Greetings, Gophers! I'm looking forward to this matchup, and learning more about your squad. (A little bit of revenge for the NIT loss would be nice, too).
I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about our team. As you may have gathered, the general consensus among our fanbase is a feeling of confidence. I don't think it's entirely misplaced; this is a mentally tough, defensive-minded bunch that has had a huge target on its back all season, and generally rises to the occasion. However, I think our folks are underestimating Minnesota, primarily due to a lack of knowledge about your team, as well as the Cinderella hype machine that is operating at full force currently. We aren't used to this kind of attention, and there's naturally a lot of excitement surrounding this season and opportunity for us.
I, for one, have no illusions about an upset being a sure thing. You guys are obviously the best team we will have played all season, and have been through a gauntlet of a schedule relative to us. I anticipate a tight, well-played game, with limited turnovers. I am not heading into Thursday expecting a win, by any means. I think we stand a good chance of pulling it out, and advanced metrics, Vegas line, etc. would seem to bear that out. The only outcome that would surprise me would be a blowout either way.
On offense, we are fairly efficient, though we can be prone to dry spells. As mentioned before, we are not overly dependent on the 3-ball, though we do have a knack for hitting timely ones. Of course, Potts led the NCAA in 3PT FG% last year. He has regressed a bit but can still get hot, and we have several guys off the bench (Habersham, Johnson) that can hit from deep. Our frontcourt is the straw that stirs the drink; Williams and Upshaw are frequently outsized and neither plays a traditional post game, but both guys are athletic and can stretch you out. Williams' preferred offense is the midrange jumper (he rarely drives the ball to the basket), and it is lethal. Upshaw has developed the ability to hit from behind the arc this year- at least enough to keep defenses honest. We don;t do a lot in transition and prefer to grind it out in the halfcourt, and can occasionally struggle to find good shots. Williams is the best of the bunch at creating his own shot. We do have one true post, 6-10 Brandon Walters, that hasn't gotten much attention but has come on this season and given us the ability to throw out a true back-to-the-basket big body for important minutes. I'll be curious to see how many minutes he gets against your frontcourt.
Our defense is a plus factor for us; we typically play a 1-3-1 matchup that transitions into a 2-3 as the possession unfolds. It has given teams fits at times this year, though of course it can be exploited by quick ball distribution and good three-point shooting.
We have a true freshman, Tyrik Dixon, running the point, which is unusual for us; in the last several years we have relied on talented JUCOs in that spot. Dixon didn't have a great conference tourney, but has us excited about his future; he played with poise and generally handled things well this season, and you don't see too many impact freshman at the mid-major level. He was backcourt mates with UK's Malik Monk in HS last season.
Coaching is a plus as well- Kermit Davis is as good as it gets from an X-O standpoint at our level, and has done a great job of keeping our guys focused this year.
When all of our "Big Three" (Williams, Upshaw, Potts) are playing well, we can play with most anyone. That's unlikely to happen against a team like Minnesota, who will undoubtedly disrupt some of what we are trying to do. The key for us will be for someone else (Walters, Habersham, Simpson, Foote) to get something going, and give us double figures. If that happens, I feel good about our chances.
I have read a bit about your team- Mason, McBrayer, and Coffey look like they will be a handful. I've been extremely impressed by the turnaround you all made from last year, and it looks like our teams' approaches aren't that dissimilar. I'm looking forward to reading more from you all. Best of luck this week!
