House Report: Gophers suffer a dramatic last-second loss at Nebraska

DanielHouse

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Many people considered Wednesday night’s game at Nebraska a must-win if the Gophers want to make the NCAA Tournament. A reeling Huskers team had dropped seven straight and never recovered from losing Isaac Copeland Jr. for the season.

For Minnesota, winning at Nebraska is something they haven’t done under head coach Richard Pitino. The Gophers led by 11 points in the first half, but leaky defense and a late foul call helped the Huskers claim a 62-61 win.

Both teams traded punches all night up until the final moments. Minnesota led 61-60 with 18.7 seconds remaining when Jordan Murphy plunged into a defender and was called for an offensive foul. James Palmer Jr. went to free throw line on the next possession, missed his second attempt and retained the basketball. Nebraska quickly inbounded the ball and Palmer Jr. drew a foul as Amir Coffey stood straight up with his arms extended. Palmer Jr. drilled both free throws, snapping the Huskers’ seven-game losing streak.

The senior guard scored 24 points on 7-for-10 shooting and killed the Gophers off the dribble in the Huskers’ 62-61 win. The tough foul call was part of the outcome, but Minnesota played poorly throughout the night, allowing Nebraska to shoot 50 percent from the floor. Like many moments this year, the Gophers have been extremely inconsistent and make undisciplined mistakes throughout games. They also don’t have much of a rotation, which seems to impact the team’s ability to play cohesively. For example, Michael Hurt didn’t play in this game and has disappeared from the rotation for stretches of this season. Isaiah Washington also hasn’t received many consistent minutes.

Minnesota’s guards were simply outplayed again on both ends of the court. Amir Coffey had just 11 points on 4-for-10 shooting and Dupree McBrayer went 3-for-7 from the floor. Outside of the post game, Minnesota didn’t have much to boast about offensively. On defense, the Gophers’ guards have so much trouble getting through screens, especially on the wings. Not only that, but their help side defense and rotations are very slow. Nebraska’s guards were getting dribble penetration all night, too.

Minnesota tried to take advantage of the size advantage early, but it wasn’t enough. Throughout the night, they used high-low action to place Jordan Murphy and Daniel Oturu in favorable positions. Minnesota started the game on a 10-0 run, including a tough mid-range jumper by Oturu. The freshman big-man is playing with some serious confidence on both ends of the court. He has been physical around the rim with tough posts moves and is disruptive on the defensive end, too. Oturu scored 16 points and was one of the lone bright spots in this game.

The Gophers scored 14 of their first 19 points in the paint and tried to control the lane. With the team struggling to shoot the ball lately, emphasizing post touches may be a strong strategy. Minnesota had a size advantage in this game and benefited from the physicality. However, with the way the Gophers shoot the ball, it’s tough for them to simply rely on low-post action or transition looks to win games. There are just far too many stagnant offensive possessions that feature so many dribble handoffs.

Nebraska erased the Gophers’ early 11-point lead during a 14-2 run. James Palmer and Glynn Watson Jr. were successful by attacking with dribble penetration and Minnesota’s help-side defense was lackluster. This helped the Huskers receive quality looks mid-range looks, including a pull-up jumper by Glynn Watson Jr.

Nebraska’s leading scorer, James Palmer picked up his third foul with 4:52 remaining in the first half and went to the bench. The Gophers trailed 24-23 when he exited, but only managed to take a 31-30 advantage into halftime. It felt like not capitalizing upon his absence would end up being costly.

The Huskers jumped out of halftime with a quick 9-1 run, including a three-pointer by Palmer Jr. Nebraska shot just 1-for-7 from downtown in the first half, but drilled two quick threes to grab a seven-point lead. Gabe Kalscheur answered with a pair of his own to keep the Gophers within striking distance. Minnesota went on a 9-0 run and claimed a 44-41 lead with 13:58 remaining. However, moments later, Daniel Oturu and Jordan Murphy committed back-to-back turnovers that put the Huskers back on top. Those are the type of inconsistent plays that have plagued this team all season.

With all the mistakes the Gophers made, the outcome wasn’t defined by one foul call. Minnesota didn’t play well enough to win and now they’ll face a steep climb to reach the NCAA Tournament.

Video of the Call:



Marcus Fuller with Pitino's reaction:

 
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