The Minnesota Gophers are in survival mode until the Big 10 season begins on Dec. 27 against the Michigan State Spartans, and they passed another test Sunday evening in front of a small crowd at Williams Arena.
Against a mediocre slate of December opponents at The Barn, the Gophers are looking to run the table before Christmas and avoid a bad loss that could hurt their qualifications for March. Overcoming a slow start and a poor shooting night, Minnesota coasted to a 77-57 win over Northern Illinois that puts them at 10-1 with two tune-ups remaining before conference play commences.
Minnesota dominated the boards 48-28 and got double-doubles from Jordan Murphy (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Reggie Lynch (18 and 11). Lynch, playing his most minutes since suffering a sprained ankle against Arkansas on Nov. 22, made the Huskies miserable with his post presence on both ends, blocking three shots and altering several others on defense while grabbing four offensive rebounds and working his way to the line on offense. After dealing with offseason shoulder and knee injuries and getting over this year’s ankle tweak, Lynch is finally starting to settle in.
“Even with the injuries, I know how to play the game and my teammates are finding me and everyone is playing really well,” Lynch said, “so even if I’m feeling a little bit of pain on defense or when I’m trying to score, I know that my team has my back so I can ease back a little bit.”
Both teams were rusty from the field. At one point, the Gophers and Huskies had an identical shooting total of 17 for 47 (36.2 percent). The difference was free throw shooting with Minnesota going 25 for 30 at the charity stripe. Lynch was 8 of 10, a refreshing improvement from his 53 percent clip coming in.
The Gophers guards did not shoot well with Dupree McBrayer, Amir Coffey, Nate Mason and Akeem Springs going 10 of 29 from the floor, but they made up for it with 13 of Minnesota’s 17 assists. Mason had six of his own and didn’t turn the ball over once. The Gophers scored 48 points in the second half thanks to some passing wizardry that led to more transition opportunities and open looks under the basket — another sign that this club has better synergy than last year’s.
“They look like they have fun together, they really do,” said Pitino. “They celebrate each other’s success. They’re constantly looking to share the ball. Nate is really, really passing the ball, obviously, extremely well. Six assists, zero turnovers. I think even Amir, if he just gets an understanding of how to pass it in certain situations, he’ll be really difficult to guard as well, so they’re very willing. They’ve got very good chemistry.”
Defensively, the Gophers continue to show vast improvement. They are fourth in the Big 10 in points against, allowing just 63.6 per game, and they’ve permitted less than 60 points in four of the last six games. Improved length has been a catalyst as newcomers Eric Curry, Lynch, Coffey and Springs have all entered and helped immediately.
“I always thought last year we did not have great length,” said Pitino earlier in the week. “We did not have great shot blocking. We had to play three guards a lot. There were a lot of times we were playing Dupree at the 3. He’s what, 6-2, 6-3? Amir’s playing a lot at the 3, he’s 6-7. Murph’s got good length at the 4-spot. Eric’s got good length. Reggie’s got good length. Bakary now has got some good length. I just think it’s a matchup and lineup standpoint.”
UP NEXT: The Gophers play LIU-Brooklyn on Wednesday before a nine-day layoff.
