Relax

As a few others have said....horrible game but lets not jump off a bridge. I'm sure Illinois has put their loss to us behind them...as will Duke re- Clemson.

One game in an atmosphere that was ripe for this to happen. MSU losing two in a row at home was lathered up and we really had no shot. It sucked and I was screaming at my TV like everyone else.

Lets win our next game and all will be forgotten.

Rouser you say it best. I have put this one behind us as well. Let's focus on tOSU.

Absolutely.... I thought that if they could win one out of the next two..we would still in good shape for a 3rd or 4th place finish in the conference. Ohio State is playing very well now and win there is questionable... Wake was smoked last night, Duke didn't show up last night, the Gophers were rocked last night, it happens....Still thinking the Gophers, Penn St, & Ill all are likely to have 4 more losses in the conference. That would put us at 10-8 & 22-8 overall heading into the Big Ten Tourney.... The Ohio State game on Sat night now is a huge opportunity for this team.

Duke will not just move on and put it behind them so easily. Here is a Q&A from Coach K's presser last night:

Reporter asked if this is a game you just forget and move on from...... Coach K said "NOT IF YOU WEAR A DUKE JERSEY.

I'd go get two flu shots and hope I got the flu this week."

Go Gophers!!

Investing lots of emotion in a sports team is always a risk. I learned my lesson from the Vikings of the 70's. All season long they would batter everyone only to save their absolute worst performance of the year for the Superbowl. I care about the Gophers probably more than I should. This year they have entertained me and given me a lift. Occasional bad performances are part of the deal. A coach as good as Tubby will use last night as a springboard to better things. I am still too grateful to this team for the good moments they have given me to ever get too upset about one bad outing. They have helped me relax and sleep well at night. I just close my eyes and repeat over and over again.....Gophers 77 Badgers 74.

Youth = Inconsistency

Perspective is in order. This is still a VERY young team. You have to expect some major inconsistency. They certainly laid an egg yesterday, but they've also shown the ability to play well. When you rely this heavily on freshmen and sophomores, that is what is going to happen.

How many of us would have thought that we could be playing for a shot at leading the conference this year? Not many, I suspect. This is still a learning year for these guys. The fact that they are near the top of the conference is a huge bonus. Tubby has lots of teachable moments to work with.

Bad games happen... It's been a fun year already and there's more to come, hopefully ending in a NCAA berth. The program is on the rise and there is a great class coming in for next year. Let's not get ahead of ourselves and expect too much from a young team.