There’s talk the Gophers will be announced as one of the teams playing in the 2014 Preseason NIT Tournament. Sports Headliners reported recently the Gophers will participate in the 2013 Maui Invitational, and it’s known Minnesota will play in the 2012 Atlantis Tournament in the Bahamas. Teams at the Atlantis tourney will include Duke and Louisville.
The 9-1 Gophers have been winning without injured players but did see the return of center Ralph Sampson III last night, contributing 10 points in a win over Appalachian State. “We’re gonna be a real good team once Ralph gets back,” guard Julian Welch said last weekend.
Even if the NCAA grants Trevor Mbakwe a medical redshirt allowing him to play next season, it’s probably a lock he won’t return to the Gophers unless his surgically repaired right knee has left him physically subpar and he requires more time to recover before he can compete on the pro level. Mbakwe is likely to try the NBA even as a second round draft choice, or use another pro basketball option.
Welch said “it helps a lot” playing more minutes now because he doesn’t worry about making a mistake and being removed from the game. In the Gophers first four games the junior college guard transfer never played 20 minutes but now is a team leader in both minutes and performance.
Rodney Williams likes the new assignment of playing power forward created by the absence of Mbakwe. “I’ve got a lot of mismatches because I can use my speed to get around the bigger guys,” he said recently.
The Gophers and Penn State are the only Big Ten teams who will play their first two conference games on the road. Minnesota is at Illinois December 27 and at Michigan January 1.
Tubby Smith, now starting his fifth season as Gophers coach, has a career 32-40 Big Ten record. After four seasons Dan Monson, his predecessor, was 26-38 in conference games.
The announced attendance for last Saturday’s Gophers women’s game against No. 1 ranked Baylor at Williams Arena (capacity 14,625) was 3,814. The Gophers trailed 48-21 at the half and lost 89-60.
This Friday at 5 p.m. is the deadline for men’s basketball season ticket holders who want to transfer their tickets to an “immediate family member,” according to an email from the Gophers athletic department.