The Big Ten Network announce team labeled this one as a game of desperation. Minnesota and Indiana both found themselves at 6-8 in Big Ten play with six games remaining. Both teams are also in the middle of a fight to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. The Gophers came in at 12-12 with Richard Pitino saying he felt like his team needed to win five of the last six to keep this dreams of dancing afloat.
In the end, Indiana (17-9, 7-8) came away with a much-needed 68-56 quad one win. Minnesota (12-13, 6-9) on the other hand, dropped its fourth game out of the last five. While the Hoosiers cling to post season hopes, Minnesota may have seen their's dashed with a second straight home loss.
Both teams came out in a good offensive flow going a combined 8 of 11 from the field. The Gophers jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead, but the Hoosiers scored seven of the next nine points to take a 9-8 advantage of their own at the 15:40 mark.
That lead didn't last long as Payton Willis came out of fire for the home team. He knocked down his first three field goal attempts and scored seven points in a row as Minnesota jumped back out to a 13-9 lead. That helped them to a 10-1 spurt in the next three minutes. After a Hoosier free throw, Daniel Oturu scored on an old-fashioned three-point play to stretch the lead to 16-10. Willis mad it four for four on the next trip as the lead went up to eight points. Isaiah Ihnen added a three-pointer and the Gophers took a 21-13 lead into the twelve minute media timeout.
At this stage of the game, the Gopher offense was on fire. They were 9 of 12 from the field for 75%, 2 for 2 from three-point territory, and one for one from the foul line. Ball movement was a big part of this as they had seven assists in their first nine makes.
Isaiah Ihnen has seemingly gotten better each time he touches the floor, and he came up clutch in the first half on Wednesday night. A transition three with just under eleven minutes left was his second of the game, and gave Minnesota its biggest lead at 23-13. From there, the Gopher's fortunes would go completely in the opposite direction.
The Hoosiers would not go away. They scored the next six points before Marcus Carr his Danel Oturu on a lob. Highly acclaimed freshman, Trayce Jackson-Davis was carrying the Hoosiers on his back with ten early points as they cut the lead to 25-21 at the next media timeout.
Both offenses slowed down dramatically and the allowed Indiana to stay in the game. Each team had several easy looks that they could not finish. Despite being ahead the entire first half, and leading by ten points at one time, the Hoosiers took a tight 31-28 lead into the half.
Minnesota shot 50% for the first half, but the fact of the matter is they opened 9 of 12 from the field, but only converted 3 of 12 after that. They were 2 of 8 from deep, and 3 of 6 from the line.
Payton Willis led the Gophers with 9 points followed by Daniel Oturu with 7. Isaiah Ihnen had 5 and nobody else had more than 3. Gabe Kalscheur was 0 for 2 with 1 point, and Marcus Carr was 1 for 3 for 3 points.
Trayce Jackson-Davis led Indiana with 10 points, and Devonte Green had 6. Just as with Minnesota, they had problems getting scoring from other sources. No other Hoosier had more than 3 points at the half.
One minute into the second half. Aljami Durham tied the game for the first time since 8-8 with.a three-pointer. A pair of foul shots by Race Thompson just a few moments later would give the Hoosiers a 37-36 lead, their first one since it was 9-8.
Green would add another 3-pointer at the fourteen minute mark to give Indiana their biggest lead at 42-38. A vicious left-handed dunk by Jackson-Davis made it 44-38 and forced Richard Pitino to take a timeout with 12:53 remaining. Both teams seemed to play with a greater sense of urgency after the rest. Minnesota upped the lead to 48-43 at the next media timeout, which occurred with 10:08 remaining. But the energy was raised on both ends.
Jackson-Davis continued to do work when play resumed and Archie Miller made sure he got the ball. He scored on two straight trips with Oturu on the bench, and the lead went to 51-44. Both teams had chances to make moves from the free throw line. Indiana was 9 of 15 and Indiana was just 4 of 11 at the eight minute media timeout.
With the score 51-46, Minnesota caught a break that it desperately needed. With Minnesota pushing the ball down the floor, an Indiana assistant coach, Mike Roberts, was assessed with a technical foul. But Payton Willis could only convert on one of the two technical foul shots. Marcus Carr knocked down a jumper on the ensuing play to cut the lead to 51-49.
Indiana would answer Jackson-Davis continued his stellar play. With the score 55-51, he drew a charge on Oturu, then came back on the other end with an 18-foot jumper as the shot clock expired to make it 57-51. Marcus Carr would make two foul shots on the other end, and the Gophers trailed 57-53 at the four-minute media timeout.
When play resumed, the Gophers foul shooting Achilles Heel would continue. Carr knocked down one of two. Race Thompson would make the lead six on the next possession with a layup and foul. Both teams came up empty on the next two possessions until Alihan Demir scored on a layup with 2:15 remaining to cut the deficit to 60-56.
On the next play, Indiana caught a huge break outside of both teams control. Aljami Durham stumbled with the ball in the backcourt and as he fell looked to have kicked Carr. Instead of a walk, Carr was called for his third foul. Durham made both free throws. After a Gophers turnover, Rob Phinisee added two more to clearly put Minnesota behind the eight ball, trailing 64-56 at the 1:56 mark.
Circumstances didn't improve from there. Minnesota missed its next shot, and Jackson-Davis was fouled. Two more free throws gave them their biggest lead of the game at 66-56 with 1:43 left. The freshman iced the game at the fifty-six second mark off an offensive rebound. Neither team would score from there and Indiana would claim a huge 68-56 road win.
Minnesota ended up shooting just 34.4% for the night. In the final thirty minutes they were just 12 of 49 for 24.5%. They also just made 4 of 25 three-pointers. The Gophers' foul shooting also turned out to be a nightmare. They were 10 of 19 and missed some critical looks down the stretch.
Marcus Carr and Payton Willis both finished with 12 points. Daniel Oturu had 11. Gabe Kalscheur and Alihan Demir added 6, Isaiah Ihnen 5, and Tre Williams and Jarvis Omersa 2.
A heartbreaking and physical home loss to Iowa last Sunday may have resulted in a hangover that Minnesota just couldn't shake. The offensive woes hinted that they just didn't have a whole lot in the tank.
Indiana finished 44,4% from the field, 28.6% from deep, and 16 of 22 from the line for 72.7%.
Trayce Jackson-Davis was a Gopher killer with 27 points and 16 rebounds. Devonte Green added 11, and local product, Race Thompson came back to haunt Minnesota with 9 point and 10 rebounds.
Minnesota will return to the floor Sunday at 2:00 P.M. CST at Northwestern.
In the end, Indiana (17-9, 7-8) came away with a much-needed 68-56 quad one win. Minnesota (12-13, 6-9) on the other hand, dropped its fourth game out of the last five. While the Hoosiers cling to post season hopes, Minnesota may have seen their's dashed with a second straight home loss.
Both teams came out in a good offensive flow going a combined 8 of 11 from the field. The Gophers jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead, but the Hoosiers scored seven of the next nine points to take a 9-8 advantage of their own at the 15:40 mark.
That lead didn't last long as Payton Willis came out of fire for the home team. He knocked down his first three field goal attempts and scored seven points in a row as Minnesota jumped back out to a 13-9 lead. That helped them to a 10-1 spurt in the next three minutes. After a Hoosier free throw, Daniel Oturu scored on an old-fashioned three-point play to stretch the lead to 16-10. Willis mad it four for four on the next trip as the lead went up to eight points. Isaiah Ihnen added a three-pointer and the Gophers took a 21-13 lead into the twelve minute media timeout.
At this stage of the game, the Gopher offense was on fire. They were 9 of 12 from the field for 75%, 2 for 2 from three-point territory, and one for one from the foul line. Ball movement was a big part of this as they had seven assists in their first nine makes.
Isaiah Ihnen has seemingly gotten better each time he touches the floor, and he came up clutch in the first half on Wednesday night. A transition three with just under eleven minutes left was his second of the game, and gave Minnesota its biggest lead at 23-13. From there, the Gopher's fortunes would go completely in the opposite direction.
The Hoosiers would not go away. They scored the next six points before Marcus Carr his Danel Oturu on a lob. Highly acclaimed freshman, Trayce Jackson-Davis was carrying the Hoosiers on his back with ten early points as they cut the lead to 25-21 at the next media timeout.
Both offenses slowed down dramatically and the allowed Indiana to stay in the game. Each team had several easy looks that they could not finish. Despite being ahead the entire first half, and leading by ten points at one time, the Hoosiers took a tight 31-28 lead into the half.
Minnesota shot 50% for the first half, but the fact of the matter is they opened 9 of 12 from the field, but only converted 3 of 12 after that. They were 2 of 8 from deep, and 3 of 6 from the line.
Payton Willis led the Gophers with 9 points followed by Daniel Oturu with 7. Isaiah Ihnen had 5 and nobody else had more than 3. Gabe Kalscheur was 0 for 2 with 1 point, and Marcus Carr was 1 for 3 for 3 points.
Trayce Jackson-Davis led Indiana with 10 points, and Devonte Green had 6. Just as with Minnesota, they had problems getting scoring from other sources. No other Hoosier had more than 3 points at the half.
One minute into the second half. Aljami Durham tied the game for the first time since 8-8 with.a three-pointer. A pair of foul shots by Race Thompson just a few moments later would give the Hoosiers a 37-36 lead, their first one since it was 9-8.
Green would add another 3-pointer at the fourteen minute mark to give Indiana their biggest lead at 42-38. A vicious left-handed dunk by Jackson-Davis made it 44-38 and forced Richard Pitino to take a timeout with 12:53 remaining. Both teams seemed to play with a greater sense of urgency after the rest. Minnesota upped the lead to 48-43 at the next media timeout, which occurred with 10:08 remaining. But the energy was raised on both ends.
Jackson-Davis continued to do work when play resumed and Archie Miller made sure he got the ball. He scored on two straight trips with Oturu on the bench, and the lead went to 51-44. Both teams had chances to make moves from the free throw line. Indiana was 9 of 15 and Indiana was just 4 of 11 at the eight minute media timeout.
With the score 51-46, Minnesota caught a break that it desperately needed. With Minnesota pushing the ball down the floor, an Indiana assistant coach, Mike Roberts, was assessed with a technical foul. But Payton Willis could only convert on one of the two technical foul shots. Marcus Carr knocked down a jumper on the ensuing play to cut the lead to 51-49.
Indiana would answer Jackson-Davis continued his stellar play. With the score 55-51, he drew a charge on Oturu, then came back on the other end with an 18-foot jumper as the shot clock expired to make it 57-51. Marcus Carr would make two foul shots on the other end, and the Gophers trailed 57-53 at the four-minute media timeout.
When play resumed, the Gophers foul shooting Achilles Heel would continue. Carr knocked down one of two. Race Thompson would make the lead six on the next possession with a layup and foul. Both teams came up empty on the next two possessions until Alihan Demir scored on a layup with 2:15 remaining to cut the deficit to 60-56.
On the next play, Indiana caught a huge break outside of both teams control. Aljami Durham stumbled with the ball in the backcourt and as he fell looked to have kicked Carr. Instead of a walk, Carr was called for his third foul. Durham made both free throws. After a Gophers turnover, Rob Phinisee added two more to clearly put Minnesota behind the eight ball, trailing 64-56 at the 1:56 mark.
Circumstances didn't improve from there. Minnesota missed its next shot, and Jackson-Davis was fouled. Two more free throws gave them their biggest lead of the game at 66-56 with 1:43 left. The freshman iced the game at the fifty-six second mark off an offensive rebound. Neither team would score from there and Indiana would claim a huge 68-56 road win.
Minnesota ended up shooting just 34.4% for the night. In the final thirty minutes they were just 12 of 49 for 24.5%. They also just made 4 of 25 three-pointers. The Gophers' foul shooting also turned out to be a nightmare. They were 10 of 19 and missed some critical looks down the stretch.
Marcus Carr and Payton Willis both finished with 12 points. Daniel Oturu had 11. Gabe Kalscheur and Alihan Demir added 6, Isaiah Ihnen 5, and Tre Williams and Jarvis Omersa 2.
A heartbreaking and physical home loss to Iowa last Sunday may have resulted in a hangover that Minnesota just couldn't shake. The offensive woes hinted that they just didn't have a whole lot in the tank.
Indiana finished 44,4% from the field, 28.6% from deep, and 16 of 22 from the line for 72.7%.
Trayce Jackson-Davis was a Gopher killer with 27 points and 16 rebounds. Devonte Green added 11, and local product, Race Thompson came back to haunt Minnesota with 9 point and 10 rebounds.
Minnesota will return to the floor Sunday at 2:00 P.M. CST at Northwestern.
