DanielHouse
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In February, Big Ten games reach another level of physicality and every shot is earned. Wednesday night's Border Battle was a classic old-school conference game. The problem: Minnesota couldn’t knock down shots when they needed them most.
Poor shooting, stagnant offensive possessions and leaky rebounding plagued the Gophers in a 56-51 loss. Jordan Murphy had 16 points, but Amir Coffey finished with just eight points on 3-for-10 shooting. Minnesota needed perimeter shooting late in the game and simply couldn’t knock anything down. They finished the night 1-for-13 from downtown and made just three of their final 16 shots from the floor. Many mistakes the Gophers made were the result of not shooting the ball well and making undisciplined mistakes.
When Minnesota doesn’t get on the run, they simply aren’t the same team. Wisconsin slowed the tempo and surrendered just eight total fast break points. It sent the Gophers’ offense into shambles. Amir Coffey and Dupree McBrayer combined to shoot just 4-for-19 from the floor and Jordan Murphy didn’t come alive until the second half, either.
The Badgers continually fed Ethan Happ in the post and occasionally got inside-out action. Entering Wednesday’s game, Ethan Happ was averaging 18.5 points per game, 10.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Minnesota was tasked with finding a way to slow the dominant big-man. With all of the Badgers’ shooters and court spacing, Happ gets some fantastic looks. He finished the game with 15 points and 13 rebounds, while playing physical on both ends of the court.
Both teams traded punches in the post as Wisconsin tried to slow the tempo of this game. Minnesota was forced to maximize possessions in the half court. It’s something they haven’t handled consistently this year. The Badgers began the game 4-for-16 from the field and shot just 28 percent in the first half, but took a three-point lead into halftime. Late in the first half, the Gophers went on scoring drought for 3:24, but still remained within striking distance.
Minnesota big-man Daniel Oturu added valuable minutes off the bench with touches in the post. He had 12 points and played very physical defense in the post. Wisconsin displayed quality team defense and the Gophers had to work for every single made basket. The Badgers managed to defend without fouling and didn’t commit one until the 18:50 mark of the second half.
At the guard spot, Minnesota relied upon sophomore Isaiah Washington as Dupree McBrayer continued to struggle from the floor. Entering the night, he was just 9-for-33 in the past five contests, including 3-for-16 from downtown. In Wednesday’s game, he finished with three points on 1-for-9 shooting.
Jordan Murphy, Dupree McBrayer and Amir Coffey were a combined 3-for-17 in the early stages of the second half. When those three players aren’t contributing, the Gophers are naturally going to struggle offensively. Throughout the night, Minnesota wasn’t passing the ball well into the post and the guards couldn’t get to long rebounds. The Gophers weren’t able to get on the run in transition during this game. Coffey also wasn’t getting isolated with the basketball to make plays off the dribble. It helped the Badgers extended their lead to ten points near the midway point of the second half.
With ten minutes remaining, the Gophers’ offense finally started to show signs of life. Minnesota made three consecutive shots, including an assertive three-point play by Jordan Murphy at the rim. However, Wisconsin continued to grab long rebounds and Minnesota had trouble getting quality entry passes into the post. The Gophers wasted so many possessions where passes were deflected and the shot clock ran down.
Things eventually tightened up again and Minnesota went more than 4:30 without a single field goal. The poor shooting, leaky rebounding and inefficient possessions mattered in a very physical basketball game. Wisconsin played more disciplined in all areas and it made a difference in a very aggressive Big Ten game.
With the Gophers battling for a spot in the NCAA Tournament, a showdown against No. 19 Wisconsin had important implications. Now, they’ll likely need to steal a win on the road to bolster their resume.
VIDEOS:
Poor shooting, stagnant offensive possessions and leaky rebounding plagued the Gophers in a 56-51 loss. Jordan Murphy had 16 points, but Amir Coffey finished with just eight points on 3-for-10 shooting. Minnesota needed perimeter shooting late in the game and simply couldn’t knock anything down. They finished the night 1-for-13 from downtown and made just three of their final 16 shots from the floor. Many mistakes the Gophers made were the result of not shooting the ball well and making undisciplined mistakes.
When Minnesota doesn’t get on the run, they simply aren’t the same team. Wisconsin slowed the tempo and surrendered just eight total fast break points. It sent the Gophers’ offense into shambles. Amir Coffey and Dupree McBrayer combined to shoot just 4-for-19 from the floor and Jordan Murphy didn’t come alive until the second half, either.
The Badgers continually fed Ethan Happ in the post and occasionally got inside-out action. Entering Wednesday’s game, Ethan Happ was averaging 18.5 points per game, 10.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Minnesota was tasked with finding a way to slow the dominant big-man. With all of the Badgers’ shooters and court spacing, Happ gets some fantastic looks. He finished the game with 15 points and 13 rebounds, while playing physical on both ends of the court.
Both teams traded punches in the post as Wisconsin tried to slow the tempo of this game. Minnesota was forced to maximize possessions in the half court. It’s something they haven’t handled consistently this year. The Badgers began the game 4-for-16 from the field and shot just 28 percent in the first half, but took a three-point lead into halftime. Late in the first half, the Gophers went on scoring drought for 3:24, but still remained within striking distance.
Minnesota big-man Daniel Oturu added valuable minutes off the bench with touches in the post. He had 12 points and played very physical defense in the post. Wisconsin displayed quality team defense and the Gophers had to work for every single made basket. The Badgers managed to defend without fouling and didn’t commit one until the 18:50 mark of the second half.
At the guard spot, Minnesota relied upon sophomore Isaiah Washington as Dupree McBrayer continued to struggle from the floor. Entering the night, he was just 9-for-33 in the past five contests, including 3-for-16 from downtown. In Wednesday’s game, he finished with three points on 1-for-9 shooting.
Jordan Murphy, Dupree McBrayer and Amir Coffey were a combined 3-for-17 in the early stages of the second half. When those three players aren’t contributing, the Gophers are naturally going to struggle offensively. Throughout the night, Minnesota wasn’t passing the ball well into the post and the guards couldn’t get to long rebounds. The Gophers weren’t able to get on the run in transition during this game. Coffey also wasn’t getting isolated with the basketball to make plays off the dribble. It helped the Badgers extended their lead to ten points near the midway point of the second half.
With ten minutes remaining, the Gophers’ offense finally started to show signs of life. Minnesota made three consecutive shots, including an assertive three-point play by Jordan Murphy at the rim. However, Wisconsin continued to grab long rebounds and Minnesota had trouble getting quality entry passes into the post. The Gophers wasted so many possessions where passes were deflected and the shot clock ran down.
Things eventually tightened up again and Minnesota went more than 4:30 without a single field goal. The poor shooting, leaky rebounding and inefficient possessions mattered in a very physical basketball game. Wisconsin played more disciplined in all areas and it made a difference in a very aggressive Big Ten game.
With the Gophers battling for a spot in the NCAA Tournament, a showdown against No. 19 Wisconsin had important implications. Now, they’ll likely need to steal a win on the road to bolster their resume.
VIDEOS:
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