BleedGopher
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per Marcus:
When it came to crunch time Sunday at Rutgers, the Gophers’ most experienced players deferred to freshmen, who were the ones playing more like veterans.
It was a glimpse into a bright future for both Daniel Oturu and Gabe Kalscheur, when they combined for 41 points. It was also a disturbing trend where Minnesota’s three upperclassmen starters struggled together: Jordan Murphy, Amir Coffey and Dupree McBrayer combined for just 23 points on 9-for-31 shooting against the Scarlet Knights.
Murphy, Coffey and McBrayer have rarely all played well in big games lately, which have the Gophers (17-11, 7-10) scrambling to stay in contention for an NCAA tournament at-large bid entering Thursday’s game at Northwestern (12-15, 3-13).
With six losses in the last seven games, and six straight road losses, the Gophers need to get their most experienced players on track or likely miss the NCAA tourney.
“Your leadership on the floor is your stabilizer in a challenging situation,” Big Ten Network analyst and former Penn State guard Jon Crispin said. “To me, that’s what’s missing. It sounds like one simple thing, but it’s a huge thing.”
McBrayer and Murphy are team co-captains, but Pitino said he might not name specific players for those roles in the future.
“I don’t really like captains to be honest,” Pitino said. “There has to be leadership from everybody. Everybody has a role. Everybody can either give to the team or take from the team. Sometimes when you name captains, others may say, ‘Let the captains handle it.’ You can’t have that on a team. It’s not just Jordan’s and Dupree’s responsibility to lead. It’s not just Jordan’s and Dupree’s responsibility to have a voice.”
http://www.startribune.com/gophers-need-more-from-their-veterans-especially-on-the-road/506453812/
Go Gophers!!
When it came to crunch time Sunday at Rutgers, the Gophers’ most experienced players deferred to freshmen, who were the ones playing more like veterans.
It was a glimpse into a bright future for both Daniel Oturu and Gabe Kalscheur, when they combined for 41 points. It was also a disturbing trend where Minnesota’s three upperclassmen starters struggled together: Jordan Murphy, Amir Coffey and Dupree McBrayer combined for just 23 points on 9-for-31 shooting against the Scarlet Knights.
Murphy, Coffey and McBrayer have rarely all played well in big games lately, which have the Gophers (17-11, 7-10) scrambling to stay in contention for an NCAA tournament at-large bid entering Thursday’s game at Northwestern (12-15, 3-13).
With six losses in the last seven games, and six straight road losses, the Gophers need to get their most experienced players on track or likely miss the NCAA tourney.
“Your leadership on the floor is your stabilizer in a challenging situation,” Big Ten Network analyst and former Penn State guard Jon Crispin said. “To me, that’s what’s missing. It sounds like one simple thing, but it’s a huge thing.”
McBrayer and Murphy are team co-captains, but Pitino said he might not name specific players for those roles in the future.
“I don’t really like captains to be honest,” Pitino said. “There has to be leadership from everybody. Everybody has a role. Everybody can either give to the team or take from the team. Sometimes when you name captains, others may say, ‘Let the captains handle it.’ You can’t have that on a team. It’s not just Jordan’s and Dupree’s responsibility to lead. It’s not just Jordan’s and Dupree’s responsibility to have a voice.”
http://www.startribune.com/gophers-need-more-from-their-veterans-especially-on-the-road/506453812/
Go Gophers!!