the-same-row 

• =INDEX(E:E,MATCH(MINIFS(B:B,C:C,J2),B:B,0))

My formula is:

=INDEX(B3:I3,MATCH(MINIFS(A2:A4,A2:A4,A11),A2:A4,0))

• This is sample data, but in my actual spreadsheet, it doesn't necessarily return the minimum value
• I can't click and drag to populate other cells because missing dates causes mis-alignment, so this seems better suited when data is less dynamic or cleaner (for a lack of better words)
• Not understanding certain sections of the formula when I try to adapt it to my needs
  • INDEX(B3:I3,MATCH(MINIFS(X?:X?,A2:A4,A11),Y?:Y?,0))
  • I understand the structure of MINIFS, but maybe because it's combined with matching that throws me off. In the spot of X?:X? and Y?:Y?, I originally had B3:I3 in both places, but it didn't work until I changed both to A2:A4.

Thanks in advance!