Author: David Shama

The Wolves’ Al Jefferson, listed at 6-10 but maybe shorter, prompts talk that he’s too small to be an NBA center.  Jefferson, who averaged 21 points and 11.1 rebounds last season, has heard similar conversation about Kevin Love, speculation that he’s too short (listed at 6-10 but smaller) to play power forward.

Jefferson dismisses such talk saying you “can’t worry about what people say.”  So Love can play against power forwards?  “Most definitely” Jefferson told Sports Headliners last week.  “No doubt in my mind he can.”

Jefferson, 23, is an admirer of the 20-year-old first round draft choice. “For a rookie, I have to say Love is a very smart guy,” Jefferson said.  “The only thing that he’s going to have to do, is just like every rookie has to do, is to learn the game and get used to how things go here in the NBA. …He passes the ball.  He rebounds well and he can score when it’s time for him to score.  I just think he’s a very smart guy.”

At UCLA Love averaged 10.6 rebounds per game and dazzled observers with his outlet passing.  In four games with the Wolves and in limited paying time, he’s averaging 6.3 rebounds in about 23 minutes per game.  Jefferson referred to Love as a “rebounding machine.”

Don Meyer, the coach of the Northern State team that played the Gophers in an exhibition loss last night, was head basketball coach at Hamline for three seasons starting in 1972.  Meyer had his lower left leg amputated recently because of a car accident.

Early draft preview: A recent issue of Sporting News magazine projects a 2009 mock NFL draft that has the Vikings picking at No. 16, choosing Baylor offensive tackle Jason Smith.

Talk about a close rivalry: the Vikings and Packers are 25-25 in games played here.  Green Bay leads the series that began in 1961 by four games, 49-45-1.   On Sunday at the Metrodome the Vikings try to end a five game losing streak against the Packers.

The Vikings have improved their point production.  In the last four games they’re averaging 27.8 points, compared with 17.8 during the first four games.

Packer coach Mike McCarthy and Viking coach Brad Childress are both in their third seasons.  McCarthy is 26 and 16 with Green Bay, while Childress is 18-22 with the Vikings.

Rookie defensive tackle Letroy Guilon, drafted on the fifth round out of Florida State, is the youngest Viking at 21.  He has yet to play this season.

Former Gopher golfer and now best selling New York Times author Harvey Mackay has a weekly newspaper column that is syndicated and also is sent via e-mail to approximately 25,000 readers. 

The Wild are at Vancouver tomorrow night for a game against a Canucks team whose roster includes defenseman Willie Mitchell and wing Pavol Demitra.   Mitchell, who was with the Wild for parts of five seasons until 2006, has played in all 13 Vancouver games and has six assists.  Demitra, who has two goals and one assist in six games, won’t play tomorrow night because of a rib injury.  He played with the Wild the last two seasons and scored 118 points.

Veteran MIAC observer Dave Wright wrote to say he’s “never seen” a finish like last Saturday’s men’s hockey game between St. Thomas and St. Scholastica.  He reported that St. Thomas, leading 2-1, had a penalty with about two minutes to play.  St. Scholastica pulled its goalie and tied the game with 1:13 remaining.  Then St. Scholastica scored again with 1:01 left and had a 3-2 lead.  St. Thomas responded by pulling its goalie and the Tommies scored with 33 seconds remaining in the third period. The game ended in overtime at 3-3.

Leading the 18-player all-MIAC volleyball team is St. Thomas senior middle blocker Katie McCaffrey who was named the conference’s Player of the Year after leading the league in hitting percentage, kills, and blocks.  Gustavus senior libero Emily Klein was named Defensive Player of the Year, the third time she has won the award.  Concordia outside hitter Jenna Green was honored as Rookie of the Year.  St. Thomas head coach Thanh Pham received the MIAC Coach of the Year award after the Tommies went 11-0 in conference play for the second consecutive season and earned the No. 1 seed in the MIAC Playoffs.  Selections were made by conference coaches.

If the Gopher football team needs additional motivation beyond playing for the school’s first New Year’s Day bowl game since 1962, they can crank themselves into a higher frenzy in anticipation of the last three games of the regular season, all of them trophy games against Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa.

The 7-2 Gophers are hoping to win out the rest of the way and be invited either to the Capital One Bowl or Outback Bowl, both January 1 games in Florida.  If they sweep their last three games it will be the first time since 1967 the Gophers have defeated the Wolverines, Badgers and Hawkeyes in the same season.

Those schools haven’t been the last three opponents on the schedule since 2002.  Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa have been the closing three schools on the Gopher schedule only 12 times in Minnesota football history.

So starting Saturday at the Metrodome the Gophers pursue the Little Brown Jug (originated in 1903), Paul Bunyan’s Axe (1948) and Floyd of Rosedale (1935).  Gopher senior defensive end and captain Willie VanDeSteeg said trophy games are “awesome.”

VanDeSteeg was a freshman on the 2005 Gopher team that won at Michigan for the first time since 1986.  It was only the third time in 28 years the Gophers had won the jug.  “We want to get it back in Minnesota hands because that’s something very special to us,” VanDeSteeg said.

In the last 10 years the Gophers have won the axe only two times.  The pig has been in the Gophers’ trophy case three times since 1998.

After last Saturday’s disappointing last minute loss to Northwestern, the Gophers are looking forward to Michigan.  “I think something with a lot of emotion will really help us,” senior tight end Jack Simmons said.  “I think I am really disappointed with the way we came out and played Northwestern. …We weren’t really ready to play…at the level we needed to win the game.  So a rivalry game will really be something we’re up for.”

Michigan is 2-7 overall, 0-4 in the Big Ten.  Wisconsin is 4-5 and 1-5, while Iowa is 5-4 and 2-3.   The Gophers may not win these games, but they certainly have motivation and they know there’s not a super team in the bunch.

The Timberwolves are at home tonight to play San Antonio and hoping to make their record 2-2.  The Wolves, who have lost two straight since winning their opening game against Sacramento, want to avoid the two wins, 12 losses start of last November.

“I expect the first month is going to be the key to having a great season,” center Al Jefferson told Sports Headliners. “ …It’s a tough month. … Make us or break us.  Last year we started out slow and we just never could get back. This year we want to start off good. …I think that could take us a long way.”

Jefferson made those remarks last week before the opening game with the Kings, knowing the November schedule included games with teams that are capable of advancing into the playoffs and having post-first round success.  Those teams include NBA champion Boston and title contender San Antonio, plus playoff ambitious Detroit, Portland, Philadelphia and Phoenix.

The Wolves are more talented than the team that was 4-26 at the end of December last year.  This is a group that likes one another, too.  “All guys on this team are close,” Jefferson said.  “Everybody gets along.  Everybody’s got the same thing on their mind, winning.  Having a better season than last year.  I am not saying we’re going to win a championship this year but I know we should do a lot better than we did last year.  We should win games we’re supposed to win.  A lot of games we lost last year we could have won. …”

It may take some lineup changes, or at least increased playing time to take the Wolves closer to their potential.  Rookie forward Kevin Love’s all-around game seems like it could spark the Wolves more if he were in the starting lineup, and also averaging more than 19.7 minutes per game.  Guard Rashad McCants, also coming off the bench, is the team’s second leading scorer to Jefferson but is only playing 23.7 minutes per game.

The team also needs better production from point guard Randy Foye.  He’s averaging 7.3 points per game and making 22 percent of his shots.  He’s averaging a team high five assists per game.  Foye needs to be a more creative and consistent playmaker.

Jefferson is leading the team in points and rebounds at 19.7 and 11.7.  He will need help tonight against the Spurs, a team that has won 10 of the last 11 games against the Wolves.  The Spurs won all four games last season with Manu Ginobili averaging 30.8 points per game.  Ginobili, though is recovering from left ankle surgery and won’t play until later this season.