Gophers Host the Badgers at The Barn - OPEN THREAD
by GopherNation on Feb 9, 2012 4:00 PM CST
in Gopher Basketball
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PrintWisconsin Badgers at Minnesota Golden Gophers, Feb 9, 2012 6:00 PM CST
The Gophers get to finish out the season with five home games in the final seven. Tonight is game one of this stretch and it is the first of the season against Wisconsin. The rivalry game is always a big one and it is one that would be a very nice resume boost for the Gophers who are clearly on the NCAA bubble and would like to stay there.
Game Time: 6:00
TV: ESPN
| Pos | Minnesota | Pnt/Gm | Pnt/Gm | Wisconsin |
Pos | |
| PG | Julian Welch | 10.2 | 14.0 | Jordan Taylor |
G | |
| G | Joe Coleman | 5.8 | 7.4 | Josh Gasser | G | |
| G/F | Austin Hollins | 8.5 | 10.0 | Ryan Evans |
F | |
| F | Rodney Williams | 10.5 | 6.7 | Mike Bruesewitz | F | |
| C | Ralph Sampson III | 8.4 | 10.5 | Jared Berggren | C | |
| Bench | Andre Hollins | 5.6 | 8.9 | Ben Brust | Bench | |
| Bench |
Chip Armelin | 6.5 | 2.3 | Frank Kaminsky |
Bench | |
| Bench |
Eliott Eliason |
2.5 | 2.4 | Rob Wilson |
Bench |
Believe it or not the Badgers have more kids from Minnesota than they do who played their high school ball in Wisconsin. Five of the 10 starters tonight will be local kids so the familiarity on the court should be significant. But this little nugget is really more interesting to fans than it is relevant to the outcome of the game. Is Jordan Taylor going to be "extra motivated" to beat his hometown Gophers tonight? Maybe, but it isn't like his lights us up every time he faces the Gophers. Overall he is 1-3 vs. Minnesota and has scored over 5 points only once in those four games. Bruesewitz and Berggren are both 1-1 against the Gophers being fortunate to miss the two losses in the 2008-09 season.
I don't know that dominating the Gophers is really what is going to motivate those guys. Getting a Big Ten road victory to keep their hopes of a Big Ten title alive should probably be more of a motivator.
The Gopher roster is frustratingly inconsistent. It was the starters who carried the team to a win at Indiana and it was the bench who sparked the win over Illinois. And both groups stunk at Iowa. It is hard to know what you are going to get out of this roster when each night it is someone new who may (or may not) step up.
| KenPom Efficiency Stats | Minnesota (44) |
Wisconsin (4) |
| Record | 17-7 | 18-6 |
| Pnt / Poss | 1.084 | 1.105 |
| Def Pnt / Poss | 0.938 | 0.819 (2) |
| Off eFG% | 52.5% |
50.0% |
| Def eFG% | 47.2% | 39.6% (1) |
| Off Reb % | 35.3% | 31.0% |
| Def Reb % | 67.1% | 72.7% (23) |
| TO % | 21.7% | 14.8% (2) |
Wisconsin's numbers defensively are really (REALLY) impressive. #2 in the country in points allowed per possession and #1 in defensive eFG%. It might be awfully hard for the Gopher offense to score tonight and it might be an ugly game where the bulk of our points come from the free throw line.
Defensively the Gopher's #1 priority is going to be getting out to the three-point line. Wisconsin gets 35% of their points from behind the arc which is 32nd in the country. As a point of reference the Gophers score only 22.4% of our points from three, ranking near the bottom of D1 basketball. But if we can get out and guard the three that might take the Badgers out of their offensive rhythm, allowing us to stay in the game.
The other key to the game, I think, will be rebounding. Wisconsin hasn't been hitting the offensive glass at a super high rate this year. Ralph and Rodney and the guards need to make sure that trend continues by ending possessions with a rebound. Keep offensive rebounds down, we will lose if we give them a number of second chances.
Scoring will be low and points will be hard to come by. Over the last few years this has been a good match-up for the Gophers and let's hope the trend continues at The Barn tonight.
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I'm officially optimistic
And unofficially worried about how we’ve struggled against aggressive defense this year.
The good news is that I don’t think Sconny is with the perimeter pressure as we saw against Iowa (and elsewhere), or at least they don’t generate the turnovers I would expect if they were.
I think if the Gophers are to win
they need to get over the O/U of 116. They cannot start out slow or get behind. If this turns into a half court game, I don’t like our chances.
Still at work
Hopefully I can catch the second half. Hopefully it will be worth catching.
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 6:15 PM CST via mobile reply actions
I think we are playing very good defense
I like how we are trapping and trying to speed up the Badgers
what you say here can, and will, be used against you The Daily Gopher
two unbelievable 3s
hit with 1 second on the shot clock
what you say here can, and will, be used against you The Daily Gopher
Yup, Wisconsin very fortunate on those
It sucks when 34 seconds of tight D is bailed out by a long bomb. Good thing is, Wisconsin is playing as well as they have in a while right now, and it’s only a five point game. Hopefully will be at five or less going into the half.
Lets go Gophers!
I really hope you guys can beat those rabies infested, garbage can knocking over, “short-legged omnivores in the weasel family” (per their Wikipedia page) Badgers. I really hate Bo Ryan & Wisconsin hoops.
Good luck to you all in the second half
Wisconsin is a few lucky shots from this being a tied game, or worse for them. I’m off to the bar, but will be with you in spirit, go Gophers!
Why, why, why
is Mav logging so many minutes??
Good question
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:18 PM CST via mobile up reply actions
Just joined
How bad is it?
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:15 PM CST via mobile reply actions
ok. Based on what I am seeing
I may not want to watch.
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:20 PM CST via mobile reply actions
gotta get a run here
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:21 PM CST via mobile reply actions
nice rodney
That should be the offense. Drive to the paint.
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:26 PM CST via mobile reply actions
bo definately seems to care
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:32 PM CST via mobile reply actions
eliason moves
Unlike rsiii
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:37 PM CST via mobile reply actions
Didn't know that. Thx.
I am blinded, but not by science...
by BlindedByIdiocy on Feb 9, 2012 7:46 PM CST via mobile up reply actions
Blinded
just trying to help out with your point—-EE was on one good ankle.
We are officially...
the “Best, almost good team in the country”.
All the close games and overtime games….with a dusting of luck this season could have been remarkable.
Jpig
it is not a question of “luck” why we have been losing close games. It is a lack of a bona fide B10 PG AND what appears to be ZERO offensive playbook. I don’t think I have seen an uglier offense in CBB this year.
It's Wisconsin
They make everyone look like that.
Which is not to say we haven’t struggled before b
That was one heck of an effort down the stretch
I really thought we would get blown out mid-second half. But yet another guy stepped up, and Dre took over on both ends, especially shutting down Taylor for the first time all night. Dre was great and almost singlehandedly willed a win in regulation.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t keep it going in overtime.
But this team keeps fighting and each guy keeps getting better (well, except Ralph). But even Ralph was aggressive tonight.
We NEED to rebound better though. Box out, darnit!
They don't have enough court awareness to box out
you’d think they had never seen somebody come in to take an orebound. Offensively, they needed to keep pounding the rim in OT instead of that weak looking for a foul crap. Great defense (including in ot 1 basket from field in the last 12 minutes) but they needed a consistent scorer tonight and nobody was really hot. Then again, nobody’s ever hot against wisconsin.
Season's not over
i take encouragement (irrationally or otherwise). OT losses to ranked teams won’t kill ya.
eh, any win against MSU, OSU, IU, or @ Wisco
+ the 2 off NW & the Cornhuskers.
If they beat OSU or MSU they probably get in at 20
If they beat IU or Wisco they’ll need at least one in the tournament
If they lose all 4 they’ll have to go on a run
If they lose to NW or god forbid the Cornhuskers, the season is pretty damn close to over barring a miracle
by Sportsavenue on Feb 9, 2012 11:20 PM CST up reply actions
Yeah
Not oing to meet OSU or MSU. Prolly not Sconny on the road either.
[shrug] youre right
but that’s why they play the games
by Sportsavenue on Feb 10, 2012 12:01 AM CST up reply actions
for some reason
“anything can happen” got deleted
by Sportsavenue on Feb 10, 2012 12:03 AM CST up reply actions
won't kill ya, but will kill NCAA talks...
…or should, except to the few still out there who think “hey guys (said in super Homer voice), we got ourselves a shot!”…
False.
I wouldn't say it's even close to only being homers
Pretty much every national media outlet has us in still.
"Our attitude is we look at ourselves and we grade ourselves. And even if we don’t like what’s happening on the other side, we don’t make a — it’s not our business" - Tony Larussa
That is interesting.
Guess I’ll just disagree. Then wait for the losses to pile up to convince others.
And I’m not saying I’m not proud of what we did this year with all the youth we’ve got. Or how we’ve over-achieved. We have. And I am proud. They crushed my horribly low expectations.
I just don’t think we should continue to talk about NCAA as a reality. But I’ll save this for another couple weeks.
The team has impressed me this season. I hope we can build off it and come out better next year to where we aren’t talking “bubble”…I’d love to be a lock in mid to late February. That would feel amazing….amazingly unfamiliar…..
What are you talking about?
Of course we have a shot. We have two games left that we should win. That get’s us to 7 conference wins and 19 wins overall. That’s not enough.
But steal one more win and we’re 8-10 in conference regular season play with 20 wins overall, with the conference tourney left to play. That’s solidly on the bubble in the could go other way category. And we have a home game against a team we already beat on the road and a road game against a team we just took to overtime (and who’s lack of offense means they will always be vulnerable), as chances to steal.
Steal both of those and we are solidly in.
Do you think we just have no shot of beating Indiana at home and/or Wisconsin on the road? Or are the overreacting again?
You're talking about "stealing" games...
Do I think we’ll win one of those? Maybe….but I don’t find it likely. They are both playing well. Even though we “hang around” in every game…usually getting it down to a possession or two (which is why I’ve referenced “luck” would have gotten us a couple wins)…I see those being losses. Especially with Coleman having gone into a dark hole.
Mathematically, sure, we still have a shot….but odds-wise….and I’m talking HEAVY odds…I’m not counting on it.
All this being said, I wouldn’t be shocked if we won the rest of our games. This team is so confusing to me to try to judge. We hang around….always hang around. Just enough to raise expectations and then shatter them.
it's hard to talk odds of making the dance
Without knowing who we will face in the conference tournament, and thus how much we can help ourselves there.
So let’s talk odd of winning each of the coming game. All of these are guesses, of course.
OSU: 10-15%
at NW: +70%
MS: 10-15%
IND: 50-60%
at WIS: 40-50%
NEB: +70%
If I’m anywhere close to right, are those “HEAVY odds” to win three more? I don’t think so. I think we have a better than even chance of winning three more. It means getting a win out of one or both of the Indiana and Wisconsin games, which I think are close to toss up games.
I guess I think we have less than an even chance at winning four more, but it’s possible. Again, we could take both of those games that are essentially a toss up.
Define "season"?
If you just mean games….then you are correct. If you define it as NCAA birth…then i will have what you’re drinking…and make it two of them please.
Found a positive last night
Andre Hollins is Jordan Taylor’s younger brother. I saw Jordan Taylor in Maroon and Gold, Remembering that JT is a senior and AH is a freshman. They have the same build, size, style, demeanor. Now, no way is AH there yet, but the potential is there. I am glad AH got to play agst. Him. I would encourage him to really pay attention to JT’s game and look at old film. I was impressed with how AH defended agst. JT in the second half. AH has to improve his ball-handling and what I refer to as quarterbacking skills. JT has an outrageous assist/TO ratio of almost 3 to 1. I said from the get-go and saw it last night, if the Gophers are to be a contender in the future, AH has to develop into the PG we so desperately need.
Don't insult Hollins like that
Taylor whined after every whistle. Let’s hope Dre doesn’t develop that demeanor.
Otherwise I agree. Dre can develop into Taylor, and is off to a good start.
Really??
I did not see that. I saw him working the officials but no Technical fouls as a result. As a senior, all-American candidate, PG/coach on the court, perfectly normal. The only whiner I ever see out of UW is the head coach.
I'm not saying it rose to the level of getting a T
Although his whining after getting called for his two handed shove of Dre (I think) to the ground should have gotten him close.
It wasn’t that any of it was particularly out of line, it was just a little annoying that it was so constant.
And yeah, the coach is worse.
A hallmark of Tubby's Gopher teams
Has been inability to set up and execute the last shot. Time after time in that situation the Gophers end up with a forced shot, like last night, of often with no shot.
Take all the good coaches in the country and research how often they win the game, at home, tied, with time out and the ball, at the end. It’s a win about 85% of the time. Draw up the last shot and either score the bucket or go to the line to win.
Can't go to the line
If the refs refuse to call any fouls in the paint. Dre certainly could have gotten a call on the last play of regulation, and probably would have if he was Jordan Taylor.
But the refs weren’t calling those fouls all night, and we really don’t have that one guy to go to at the end. Dre off the dribble was about the most effective option we had.
Say what you will about Tubby, but he’s been really flexible this year. He’s changing playing time in response to who is effective, and switching up both the defense and the offense (yes, there is one) pretty frequently.
This team may not make the dance (they are running out of realistic opportunities), but it is a group of hard working young guys who are getting better. That’s encouraging and fun to watch.
Which is a difficult thing to say after watching a basketball game that involved Wisconsin. So ugly.
D up
Taylor played excellent D on that last possession of regulation. No way that was a foul, especially considering the circumstances. I don’t have any problem with givign the ball to you ‘hot hand’ to see if he can make a play. If Dre has a weakness, it’s his ability/willingness to drive and dish. He’s already a legit outside shooter. When you can shoot free throws at an 85% clip, get yourself to line, young man.
By the way, Julian Welch’s poor ball handling is becoming as much of a liability as Ralph’s.
Journalism. Enhanced.
I don't know
Live, I thought Dre was fouled. Looking at the replay, I guess not, but it sure looks like Austin was. Video here, around the 1:00 minutes mark. The defender made contact both with his shooting hand on the follow-through and with his feet.
And I just don’t think the “circumstances” should matter. They do, but they shouldn’t. A foul is a foul.
Anyway, I wasn’t super ticked off that nothing was called there, and I don’t think it was egregious error (as some of the other calls were, particularly from Ted Valentine).
Speaking of Mr. Valentine, he ruled that taking four steps in the lane was not travelling because the ball was being dribbled, despite the ball never touching the ground. He also ruled that putting both arms around Dre’s neck as he went for a layup was not a foul because the defenders arms were straight up (despite being nearly parallel to the floor). So frustrating.
Also the infamous 4 second slide with the ball, followed by a timeout
"Our attitude is we look at ourselves and we grade ourselves. And even if we don’t like what’s happening on the other side, we don’t make a — it’s not our business" - Tony Larussa
DAC
your comment reminds me of the old “once is an event, twice a coincidence, and three times is a pattern” expression.
by Texas Gopher on Feb 10, 2012 11:36 AM CST up reply actions
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