Coming off a 10-day break for final exams — and two days away from a week-long Christmas break — the Minnesota Golden Gophers were expectedly rusty. They were also missing starting guard Dupree McBrayer, who was scratched with a lower leg injury.
But the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles were no match down the stretch.
The Summit League opponent hung with the Gophers for the first half but gave way in the second as Minnesota bore down defensively, got a lift from Amir Coffey and won 77-63.
“That’s what we need to do,” said head coach Richard Pitino, pleased with the defense. “We can’t think that we’re just going to outscore all these teams.”
The sophomore Coffey converted a tough and-1 layup to give the Gophers a 46-40 lead with 16:01 remaining, then stole Albert Owens’ pass on the other end and took it the length of the floor for an emphatic slam. The 5-0 spurt from Coffey was part of a 23-6 run that distanced the Gophers from the Golden Eagles for good.
Coffey finished with 15 points, three rebounds and seven assists. He took a hard fall late in the second half after getting knocked over on the way to the rim by Chris Miller, who was assessed a flagrant foul. Coffey’s free throw plus Nate Mason’s ensuing 3-pointer gave Minnesota a 22-point lead at 71-49, their largest advantage.
Jordan Murphy snatched a late rebound to attain his 13th straight double-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds. He also scored his 1,000th career point on a layup early in the second half that started Minnesota’s decisive run.
“I’m more concerned with 1,000 rebounds and stuff like that,” said Murphy. “That would be pretty cool.”
The Gophers (10-3) had a subpar start, however, and only led by four points at halftime against an Oral Roberts team that left the game with a 4-11 record. Miller scored 12 points in the first half and helped the Golden Eagles outrebound the Gophers 22-19 before halftime. Reggie Lynch struggled to contain the 260-pound big man and was replaced early in the second half by Bakary Konate, who played eight minutes, recorded three rebounds, two blocks and a steal, and left the floor to an appreciative ovation.
Miller was contained to six points in the second half as the Golden Eagles shot just 35.5 percent after halftime, although they outscored Minnesota 42-28 in the paint for the game.
“They were clearly going at Reggie,” said Pitino, “and when we subbed, I think we got three or four stops in a row, so Bakary’s size alone really helps.”
The other spark came from Isaiah Washington, who played his finest game as a Gopher.
Getting extra minutes in McBrayer’s absence, Washington scored 12 points and added four assists. His assist total could have been doubled if not for numerous missed layups by recipients of his nifty no-look passes.
Minnesota’s highlight of the night came from a Washington helper, though, as he dished the ball to Michael Hurt in transition for a slam that made it 61-44.
The last time McBrayer missed a game, Washington took a team-high 17 shots in a loss to Miami, much to Pitino’s chagrin. His pass-first mentality on Thursday was an encouraging sign of maturity.
“He’s just got to understood that when you shoot quickly,” said Pitino, “it bails the defense out.”
Stats to Think About
- The Gophers bench outscored Oral Roberts’ 16-9, snapping a nine-game stretch where Minnesota’s bench scored fewer points than its opponents’.
- Minnesota finished 23 of 28 at the free-throw line, while Oral Roberts went 8 of 12.
- After discussing yesterday how they hoped to improve their 3-point defense, the Gophers held the Golden Eagles to 3-of-16 shooting from beyond the arc.
Up Next
The Gophers have a quick turnaround as they return to Williams Arena at 2:30 p.m. Saturday to face Florida Atlantic.
