Game Preview: Gophers vs. Indiana Hoosiers

You mean I have to write this preview already?  It feels like the Illinois game just ended.  And man, what a game.  The Gophers defense is absolutely ridiculous.  I've never seen a team handle their rotations so well, and even Joe Coleman is looking semi-competent on that end.  That defense creates so many opportunities to run, whether through turnovers or missed shots, and with the athletes they have it plays right into their strengths.  Even in the half-court they're playing incredibly efficient and finding open opportunities, and with five guys who can score 20+ in any given night opposing defenses can't key on any one player or in any one area.  The bench is a bit of a concern, but like Snacks pointed out to me it's really not THAT bad, it's just that the starters are so good that when the reserves are in it makes them look worse.  The Gophers have gotten really strong stretches from Welch, Ahanmisi, Ingram, Oto, and Elliason this year, and when Tubby goes with that lineup they've been able to keep the margin close to what it was when they came in, giving Tubby the chance to rest the good players so they can play all or nearly all of the second half.  This is awesome.

But, as the way this season goes, as long as I'd like to dwell in the happiness of this win over Illinois we move on and now face a top 5 ranked team in the country and the preseason favorite (according to Vegas) to win the whole thing in the Indiana Hoosiers.

The Hoosiers come in at 14-1, with the lone loss coming in overtime against Butler in Indianapolis in a game that went to overtime.  The most interesting thing to me about those 14 wins is that they may not have a single win over an NCAA Tournament team yet.  NDSU is one of the favorites to win the Summit, but not the clear favorite.  Georgetown is a bubble team at best who's 0-2 in the Big East, North Carolina is heading straight for the NIT, and Iowa is going to have to pull off some major upsets (pleasegodno) to make it.  Everyone else has been a creampuff.

I bring that up not to say Indiana is overrated - far from it.  They've played incredibly well this year, ranking 6th in overall offense and 7th in overall defense at kenpom.com, one of only three teams (along with Duke and Florida) to rank in the top 10 in both.  While the Gophers also fair extremely well in those ratings (10th & 14th) they have a couple of glaring weaknesses (turnovers and allowing offensive rebounds) while in comparison Indiana is above average in literally every single metric measured.  They're an extremely good shooting team who can also put the clamps down defensively, they rebound well on both ends of the court, and they get to the line often while not putting their opponents there.  They don't depend on the three-pointer but hit it with regularly when they're left open, move the ball well, and like the Gophers, have five guys who can go for 20+ on any given night and can hurt defenses in a variety of different ways.  In short, this isn't Illinois or even Michigan State, this is a legit national title favorite (top 3-4 for me).  It isn't going to be easy.

I don't even know where to start when it comes to individual players because there's so much, so let's just get to it.

Cody Zeller could win National Player of the Year and he'd deserve it.  He's got great moves around the rim and can score with either hand going either direction and has a decent jumper out to about 15.  He blocks a decent amount of shots due to his height but isn't an exceptional athlete although he's no slouch there either and can run the floor very well.  He's added some strength this year but if he has a weakness it's his physicality.  The best thing that could happen for the Gophers would be to have Mbakwe go right after him and knock him around on both ends of the floor, hoping they refs let a lot go, beat him up, and take him off his game.  Will that work?  I don't know, but it's what I'd try.

Next to Zeller is Christian Watford, who creates an interesting match-up with Rodney Williams because they're both kind of tweeners, but with different skill sets.  While Williams puts up his numbers with his incredible athleticism, Watford is the exact opposite in that he gets his numbers (and the two have very similar numbers) despite being known as somewhat unathletic due to fundamentals and positioning and other nerdy things like that.  The other big difference is while Rodney is a questionable (at best) jump shooter, Watford is a dead-eye from 3.  The other knock on Watford is that he can lose focus and kind of tune out the game, and the Gophers best chance is for Rodney to frustrate him on the offensive end and hope he tunes out a bit and doesn't crash the offensive boards the way he usually can.

The third guy I want to point out is swingman Victor Oladipo, who might be the second best athlete in the conference (behind Rodney).  Also like Rodney, when he came into college ball he was basically an athlete who played basketball, but has since morphed into a more complete player, and Oladipo is a rich man's Williams because he is a more efficient version than Williams with a good jump shot.  I mean, dude, the guy is shooting 67% from the floor and 48% from three while averaging similar point and rebound per game numbers to Williams.  The Gopher defense is going to have to be just as tight against Indiana as it was against Illinois because if Oladipo gets the ball with just a speck of daylight to the rim he's going to explode after it.  Hopefully somebody can draw a charge or two.

Those are your three main cogs, but there's plenty of other talent here as well.  Jordan Hulls and Yogi Ferrell form kind of a tandem point guard duo - Hulls the steady veteran who takes care of the ball and is a great (and very smart) shooter (hits 52% from the field and three despite being a perimeter guy), and Ferrell the exciting (5.1 assists per game) freshman who is a little wild and can't hit the broad side of a barn when he shoots (32% from the floor, 24% from three).  The compliment each other extremely well and both are excellent defenders, if a bit undersized.  It may work to have the Gopher guards (Coleman, both Hollinses) post them up.  I'm not sure what kind of post game the Gopher guards have, but given their size/strength advantage I'd love to see them try.

Lastly, the Hoosiers have a pretty talented and deep bench led by Will Sheehey who is their fourth leading scorer and a damn good athlete in his own right and also is kind of a dick.  Remy Abell, Jeremy Hollowell, Derek Elston, and the recently reinstated Hanner Mosquera-Perea and Austin Etherington were all highly regarded recruits and round out the Hoosier bench with a cast that's probably better than Iowa.

Breaking it down, I really don't see any clear advantages for the Gophers.  Their best bet is to play their game - tough defense, taking advantage of transition opportunities, and crashing the offensive glass - and hope a few things go their way.  Hope the Gophers' physical play can intimidate and render Zeller and Watford ineffective.  Hope they can play well enough to shut down Oladipo, and that they can push Indiana out of the lane and get them to settle for the same bad shots Illinois was taking (and hope Hulls doesn't hit them anyway).  Hope the Gophers can stay out of foul trouble, because even though their bench is good, Indiana's is great.  If anything is a weakness for the Hoosiers it's that they haven't faced a team as good as the Gophers yet, where the Gophers have already played Duke.  For Indiana, Georgetown is probably as physical but isn't as skilled, while Butler is as skilled as the Gophers but isn't nearly as physical.  North Carolina and Iowa both try to score in transition the way the Gophers do, but neither are on Minnesota's level.

In reality, Indiana is a X.X point favorite for a reason, and while the Gophers can probably make a real game of it at home trying to overcome Indiana's advantage at Assembly Hall (and Big Ten ref's propensity for playing to the crowd) is likely too big a task.  A close game ending with a 5-8 point Indiana win is the likely outcome.

And yet.

I remember a game back in 1997.  A game where a ranked Gopher team went into Assembly Hall to face a higher ranked Indiana team.  Things looked bleak.  The Hoosiers looked to control the game as time wound down, and it looked like another good Gopher team would just be good.  Then there was a three-pointer.  A steal.  And then Bobby Jackson hit a three from the corner and we were headed to overtime, where the Gophers ground out a 5-point victory.  And they were off.  Next stop, Final Four and the best Gopher team of my lifetime.  Well, maybe until now.

Minnesota 80, Indiana 76 (in OT).

Calm Down, I'm Here

If you follow this blog, you know I haven't really posted this week save one quick update from California, and if you follow the comments on this blog, you know the natives are getting pretty restless, so here I am.  Seriously you guys, I really didn't have the opportunity to write anything.  I had no computer the entire time I was out in California, and I didn't get back until last night after 10pm so there wasn't really any chance to get to the writing.    But now I'm back, and I'm ready to write some stuff. 

-  First off, yes, losing Joe Nathan for the year really sucks, but we'll live.  And not because he sucks now or something.  Everybody needs to calm down about his blown save in the playoffs, and stop talking about how the Twins should have traded him - something I heard noted huge idiot Pat Reusse say on the radio when I was accidentally listening to that channel.  He's a fantastic, fantastic closer, and you know exactly what you're getting - 40 or so saves with a 90% conversion rate, an ERA under 2.00, a WHIP under 1.00, and shit ton of strikeouts.  He won't easily be replaced, and, actually, is pretty much irreplaceable.

But the good news that even if whatever direction the Twins' decide to go in - naming a replacement or closer by committee - ends up being a disaster, it's only going to cost them about three games.  Aaron Gleeman breaks down the math, but the difference between a 90% save rate (Nathan) and an 80% save rate (a horrible closer) is only 5 blown saves over the course of a season, and if the Twins' bullpen ends up being average, it's only 2 extra blown saves.

If I had to make a guess, I'd say the Twins' will spread the save opportunities out between Guerrier, Mijares, and Rauch and they'll do just fine, like an average bullpen.  I think that when they flame out, they'll flame out spectacularly and we might end up watching some ugly, ugly ninth innings, but overall this isn't the kind of thing that is going to hurt enough to make the differences between playoffs or second place.

There are plenty of other problems with this team that should take care of that.

-  Secondly, you're probably wondering how Carlos Gomez is doing.  Well I'll tell you.  He's hitting .278/.316/.389 with two doubles, a walk, two Ks, and three steals in 18 at bats.  That means he's getting more hits and showing the same amount of gap power while striking out about half as often and he's gotten better at stealing bases.  He's also still not walking at all.  It's Spring Training and all so that basically means those numbers are meaningless, but I just thought you'd like to know how Captain 5-Tool was doing so far.

-  I don't know if I've mentioned this in this space, but you should all know I HATE St. Patrick's Day.  I can't stand it.  I hate it almost as much as I hate Wisconsin, although this hate has nothing to do with geography - I have no beef with the Irish.  I just hate you people who go out and use that day as an excuse to act like total morons.  If New Year's Eve is known as amateur night, St. Patrick's should be called I've never ever drank before but I'm going to chain-swallow a bunch of Irish-sounding shots to try to look cool night.

-  Oh, you're probably here to read about the Gopher game.  I laugh at you.  Who cares?  It means nothing.  Well, not nothing.  It does give the team the chance to play a game that might give them a chance to be on the bubble if they win.  If that sounded convoluted, well, that's your team's chances to make the NCAA Tournament.  A win tomorrow over Sparty at least puts them in the conversation depending on what other teams do.  With UAB and Memphis both losing in the C-USA quarters, Arizona State losing early in the Pac, and Wake on a tremendous slide there are spots coming available.   Somebody is going to step up and take those spots, why not the Gophers?

I CHOOSE TO BELIEVE

Gophers 70, Michigan State 65. 

March to a Title, Game III

I’m here with Mrs. W, Snacks, and my parents as we get ready to watch the Gophers take the next step to winning the Big Ten tournament. I don’t currently have internet access for a bit, so I’m typing this on Word. I’m so old school. Let the March to a Title^TM continue. Eat it Illini.

19:46 – This is going to be difficult, with all the womanly chitter chatter coming from Mrs. W and my mother.

17:56 - Snacks, “That Pruitt guy sucks. He’s just big and fat, but we can’t handle him.”

17:13 – There’s really no reason the Gophers shouldn’t beat Illinois. They’re a terrible team. McCamey sucks, Pruitt sucks, Randle sucks, Frazier sucks.

16:08 – Jesus, talk about coming out flat. It’s like they just assume that they’re a team of destiny. They are, but they still have to, you know, try.

15:02 – Hoff with a steal. What a stud. Well, they basically dropped it right into his lap, but he’s still a stud.

14:24 – Hey, Spencer’s back. I don’t think this is good news. We hit the first timeout, Illini up 7-4.

13:26 – Spencer playing tough. He’s terrible, but he’s trying hard. Kind of like the fat kid in gym class.

13:25 – Gophers 1 for 6 on free throws thus far. This bodes well.

12:26 – Awful. They don’t want to win.

12:24 – Busch gets lost guarding Brock so badly we have to rewind the Tivo so we can laugh at him.

10:59 – I can barely even watch this shit, must less type about it. 13-5 Illini. The Big Ten should be disbanded.

9:36 – Oh, and my mom called Hoffarber “Hoffacre” earlier.

8:46 – They have no answer for the Illini’s height.

8:11 – Snacks calling for the “McKenzie shoots a three every time down the court” offense. He claims it’s the Gophers’ most effective offense. I have to say I agree.

7:52 – This blog is boring because I’m sober.

6:38 – Michigan State and Ohio State go to the Big East. Indiana, Wisconsin, Purdue to the Big Twelve. Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois to the MAC. Penn State to the MAAC. Iowa to the Missouri Valley. Northwestern’s entire basketball program is completely disbanded and barred from competition. Everybody wins.

4:22 – I start paying attention again in time to see Travis Busch jump a whole 6 inches for a rebound. Yes, we rewound Tivo to watch it again. 23-17 Illini.

2:46 – This game is making me angry. Angry and tired. And bored.

1:25 – Seeing as Shamala has one skill, and one skill only, why would he pass up an open three to pass it back to the point? Once again, the team continues to prove it’s dumb as all hell.

0:00 – 29-23 Illini lead and the half. I’m a little upset that Hoff made that shot last night now, seeing as how we have to watch this disgustingness.

0:00 - Oh yeah, I have the internet again. Huzzah for modern technology!

19:42 - Shawn (Shaun? Shan? Shawon? Sean?) Pruitt reminds me of LenDale White. A big fatass, but surprisingly effective.

16:28 - Getting killed on the o-boards. Why do I even watch this team? I might as well take a run at a brick wall head first.

14:36 - Five second call against Westbrook. F'ing fantastic. Worst. Team. Ever.

13:42 - They interview Tony Dungy, but I have no idea what he's saying because somebody here won't stop talking ever.

11:58 - Jon Williams hits from sixteen to tie the game? We have 32-32, momentum on the Gophers side, McKenzie starting to heat up, Meachem being shut down, things are turning in the right direction.

10:09 - Four fouls on Westbrook. This is very bad news. He's pretty much one of two players on the team who can reliably score.

9:20 - Nevermind all that rah rah crap. The Illini decided to start playing defense, which has the Gophers baffled, and have run out to a seven point lead 39-32, and it isn't even that close right now.

6:55 - Illinois is 11-13 from the line thus far. What kind of crap is that? This team is one of the worst FT shooting teams in the country, but they decide to go 11-13 this game? Maybe this means that when they have the lead in the last minute they'll miss all their free throws and we'll get another miracle victory.

6:51 - Hoff with an old fashioned three point play to cut it to 3. I didn't know he shot two pointers.

6:36 - Yeah, Illinois is ranked 332nd in the country in free throw percentage at 60.6%. Randle hits only 1 of 2, so maybe they'll start missing.

6:10 - McKenzie finds Williams for an easy dunk. Except that he knocks the pass out of bounds, despite having no Illinois player within 10 feet of him. Nice job, ass.

4:23 - from 4:50 until 4:23 the Gophers' entire offense consisted of Al Nolen dribbling. Right, left, then a drive. 27 straight seconds of Nolen dribbling. I'm going to go ahead and call this one over. The dream is dead.

3:54 - Coleman fouls out. This might be a good thing, seeing as how he's done virtually nothing all game.

3:50 - Shaun Pruitt, 6-7 on free throws today. For the season he's at 56%. Ridiculous. Illinois now up 8. I'm depressed.

2:30 - Gophers down 10. I'm done with this.

March to a Title, Game 2

I'm coming in late to the game, because the wife and I had to watch the last hour or so of Boogie Nights. Now she's off to bed, and it's time to drink beer and watch the march to a title continue. Now, I'm a bit nervous here, because I told Snacks I was going to be watching the game on Tivo, yet he texted me that the first ten minutes of the game are great and the Gophers look really good in the beginning. Knowing that I was going to be watching on tivo, and knowing how his brain works, I'm expecting the Gophers to be down 20-2 at the 12 minute time out. Let's see.

Oh, and by the way, Illinois beating Purdue just opens the door a little wider for the Gophers' miracle run. Remember, you heard it here first.

19:51 - Did I just see Jon Williams starting? I guess Spencer must be really hurt. This is not a good sign. Not the Spencer hurt part, that's not really a big deal, but Williams starting scares the beejesus out of me.

19:09 - DJ just hit a three?

18:37 - Did you know Johnson averages exactly one three point attempt per game? Seems high. As in, he should probably never shoot that shot.

18:21 - Minnesota 1-0 all-time versus Indiana in the Big Ten tournament. I'm sensing a trend.

18:06 - DJ makes two free throws, which is a statistical improbability, and he has all five Gopher points. Never thought I'd type that.

17:22 - And Dan Coleman is playing tough down low. This is not the Gopher team I recognize. March to the Title: activated.

17:18 - Spencer Tollackson's career rebounding average: 3.7 per game. 3.7. Three point seven.

16:18 - DJ with a Rico Tucker like jam. Dominating. DJ White who?

16:00 - And that's the second foul on Eric Gordon. Eat it, Sidler.

14:54 - Stemler, the asshole who hit the big three to sink the Gophers at Williams, just airballed a three. The announcers want us to know he's 0 for his last twelve. Couldn't miss the one in Minneapolis though, could you, ass?

13:42 - McKenzie hits a three to make it 14-5 and I actually jump pumped my fist like Theory playing Golden Tee. I'm a little embarrassed, but also pretty excited here.

13:29 - Although I don't know why I'm excited, this is what the Gophers do. Second half will be full of nothing but dumb plays and bad defense as they piss away a lead.

12:22 - 19-5, as Shamala hits an 18 footer. Why he didn't just end his cut a little further and behind the 3-pt line, I don't know. God help me, I'm starting to believe.

11:24 - Eric Gordon throws one of the worst passes ever. Whoever drafts him is going to be in for a looooooooong year. Please don't let it be the Wolves.

11:24 - So they throw up a graphic showing the Big Ten Assist leaders. Three Spartans, a Buckeye, and a Wildcat. But we're watching Gophers/Hoosiers. What was the point? I swear they just hit random buttons up there sometimes.

10:27 - Eric Gordon never closes his mouth. It's creepy.

9:51 - I'm starting to develop a crush on Hoffbauer. I'm kind of afraid it's ASSWIP Syndrome.

8:39 - I hate to agree with announcers, because most of them are dumber than you are, but DJ White should be touching the ball every time down. As he proves with a bucket and the foul. And misses the free throw.

6:17 - 7-0 run by Indiana to make it 24-15. Gophers starting to get killed on the O-boards. This a major concern and I don't like it. Gordon gets an o-board and a putback as I type this.

4:52 - Jesus Christ. Apparently somebody pointed out to the Gophers that they were leading. As they've completely changed their style of play. Tentative on offense, lazy with the ball, poor defense and no rebounding, and it's now 26-20. Still Gopher lead, but things have changed dramatically. How bad is it? Tubby put in Travis "Hair Pie" Busch.

1:11 - Jordan Crawford can't take Busch off the dribble, how sad.

0:00 - Good news: Gophers lead 34-27, and Coleman sat out most of the first half. Bad news: They were up 16, and the last Hoosier possession of the half showed, beyond a doubt, that Minnesota doesn't have anybody who can even come close to checking DJ White.

19:27 - Holy crap Deandre Thomas is a fatass.

19:00 - Exhibit 10 billion why this is a dumb team and Dan Coleman is the worst offender. Coleman takes a three and misses, Indiana rebound. Coleman rushes in at the guy who got the board, leaving DJ White open streaking towards the other end.

17:59 - Danny boy Coleman picks up his fourth foul. Fourth. In two minutes this team has made eight just inexcusably dumb plays. It's over. Gophers still lead 34-32, but it's over.

17:35 - I'm going to throw something.

16:01 - This half, Gophers have 0 points, 5 turnovers. And it's now tied at 34.

15:28 - 30 second timeout and Tubby is hot. I don't know at who, specifically, but I assume it's the whole team. Who then turns it over after the TO. This is sad people, sad like cancer.

12:48 - Westbrook with an excellent basket. He seems to be a second half player, maybe time to take over? He's Philadelphia Eagle Brian Westbrook's cousin, you know.

11:48 - I just got texts from Snacks and Sidler within 20 seconds of each other. I'm going to assume something awesome happens at some point.

11:08 - Sweet, Busch is in again. Only good things can come of this.

10:28 - And Bogart just sent me a text. I am officially very curious.

9:43 - I can't take it. Fast forwarding a bit.

3:52 - Started watching again here, Gophers up 50-48 holy carp westbrook for three 53-48 Gophers.

2:44 - Another Theoryesque fist pump from me, as DJ puts one back to make it 55-50 Minnesota. I believe (tm).

1:55 - Minnesota up five. Another text comes in, but I'm not even going to pick it up. If this comes down to free throws, I'm very nervous.

0:55 - Nolen airballs the biggest three of his life. Nice shot, rook.

0:43 - DJ fouls out. That is not excellent.

0:10.6 - Dan Coleman is a weak homo, and gives the ball away. Indiana ball, 57-55 Minnesota. Oh, and another text comes in. Still ignoring.

0:03.4 - Gordon fouled and will go to the line. Based on all the text messages, I'm going to assume he makes both and we go to overtime.

0:03.4 - Holy shit he missed the first one. The Gophers are going to win this game unless they're idiots, which they are, so I'm still very, very nervous.

0:03.1 - You have to be fucking kidding me. No. fucking. way. No fucking way.

0:01.5 - What? What? Oh my god. I can't believe this shit. I have no words. I feel sick.

oh my god holy shit.

un fucking real. hell yes. I told all you people the Gophers were going to take it all. Now they just run the f over the illini and we're on our way baby, we're on our way.

Oh, and Erin Andrews interviews Blake, and asks, "What was going through your mind before you hit that shot" and Blake says to her, he says, "I just knew I had to get it off." Yeah, baby.

Hey Illini. Make your time.

Oh, and here's a message to all Indiana fans, but only from 16-18 seconds. ignore everything else.



Although, if you want to watch the rest it's very similar to how the Gophers are going to treat Illinois tomorrow. March to the Title^TM Minnesota 66, Illinois 56.

I just watched it again on on espn and it moved. and then they showed the same god damn shot from his ass again.

It begins

The March to March Madness begins for the Gophers today, as they plan to destroy all who oppose them on the way to winning the Big Ten tournament, and a 15 seed in the Big Dance. It begins today, with the hated Wildcats of Northwestern (more like North-worstern).

The Gophers haven't had any problems dispatching the Cats this year, knocking them off by 19 and 20 in their two meetings, and I see no reason that should change. The Cats are playing for nothing, as even a run to the title game would still leave them out of the NIT, whereas the Gophers have a shot (albeit about as slim as possible) of grabbing at at-large if they can make the title game. Or not. I don't know, but it makes things more interesting to believe that.

In all seriousness, if I had to construct a bracket, realistically, that would give the Gophers the best chance to make the finals, this is exactly it. They won't have to face Wisconsin, Michigan State, or Ohio State until the finals, and those are three teams I don't want them to face.

Northwestern today is obviously a gimme, and if they can't handle this one, they might as well just decline any post-season invites at all and go cry. In round 2, they get the Hoosiers of Indiana, who the Gophers played tough twice back before they lost their coach and went into a mini-tailspin, losing two of their last three.

It's not just possible, folks, it's probable. Just as Syracuse and UAB knocked themselves out of the tournament by their showing in their conference tourny, the Gophers will rise to the occasion and make the run we've all been waiting for. You just gotta believe.

Gophers 91, Wildcats 57.

(I'll be back to say more words during the game)

PREGAME- I'm watching the Penn State/Illinois game (only because I have money on it, PSU +8), and Musberger just said "There's some gossip about Koufos from Ohio State going overseas to play professionally in Greece." What? Why the hell would he do that when he's projected to be a first round NBA pick? Because he's Greek? How stupid would that be? That's like some dude working his ass off to become a great actor, getting offered millions to do feature films and get all the hot chicks, and saying, "No thanks. I'm going to do plays at the local park in Bumfrick small town USA where I'm from for tips."

PREGAME- About to get started, and with a solid gambling day going on so far (8-4-2), hopefully the Gophers can grab us another win, as we have them -9.5.

?? - McKenzie gets it started with a layup. A swooping, circus layup, but still a layup. I expect that to continue all day. Additionally, ESPN is giving us a score or a time graphic.

18:06 - Gophers quickly down 7-2, and they look like complete dog crap. Looks like they've given up on the season already.

17:20 - Oh, and in case you're curious, "instant offense" Kevin Payton got the start again. Boggles the mind.

16:58 - Spencer is hurt and going to the locker room!!! Ohs NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOS!

16:39 - When Kevin Coble runs he looks special. Not "awesome" special, "retarded" special.

14:14 - We head to the first tv timeout with the Wildcasts up 12-5. Could be early jitters, but the Minnesota shots aren't falling, and the defense is giving Northwestern wide open looks. I hate to judge a game after less than six minutes, but things don't look good early.

12:52 - Shouldn't a point guard be able to shot fake and then dribble around his man without traveling? Al Nolen can't.

11:59 - Shamala actually shows some aggression, picking up an offensive foul after getting the pass in the paint. That dude should never be in the paint.

11:59 - Vanderbilt covers. We're now to 8-4-2 today.

11:14 - Announcer Steve Lavin seems to have a serious boner for the Princeton offense. It's all he can freaking talk about. Was he the coach when Princeton beat UCLA in the tournament? I don't remember, but it's pretty much the only thing that could explain his crush on Northwestern and their offensive style. Everyone knows only teams full of homos run the Princeton offense.

10:17 - Jesus, now he's converted Musberger and he's talking about their offense in glowing terms. It's just like the gays man. You spend too much time around a gay, and before you know it BAM! You've got the gay.

9:31 - 21-9 Northwestern. I'm beginning to think my "Gophers to the title" thing may have been misguided.

7:52 - TV timeout, and we have 21-11 Northwestern. And for some reason we break away to watch the end of the Baylor/Colorado game. Yes, it's in double OT, but there's 17 seconds left and Colorado is up 4 and at the line. How is this interesting to anyone other than fans of the two teams or people who bet on the game (note: we have Colorado +9.5). I just don't understand some of these kind of decisions.

6:35 - Now we're back, and it's 24-15. That's 7 points we missed. I will never know who scored those points. I am Jack's seething rage.

4:53 - Colorado wins and covers, 9-4-2 on the day.

3:12 - 32-18, Northwestern leads. They are giving up wide open shots and layups on defense, and on offense they seem confused by Northwestern, who seems to be using a mixture of zone and man-to-man. This team was NOT ready to play today. At all.

1:33 - Houston does not cover, or even win, against UTEP, so we drop to 9-5-2. C-USA looking to be a one bid league this year, as both Houston and UAB, the only two non-Memphis teams with at-large hopes, both flame out in the conference tournament today.

0:44 - Erin Andrews is at the Big Ten tournament? Wouldn't you rather be at the Big East, Big Twelve, or ACC? Those are on ESPN also. Weird, I figured she's get her choice of assignments and/or she'd go to wherever the ratings would be highest. I doubt very many people are tuning in to watch this shitbox of a conference.

0:00 - 34-21 Northwestern at halftime. Also Kyle Lohse signed with the St. Louis Cardinals. Wildcats shooting 65%, 56% from three. Nice defense. On the bright side, Erin Andrews is extremely attractive.

0:00 - Spencer Tollackson will not return in the second half due to an ankle injury. The HORROR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 Also, he still looks exactly like The Todd.

19:30 - Al Nolen needs to look to score more when he penetrates. That sounded kind of dirty.

18:16 - Gophers score the first seven of the half to cut it to 34-28. All seven have come from pushing the ball and forcing tempo. Keep it up, keep it up.

13:32 - 42-38 Northwestern. Minnesota has switched into an aggressive 1-2-2 zone on defense with a lot of pressure and a lot of energy, and Northwestern is having trouble dealing with it. On offense they are pushing the tempo at all opportunities, but are still having trouble in the half court against the switching man-to-man the Wildcats are using. If Michael Thompson was on fire - all 8 NW points this half, the Gophers might have the lead. They need to keep attacking on both ends like this.

13:10 - I just discovered potatoes in our fridge that have partially liquefied. I didn't even know that could happen.

12:20 - It's the Wildcats looking like the Gophers this half, as they have no clue what to do against the Gopher zone, and Lawrence Westbrook hits another basket to tie it up 42-42. He's been on fire in the second half.

11:57 - Goldy gets a close up. Lavin calls him "lovable." Lavin is an idiot of the highest degree.

11:14 - Not only can NW not figure out the zone, but when they do get a good shot they brick it, as Coble misses an open jumper from the free throw line, and misses badly.

10:09 - Hey, the show a shot that some high school kid made at the buzzer lying on his ass. What? That was Hoffarber? No Way!! I've never seen that play every single time the Gophers are on TV.

8:45 - Northwestern hits a couple of shots as the Gophers are back in man-to-man, despite the zone's success. Why? I have no clue, but they now lead 47-42 after DJ misses two free throws. I know, I was shocked too.

5:58 - More talking about the awesomeness of the Princeton offense. It's really boring. I don't know if Northwestern's zone is a man, or a zone, I think it's some kind of hybrid, but whatever it is Northwestern is playing a tough matchup zone, and the Gophers have no clue how to beat it. They pretty much can only score in transition right now, and trail 47-42.

4:22 - No Country for Old Men was pretty overrated. Also the Gophers just took the lead 48-47 on a Dan Coleman steal and dunk (?) Anyway, yeah, it wasn't bad, it just wasn't all that awesome. That bad guy in it though is pretty good.

3:53 - At the four minute timeout, Gophers lead 48-47. HEY COLEMAN AND MCKENZIE, IF YOU LOSE THIS GAME, IT WILL BE THE LAST ONE OF YOUR CAREERS. Try to act like leaders for the first time this year.

3:34 - So they go back to man, and of course, Westbrook loses his man on a back pick and he's open for a layup (well, he got fouled and missed it). I'd stay in the zone, seriously. I must be missing something, because I know damn well Tubby is smarter than me. Moore makes both, putting NW ahead by one.

3:12 - Hoff with a huge three pointer. Naturally, it was a freshman making the big shot, not a senior.

2:32 - A wide open three by Moore to give NW back the lead, still against the man. It's not working.

2:12 - Here comes the dumb stuff we've all come to know and love. Westbrook gets his shot blocked on a drive, which is fine, and then follows it up by committing a stupid frustration foul in the backcourt. This team is so god damn dumb.

1:35 - Gophers lead 53-52 after Hoff finds Coleman underneath in transition. Hoff looking very good in this game. Well, except on defense.

1:06 - same score, Gopher ball. Crunch time lineup - McKenzie, Westbrook, Nolen, Hoff, Coleman. I like it.

0:39 - McKenzie misses what would have been a huge three, but Hoff is there to grab the o-board. I'm going to assume that is his first o-board on the season. Westbrook misses the front end of a 1-and-1, McKenzie grabs a huge rebound, but then gets tied up because he ducked down waiting to get fouled instead of getting the ball out of there. Stupid stupid stupid play. Oh, and Northwestern ball.

0:3.9 - Huge steal by Coleman, and he's fouled. Excellent defense that whole last possession by the Gophers, even though they were still in man-to-man.

0:00 - DC makes them both, and Northwestern can't get a decent shot off, Gophers move on.

This is the slap in the face the Gophers needed to wake them up and get ready for their run to the BIG TEN TITLE. Next victim: Indiana. More like, GAY-Diana. Lawrence Westbrook is just getting better and better, and he's just getting started. Make your time, Hoosier queers.

Incidentally, the Sidler is Hoosier fan. You can email him at sidlerblog@gmail.com, if you were so inclined.