We haven't forgotten about Nugz this week, just focused on the NCAA Tournament. 

Walter Bond was on the 1990 Gopher team that made a run to the Elite Eight (I think that one still counts).  He lost his E8 ring (it was stolen), but it was miraculously found in a recent police raid. 

"I don't think I knew how much the ring meant to me until I picked it up," Bond said Tuesday, hours after he was reunited with the ring at the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office. "It was incredible."

Kind of a cool story and gets me to thinking about just how cool it would be to see a run to the Elite Eight.  It all starts later this morning.  Bond is a motivational speaker, he needs to be in that locker room this morning with his ring and do some of that speaking and motivating.

• Big Ten Geeks have a lengthy preview of the Gopher's pod.  No real predictions but a nice breakdown of all four teams.  Most interestingly, they found a stat that ranks Minnesota 346th out of 347 in consistency.  I'm not real familiar with this stat but I generally trust KenPom stats and maybe we aren't really the 346th least consistent team in the country but clearly we are inconsistent.  
• This is a great article on Tubby Smith.  It starts from his post game interview after Kentucky lost to Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament a few years ago. 
  

  Fast forward to the 2010 Milwaukee sub-regional, where Smith looked happy, relaxed and completely at ease with his calling, no matter that the Gophers had taken a 335-mile bus ride to reach the Bradley Center.

  
  I am so glad he is our coach.  He isn't perfect and he's not a miracle worker but he is elite and we are luck to have him.
• Brent Yarina of BTN had Iverson and Joseph on his B10 Tourney All-Tournament team.
• Tubby took the time yesterday to promote Vince Taylor as an assistant who is ready to move on and be a head coach.  Personally I don't want to see him leave, but for his sake I'd love to see him get a good job somewhere outside of the midwest.
• Black Shoe Diaries previews the NCAA Wrestling Championships with predictions of All-American's by weight class.
• Pioneer Press gives us 5 Keys for the Gophers.

Let's take a break from Gopher basketball for a few minutes. 

Gopher Baseball is continuing to struggle in this early season.  This past weekend the Gophers hosted the Metrodome Tournament.  Game One was a game owned by Seth Rosin.  The Gophers cruised to a 7-1 win over Harvard behind Rosin's 12 Ks.  But game two and game three were losses to Creighton and South Dakota State.  The 1-2 weekend puts the Gophers at 5-7 overall.  Up next is a trip to Alabama for two games with the Crimson Tide, beginning today, and then they stay in the state to face Samford for four games. 

Gopher Hockey's season is finished after losing their first round WCHA playoff matchup with North Dakota.  The Gophers battled back to even the three-game series with a win on Saturday.  But fell in game three 4-1 on Sunday to end their season. If I were you, I'd check out Gopher Puck Live for detailed reactions to the loss and the season.

• Gopher Hoops is taking the bus to Milwaukee.  Now if they were serious about saving money, they'd take MegaBus.  But this isn't a bad move in the current economic environment we live. 
• The Evansville Courier and Press isn't all that impressed with the Big Ten's (not so) Fab Five in the tournament.  But the highlight of the article is the nugget that Illinois is not hosting an NIT game because Cirque du Soleil is booked on their home court.  What does Bruce Weber think about all of this? "It would be an understatement to say it's been a tough day," Weber said on Sunday night. "I don't think we have anyone to blame except ourselves."
• Basketball Prospectus is always very insightful and this article on the firing of Lickliter is no exception.  The decline of Iowa basketball can directly be traced to the Northwestern State upset in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.  A year later Alford left, Lickliter was hired, several kids transferred and the program has been in steady decline since.  
• More thoughts on the Xavier v Minnesota matchup from the Cincinnati Enquirer.
• Oh, and Seantrel Henderson is going to sign with USC this week according to his father.  OR they just haven't been in the headlines lately and need to get more stories published about SH.
• Once again, come back here to watch all out of market games on Thursday through Sunday.  NCNCAA March Madness on Demand  will be embedded and easy for you to watch as you comment in the daily open threads we'll be having.  I know I'm linking to it every day, but I want everyone to see it.

Joe Nathan, ergh. Well, at least the Twins have pitching depth. Rauch had 17 saves in 2008. If he can do a passable job, the Twins have enough batting and defense to win the division, especially if Liriano pitches as well as advertised.

Only 21 days until Sean Henderson has to figure out where he is going to spend the next four years with his son.

Isn't it curious that they've gone completely silent for the past 15 days? It's now been almost three weeks since the NCAA hearing with USC. At that point, they had to have been informed that a decision won't be coming down for 6 to 8 weeks, which is outside the April 1 deadline for signing national letters of intent.

It seems there is something causing the young Henderson to not sign a LOI. Academics?

(1) Gopher freshman goalie Noora Raty is one of three finalists for the Patty Kazmaier award, given to the nation's best women's college hockey player. And, she's a freshman.

(2) If you're a Gopher football season ticket holder, you probably got your renewal form this week. Just consider this: USC, Ohio State, Penn State, and Iowa. What an appetizing schedule. And, Minnesota's going to win one of these games. As of now, I'm leaning towards the Penn State game being a surprise victory.

(3) The Spring Football game is April 24th at 1:30pm. If you don't have the aforementioned season tix, this is a great opportunity to get into the stadium and enjoy a "game."

(4) The Gopher baseball team is hosting St. Thomas tonight at Metrodump. 6:30pm start.

As noted in last night's fan post, Minnesota football recruit James Farrow has committed to the Gophers.  Farrow has been catching the attention of recruiting experts, and although he has not yet been officially rated by recruiting services you can view his profile at this link.  A new Gopher blogger reviews Farrow at this link.

Adam Rittenberg reviews Gopher football strengths and weaknesses for the 2010 season at this link.  Rittenberg, who blogs on a full time basis for ESPN, is very bullish on the projected performance of Kyle Theret and Kim Royston:

Minnesota boasts the Big Ten's top safety tandem in Theret and Royston. The two finished the 2009 season on a high note in the Insight Bowl. Theret had two interceptions and a 40-yard reception on a fake punt, while Royston recorded a career-high 15 tackles, including a forced fumble.

As for the cornerbacks, Jeff over at Golden Gopher Football Blog reviews who will be competing to play opposite Michael Carter:

While some people might worry that having a sophomore in Carter and a redshirt frosh in Kerry Lewis as our starting corners would be a recipe for trouble, if those are our best two kids then that's who should play. And it would certainly be our most athletic pair of starting corners since...well since when I'm not sure.

Marcus Fuller all but squashes the Tubby Smith-to-Oregon rumors at this link:

"If I ever addressed every rumor, then I wouldn't be able to do what I do," Smith said on a Big Ten conference call. "There's always talk about coaches leaving and players leaving. It's part of the business. We're happy here. Even though this year was an up-and-down year, we feel like we have the right pieces in place. We think we can be a pretty good team in the future."

So mens basketball heads into the post season.  A disappointing 18-win season resulting in a 6th place Big Ten finish.  On the bright side we were 3-0 against Wisconsin and Iowa.  And we did manage to upset a few ranked teams along the way.  And we can take some comfort in knowing we handed Iowa their worst loss in 21 years can't we? We have beat them by more, I mean who can forget that epic 1902, 47-10 throttling.

Unfortunately barring 3 wins in the Big Ten Tourney (including over MSU and Pur) then it won't really matter and this team is NIT bound.

• A 35 point win over Iowa is fun, but congratulations to our outgoing seniors who all had very good games.  Devron Bostick scored 8, which was nearly 20% of his season total.  Lawrence Westbrook hit 20 for the 5th time of the season on 7/10 shooting.  And Damian Johnson recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 assists.  Not a bad night for what is hopefully their last game at the Barn.
• Gopher baseball continues to struggle in the early part of the season but the managed to salvage game 3 of the DQ Classic by defeating Northwestern 8-4 on Sunday.  Loyola Marymount was named the DQ Classic Champions.
• Gopher wrestling finished 2nd in the Big Ten Championships.  Jayson Ness won his second Big Ten title and was named the Big Ten wrestler of the year!  Mike Thorn also won a Big Ten title.
• Gopher Hockey also received help from their seniors as they earned a split with Wisconsin for the weekend.
• Things are looking pretty good for the Gophers in the 2009-10 Border Battle Cup.  Minnesota currently holds a 390 - 170 advantage with 320 points remaining.  Wisconsin currently holds the lifetime edge in the Cup winning 3 of the 5 years but things are changing!

So Gopher basketball is a mess right now, but Marcus Fuller has a nice article on incoming center Elliott Eliason.  He is, as you may recall from Nebraska and has led his team to state. 

Eliason, a 6-foot-11, 235-pound center from Chadron High School in Nebraska, has been a dominant force inside this year while averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks a game. He had 27 points and 12 rebounds to help his team win the C1-6 district title on Tuesday night.

Another big man can never hurt, even with Iverson and Sampson back for the next two years.  Apparently Eliason is already planning on redshirting.

The Gophers have seen some improvement from sophomore center Ralph Sampson III this season. But fellow second-year player Colton Iverson has been slower to develop. Even if Eliason was able to help inside next season, he said he still plans to redshirt right now.

"I have a lot to learn, obviously, and they have a lot to teach me," he said. "It's coach (Tubby) Smith and the coaching staff's decision. I'm not going to say how I compare to (Sampson and Iverson). I really don't know. I have no idea. Everyone wants to play, but I don't know the situation."

Maybe this will be a better pick up than most of us assumed when we first heard of his commitment.  I love the idea of him redshirting and getting plenty of time to develop and mature.

• This has been a very rough start for Gopher baseball.  They now sit with a record of 2-4 after losing to Wisconsin-Milwaukee yesterday.  They now are getting ready for the DQ Classic this weekend.
• I like this article by a Wisconsin student.  He rips AP voters and their preseason ballots.  At least he gives nod to Minnesota as a reasonable top 25 back in October.  But can you really fault for some of the ballots cast before a game has yet to be played?  Nobody can accurately predict how well new freshmen will perform or how accurately predict how team chemistry will change over the course of an offseason.  Michigan is a perfect example.  They made the NCAA Tourney last year, even won a game.  They returned their best players but have had an awful season.
• Back to Gopher baseball and the DQ Classic.  This is a great event, I've attended in the past.  It is laid back, you are seeing quality baseball, free parking behind and FREE TICKETS AT LOCAL DQ'S!  If you don't have anything important you should head out and watch Gopher baseball.
• Rittenberg over at his ESPN Big Ten Blog is continuing his series of Big Ten game-day traditions.  He finally reached Minnesota. Did he miss anything?

Linebackers Simoni Lawrence, Nate Triplett, and Lee Campbell participated in the NFL combine yesterday.  Check out how they stacked up versus other attendees at this link.  Lawrence had the most impressive showing with a 4.62 forty yard dash and 21 bench press reps.

Congratulations to the Gopher's Indoor Track and Field team.  They won the Big Ten title for the second year in a row.  Read about it here.

The Minnesota Daily previews tonight's matchup between the men's basketball team and Michigan:But head coach Tubby Smith said it's not hard for his team to concentrate on the next game.

"I think our guys are focused on playing well," he said. "I'm sure in the back of their heads they're hoping, like everyone else is, that we can get a chance to play [in the tournament], but you've got to make it happen by winning."

Down With Goldy also previews the upcoming matchup with Michigan:

But my entire Minnesota rooting life has conditioned me to expect the worst and I am nearly certain they will lose one of these two games. Will they win the "tougher" one and beat Michigan just to drop the "easy" game and the end of the schedule? Or will they just drop this first one here and put everyone out of their misery? Or is it possible, just possible, they'll ask win both games, as they should, and go into the Big Ten Tournament in good enough shape to justify consideration?

This analysis of Lunardi's bracketology has a somewhat favorable take on the Gopher's chances:

The Gophers have a 17-11 record, and admittedly have some bad losses. However, what this team has that the teams do not that Lunardi has including in his Bracketology is quality wins over big teams. The Gophers have wins over Butler, Ohio State, and Wisconsin. Three wins over top 15 teams is much better than any of the projected last 4 in can claim.

March is finally here!  While the madness of March isn't quite yet upon us, it is getting warmer!!!

Let's do a  quick weekend recap of Gopher sports.

• Gopher Basketball won at Illinois for the first time since 1996!  That was an awful streak, think about what you were doing in 1996 and what you have done since.  Anyway, they got a much needed win and remain on the fringe of the bubble.  I'll do more on this soon, but I'm starting to think our best chance is to win out and then somehow pray that we get matched up with Purdue in the B10 Tournament.  Clearly they'll be without Hummel but the RPI won't know the difference.
• SBN's latest Bracketology (monday morning) has the Gophers out but among the first four out.  That is squarely on the Bubble my friends.  Tuesday at Michigan becomes the next hugest game of the year.
• Gopher Baseball was SO close to a winning weekend but instead finished 0-3 in the Big East / Big Ten Tournament.  A 9th inning rally fell just short in a loss to St. Johns.  Pitching struggled in a 2-8 loss to UConn.  And the biggest disappointment of the weekend was a walk-off homer by #11 Louisville to win 5-4.
  
• Third but certainly not least, CONGRATULATIONS TO THE MEN'S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD TEAM.  Big Ten Indoor Champions for the second year in a row!  The women finished 4th.
• After a promising start to the season the women's basketball team lost the regular season finale and finished last in the Big Ten.  The young Lady Gophers will return six of their top nine scorers next year.  
• Here's a cool Gopher Sports piece on what the student managers do behind the scenes for the Gopher basketball team.
• Gopher hockey split with UMD this weekend and are assured to go on the road for the WCHA playoffs. 
• Finally we have some VERY EXCITING NEWS!!!  For you NCAA Tournament junkies (that's me!), SBN has come to an agreement with CBSSports.com.  For this year's NCAA Tournament we will be have the March Madness On Demand widget available right here on TDG (or any other fine SBN blog).  So what does that mean for you?  Well you should plan to spend your Thurs-Sun (Mar 18-21) right here.  We'll have an open thread here to talk basketball all day long and the games will be showing live in the same window, no downloads for you, just show up here and watch hoops.  You can watch and talk all at the same time.  This is VERY exciting.