Joe Coleman and the Minnesota Golden Gophers go on the road Wednesday night for a match-up against the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Hawkeyes prevailed in the first meeting of the season.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers picked up a big win when they prevailed over the Illinois Fighting Illini with an overtime victory this past weekend, but they'll need to build on it if they want to have a chance at reaching the NCAA Tournament. That all starts Wednesday night when the Gophers play the Iowa Hawkeyes on the road.
The Gophers have won six of the seven previous meetings against the Hawkeyes, but the lone loss came earlier this season when Iowa picked up a 64-62 win over Minnesota on Jan. 4. They have a chance to get back on the right track when they tip-off at 7:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.
There have been plenty of key players that needed to step up since Trevor Mbakwe went down for the season, but the newest in Joe Coleman. Since being inserted into the Gopher starting lineup, Coleman is averaging a team high 13.5 points to go along with 5.2 rebounds.
As far as Iowa is concerned, they're a pretty even bunch with Matt Gatens leading the way as the senior guard has averaged 13.5 points per contest this season. Roy Devyn Marble is the only other Hawkeye averaging in double figures with 11.4 points per game while Aaron White, Zach McCabe and Melsahn Besabe aren't far behind.
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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Gophers At Hawkeyes: Minnesota Unable To Hold Late Lead, Falls To Iowa, 63-59
The Minnesota Golden Gophers hoped to go into Iowa City on Wednesday night and capitalize on the momentum they had gained from their overtime victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday. By the time the dust settled, however, that momentum was nowhere to be found, as the Gophers fell to the Iowa Hawkeyes by a final score of 63-59.
It looked like the Gophers were going to get blown out early on, as they were down 17-5 midway through the first half after turning the ball over ten times. However, Iowa's shots stopped falling, and the Gophers went on a 22-7 run to finish the first half and give them a lead going into halftime. Minnesota carried their first half finish into the second half, taking a 45-35 lead with 12 minutes left in regulation.
However, the Minnesota lead quicly evaporated, with the Hawkeyes going on a 16-5 run that saw them take a 51-50 lead with a little more than five minutes remaining in the ball game. The Gophers then got a series of three-pointers from Julian Welch, Austin Hollins, and Oto Osenieks to take a 59-54 lead with 3:24 remaining. The three-pointer from Osenieks was the final basket the Gophers would score on the evening, as the Hawkeyes went on a 9-0 run to close the game out and provide the final margin of victory.
Iowa guard Matt Gatens led all scorers with 18 points, and forward Zach McCabe chipped in with eight points and ten rebounds on the night. The Gophers were paced by Ralph Sampson III, who scored 13. Welch added 12 and Hollins scored 11 in the losing effort.
The loss drops the Gophers to 16-7 overall, and 4-6 in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes are also 4-6 in the Big Ten, and possess a record of 12-11 overall.
Minnesota's next game will take place on Sunday, as they will travel to Lincoln to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
Feb 02 4:29a by Christopher Gates