We're at halftime of the first game of the 2011 Big Ten Tournament, and the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Northwestern Wildcats are locked in a close one, with the Gophers currently trailing the Wildcats by a score of 32-30.
Ralph Sampson III leads the Gophers with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting in the first half. Blake Hoffarber is the team's second leading scorer, and he only has five points after twenty minutes of play.
Michael Thompson, who had 18 points the last time these two teams got together, already has 13 at the half to pace Northwestern. Drew Crawford has six points for Northwestern.
Neither team has had a great shooting day thus far, with both teams currently under 40% from the floor. Minnesota has shot 11-for-28 (39.3%), and Northwestern is currently 11-for-29 (37.9%).
The second half of play is coming up on ESPN2, with the next game between Michigan State and Iowa to follow on the same station.