+1
The Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers put on a good show for the ESPN audience.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers weren't expected to be competitors this season when Trevor Mbakwe went down due to injury early in the year, but the team has been sticking with quite a few teams as the seasons rolls on. They have another big test on Thursday, though, as they host the Wisconsin Badgers in a Big Ten conference contest.
The Gophers game will be televised nationally on ESPN and, if the Gophers are able to follow The Daily Gopher's keys to the game, they should have a chance to win.
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.
The scoring likely won't be high and the pace might not be exciting, but a victory on national television certainly wouldn't hurt the Gophers' postseason opportunities.
For more on the Minnesota Golden Gophers, check out The Daily Gopher. You can also head over to SB Nation's main NCAA Basketball hub at SBNation.com/NCAA-Basketball.
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Wisconsin Vs. Minnesota Final Score: Badgers Bounce Back In Overtime To Beat Golden Gophers 68-61
As Jordan Taylor goes so goes the Wisconsin Badgers and Taylor had it going against the Minnesota Golden Gophers, leading the Wisconsin attack to earn a 68-61 Big Ten road win in overtime.
The senior point guard from Bloomington's Benilde-St. Margaret High School made the most of his final game back home as a collegian in Williams Arena, starting off the game with a three-pointer to spark a 27-point night which included making five of seven shots from behind the arc.
Wisconsin used a 10-4 run to close the half up eight, but the Gophers hung around after the break and then used a 10-0 run to close out the second half and force overtime while holding Wisconsin scoreless over the final seven minutes and forty seconds. Andre Hollins and Austin Hollins kept Minnesota alive combining to score the last seven points, but the freshman Andre Hollins was unable to convert on a final possession for the win in regulation.
In the overtime, Wisconsin took control and made 15 of 16 free throws to put away the Golden Gophers and remain in the mix near the top of the Big Ten with an 8-4 conference record. Minnesota fell to 5-7 in Big Ten play with a challenging schedule facing them to close out the regular season.
For more on the Minnesota Golden Gophers, check out The Daily Gopher. You can also head over to SB Nation's main NCAA Basketball hub at SBNation.com/NCAA-Basketball.
Feb 09 8:23p by Tom Lewis