Friday, November 6, 2009

Well that was pretty worthless

The Gophers beat UMD 114-47 last night, and UMD was so bad that there really isn't much you can take from this game.  The Bulldogs' offense was plagued with airballs (32% shooting) and turnovers (28 total) all night, so it's tempting to say the Gopher defense was great, but I just think UMD was so overmatched that it wasn't really fair, and it's tough to give the Gophers too much credit.  I will say that they did look good, and that's about it.

Rodney Williams had a monster dunk at the end of the first half which was definitely the highlight of the game, and confirms the insane athleticism he has.  More impressive to me though was the two three-ponters he knocked down.  My worry was that he was just an athlete and would end up being a bit of a project, but if he has an oustide game he can be a big part of this team immediately.

My biggest concern was how little Justin Cobbs played - just 14 minutes.  Now, Westbrook only played 16, but I assume that was because Tubby knows what he has with him.  I'm still expecting Cobbs to start by the end of the year - he did look good when he was in, but I was surprised to see Joseph come in and play the point when Nolen was on the bench. 

There is more you could point out, such as Colt and Sampson looking more polished or DJ's incredible all around game (16 pts, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks, 7 steals) but I can't put a whole lot of stock in that based on the opponent, and I don't think it will be much better on Monday against Moorhead.  Hopefully the regular season gets here soon.

No comments: