A year ago the Gophers were paced by Colten Iverson and Devoe Joseph who each scored 15 points on the way to a 12 point win over the mighty Jackrabbits. Colt and Devoe are no longer around so will the Gophers have enough firepower to hold off the
Game Time: 7:00
TV: Not on TV, again
| Pos | Minnesota | Pnt/Gm | Pnt/Gm | South Dakota State | Pos | |
| PG | Andre Hollins | 6.0 | 32.0 | Nate Wolters | G | |
| G | Austin Hollins | 13.0 | 7.0 | Griffan Callahan | G | |
| F | Rodney Williams | 6.0 | 1.0 | Chad White | G | |
| F | Trevor Mbakwe | 17.0 | 9.0 | Brayden Carlson | G | |
| C | Ralph Sampson III | 8.0 | 16.0 | Tony Fiegen | F | |
| Bench | Julian Welch | 7.0 | 1.0 | Taevaunn Prince | Bench | |
| Bench | Joe Coleman | 3.0 | 5.0 | Jordan Dykstra | Bench | |
| Bench | Chip Armelin | 4.0 | 7.0 | Zach Horstman | Bench |
SDSU is led by Nate Wolters who is a preseason 1st team all-Summit League guy and he is supported by Jordan Dykstra who was a mid-major freshman All-American team selection a year ago. Tony Fiegen is their tallest starter who contributed 16 points in their first game of the year, but he averaged just 5 points a year ago. The Jackrabbits are in the hunt to win the Summit League this season garnering one first place vote in the preseason poll and finishing 3rd.
But games against South Dakota State should be less about them and more about us. There are some scorers on the Jackrabbits and they are a solid team, but my concerns are more about us not taking care of business.
My primary concerns for tonight.
- Andre Hollins vs. Nate Wolters - Hollins is going to face better point guards this year, but this should be a very good test for him on both ends of the court. Wolters scored 32 points in his season debut to go along with 11 assists. He gets to the line, he makes shots and he gets others involved. Dre needs to keep him contained, should be an excellent test for the freshman.
- Who will be more physical? - Last year the Jackrabbits were leading by one with just over eight minutes to play. They were pushing the Gophers around making things difficult for the Gopher offense. At that point Iverson scored 9 points, had an assist and grabbed two offensive rebounds to lead the Gophers to the 12-point win. This was maybe Iverson and Joseph's best games of last season. I expect SDSU will be physical again, how will we respond?
- How will the young guards respond in game number two? - The three new guards combined for 16 points in the Gopher opener. Now that they have experienced a real game at The Barn how will they look in their second game? Somebody, particularly Dre Hollins or Julian Welch, needs to separate themselves as the Gopher point guard.
I am a little nervous about this game as I will be for most every game on our schedule. These kids do not fear us just because we are a Big Ten school. They have some talented guards who can score and their best player is a Minnesota native who may be playing with an added edge tonight.