BleedGopher
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per Chad:
After earning Big Ten all-freshman team honors in a rookie campaign that produced more than 11 points and 8 rebounds per game, Jordan Murphy entered this season with heightened expectations.
That didn’t happen for a while as the 6-foot-6 sophomore forward from San Antonio struggled matching his scoring numbers on a deeper and better Gophers men’s basketball team this season.
Coach Richard Pitino says Murphy isn’t a pure scorer but that he has atoned for his scoring dip as the team’s top rebounder.
But following a conversation with Pitino, Murphy emerged with a renewed focus on what Pitino called a “junkyard dog” mentality — and success has followed. Following back-to-back double-doubles in a pair of Gophers victories last week, Murphy was named co-Big Ten player of the week, an honor shared with Michigan senior guard Derrick Walton Jr., who visits the Gophers on Sunday.
Pitino wants Murphy to continue focusing on rebounds and points in the paint.
“I think because he played so many minutes and had a good freshman year, you always think the next step is to go from good year to great year,” Pitino said. “That’s what everybody wants, that progression. It doesn’t necessarily happen that way. I think Murphy has had a good year. I don’t think he’s had a great year, I don’t think he’s had a bad year.”
http://www.twincities.com/2017/02/13/gophers-jordan-murphy-embraces-junkyard-dog-mentality/
Go Gophers!!
After earning Big Ten all-freshman team honors in a rookie campaign that produced more than 11 points and 8 rebounds per game, Jordan Murphy entered this season with heightened expectations.
That didn’t happen for a while as the 6-foot-6 sophomore forward from San Antonio struggled matching his scoring numbers on a deeper and better Gophers men’s basketball team this season.
Coach Richard Pitino says Murphy isn’t a pure scorer but that he has atoned for his scoring dip as the team’s top rebounder.
But following a conversation with Pitino, Murphy emerged with a renewed focus on what Pitino called a “junkyard dog” mentality — and success has followed. Following back-to-back double-doubles in a pair of Gophers victories last week, Murphy was named co-Big Ten player of the week, an honor shared with Michigan senior guard Derrick Walton Jr., who visits the Gophers on Sunday.
Pitino wants Murphy to continue focusing on rebounds and points in the paint.
“I think because he played so many minutes and had a good freshman year, you always think the next step is to go from good year to great year,” Pitino said. “That’s what everybody wants, that progression. It doesn’t necessarily happen that way. I think Murphy has had a good year. I don’t think he’s had a great year, I don’t think he’s had a bad year.”
http://www.twincities.com/2017/02/13/gophers-jordan-murphy-embraces-junkyard-dog-mentality/
Go Gophers!!
