Golden Gophers storm to early lead, coast past Wildcats

 
When they took the court in Williams Arena Sunday evening, the Minnesota Golden Gophers hadn't yet learned that Michigan had lost at Iowa. What they did know, however, was that they had to take down Northwestern.
 
After two straight conference losses, Tubby Smith's team needed to stop the bleeding and prevent the Wildcats from sweeping the season series. Minnesota might have won its game against Iowa and swept cellar-dwelling Indiana this season, but an 0-2 record against Bill Carmody's kids would have given the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee a good reason to relegate the Gophers to the NIT in three weeks (March 15). Urgency had to fill The Barn in order for UM's campaign was to get back on track.

Simply stated, that urgency came to Minneapolis and stayed there for 40 full minutes. The result was an authoritative 72-45 win that lifted the homestanding Gophers to 8-7 in the league, good for a fifth-place tie with Wisconsin. Minnesota stands a long way from the NCAA finish line, but this win--combined with the Michigan slip-up in Iowa City--will certainly help the Gophers move to the positive side of the bubble.
 
How did Minnesota right the ship against its opponent from Evanston? One didn't need to look any further than the defensive end of the floor. On a night when only one player (UM's Lawrence Westbrook, 17 points) scored in double figures, the offensively-challenged Gophers simply refused to allow the Wildcats any breathing room at all. The Gophers bothered Northwestern with their length and athleticism, so much so that Carmody's two biggest guns--sniper Craig Moore and versatile big man Kevin Coble--were limited to a combined total of 8 points on 3-of-11 field goal shooting and no free throw attempts. Without meaningful production from their two most dependable scorers, the Wildcats had no tertiary scoring option to turn to. Unsurprisingly, Minnesota rolled to a 36-18 halftime lead and never looked back.

An added reflection of the Gophers' start-to-finish intensity emerged on the backboards, as Minnesota doubled up Northwestern by a 2-1 ratio. Snagging 36 boards to NU's 18, the home team pulverized the purple people and ensured that the Wildcats would not get the added possessions they needed to wage a second-half comeback. In their worst losses, the Gophers have wilted against an opposing team's pressure defense, but in their best wins, Tubby's troops have thrown the first punch with their defense and relied on toughness to wear down opponents. Sunday against Northwestern, the Gophers rediscovered their winning forumula just in the nick of time.
 
If Minnesota can maintain a defense-first philosophy and not sweat its own offensive possessions, the final two weeks of the Big Ten season will be marked by passion--and not passivity--in the Twin Cities. One night's knockout punch against Northwestern needs to translate to the likes of Wisconsin and Michigan if the 2009 season is to become a Golden one for these young and frail Gophers.

 

> Find more Big Ten football news online at Big Ten Fans!