Gophers Basketball – Page 87 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Mike Zimmer Still Confident about Kicker

Posted on November 27, 2018November 27, 2018 by David Shama

Enjoy a Tuesday notes column focusing on the Vikings.

Mike Zimmer is working with his fourth kicker in five seasons as Vikings head coach. There have been enough ups and downs to write a book about those experiences, with the latest tribulation coming Sunday night when Dan Bailey missed on two of three field goals.

“I still have a lot of confidence in this kid. I believe in him,” Zimmer told KFXN-FM after the game. “I watch him every single day. It was big for him to go out there and get that last one.”

Bailey’s 37-yard third quarter field goal against the Packers put the Vikings ahead 17-14 in a vital game they went on to win 24-17. The subject of field goals in a Packers game is a touchy one after Minnesota rookie Daniel Carlson missed three in the opening game for both teams in September.

That game ended in a 29-29 tie that doesn’t do much for the Vikings’ postseason ambitions. At 6-4-1 Minnesota is pursuing an NFC North Division title, or a wild card entry, to make the playoffs. Tight games in the fourth quarter could mean Bailey’s leg will be the difference in winning during the five remaining games on the regular season schedule and qualifying for the playoffs.

Bailey has made 75 percent of his field goals since joining the Vikings and all but one of his extra points. In seven previous seasons with the Cowboys he converted on 88.2 percent of his field goals.

Meanwhile, Carlson, who was cut and replaced by Bailey after the Green Bay opener, is seven of eight on field goals and a perfect eight for eight on extra points after playing in five games for the Raiders.

Former Viking Pete Bercich talking to Sports Headliners before Sunday night’s game about defensive end Everson Griffen, who rejoined the team in late October: “I think he’s working his way back. I think with defensive ends a lot of it is timing. Being out as long as he was, it’s going to take him a little bit, and conditionally, (being in the best shape). I think he’s dong all right.”

Griffen missed five games earlier this season. In six games he has 11 tackles and 3.5 sacks, with totals of 7 and 2.5 since rejoining the team for the New Orleans game October 28.

Griffen was a Pro Bowler last season for the third straight year but because of his missed time this fall the Vikings did not include him among players spotlighted to the media on Sunday encouraging Pro Bowl voting. The eight players who are being promoted for promoting and playing in the 2019 Pro Bowl are quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receiver Stefon Diggs, defensive end Danielle Hunter, defensive tackle Linval Joseph, tight end Kyle Rudolph, safety Harrison Smith, wide receiver Adam Thielen, and cornerback Xavier Rhodes.

In Pro Bowl voting totals released last week by the NFL, Smith was the top vote getter among free safeties. Hunter was second among defensive ends.

Although the Vikings offensive line had one of its better games against the Packers Sunday night, the unit remains among the lower rated groups by NFL authorities. A Vikings source, who didn’t want his name in print, said the club is well aware of the line’s limitations.

His view is the Vikings will have to change some personnel among starters to improve. The club wanted to prioritize offensive linemen in the most recent NFL draft but their options were limited when other teams were better positioned to make selections.

The source said his team got an athletic tackle in rookie Brian O’Neill who was taken on the second round. He said O’Neill needs to become stronger and while he won’t become a perennial All-Pro he can be a solid lineman. Earlier this season Pro Football Focus rated him the third best rookie offensive lineman in the NFL.

After Sunday’s game the Vikings ranked 30th in NFL rushing with 85.3 yards per game. That is an indictment of the offensive line and the source stressed even in today’s pass-happy NFL having an effective running game is important to creating a balanced offense.

Blake Cashman and other Minnesota natives who play for the Gophers were recognized on the field during the Vikings game at U.S. Bank Stadium for their team’s upset win Saturday against Wisconsin. The players displayed Paul Bunyan’s Axe in front of an appreciative crowd. Cashman simulated rowing a boat, an acknowledgment of coach P.J. Fleck’s well-known mantra.

David Raih, the Packers wide receivers coach and an Edina native, is a classic work your way up from the bottom success story. In 2008 he quit a lucrative sales job to accept an unpaid internship in the football department at UCLA, per a 2016 ESPN story. The 38-year-old Raih attended St. Thomas Academy before being a reserve quarterback at Iowa from 1999-2003.

Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs turns 25 on Thursday, and defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson will have his 28th birthday on the same day.

Despite speculation Mike Grant, 61, said yesterday he isn’t planning to retire as Eden Prairie’s 11-time state champion football coach. With humor, Grant mentioned he gets along well with the EP athletic director. (For those who don’t know he is both the head football coach and AD at the school).

The Eagles lost last Friday in the 6A title game to Lakeville North. It was the second time in 2018 the Panthers have defeated EP and Grant praised Lakeville as the better team.

Eagles senior quarterback Cole Kramer, who plays for the Gophers next year, is the only 6A QB ever to start in three consecutive state title games.

Tonight there will be a dedication ceremony to rename the Hutchinson High School gymnasium for Lindsay Whalen. The legendary Hutch native, now in her first season as Gophers women’s basketball coach, will direct Minnesota against Syracuse on Thursday night at Williams Arena. Both teams are in the Associated Press top 25 with Syracuse No. 12 and Minnesota No. 20.

Whalen speaks to the Capital Club on December 20 at the Town & Country Club in St. Paul. Minnesota Wild general manager Paul Fenton talks to the group on December 12 in downtown St. Paul at the 317 on Rice Park Event Center. The networking group features prominent speakers, many of them from athletics. More information about the Capital Club is available at Capitalclubmn.com, or from Patrick Klinger, patrickklinger@klingercompany.com.

Janel McCarville, Whalen’s Final Four teammate during playing days with the Gophers, has been playing professionally this year in Sweden.

The Wild play Arizona tonight at home, and fans will continue to evaluate coach Bruce Boudreau’s decision to split up top pair defensemen Matt Dumba and Ryan Suter.

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Wild Owner Blunt about Cup Ambitions

Posted on November 14, 2018November 14, 2018 by David Shama

The Minnesota Wild has been making owner Craig Leipold feel better as of late. Leipold, 66, is facing his fourth hip replacement in coming months and is still on crutches following replacement No. 3, but his spirits were lifted by the team winning five of seven games on its recent road trip.

“Boy, we’re all looking at this team right now going, man, they’re playing together,” Leipold told Sports Headliners on Monday. Last night, in the Wild’s first home game since the club’s longest road trip ever, Leipold’s boys lost to the defending Stanley Cup champion Capitals. It was the Wild’s first home defeat of the season, and predictable against such a quality team and after a long road trip.

The Wild has a habit of earning its way into the NHL playoffs but then making an early exit. Leipold expects more than just showing up for the postseason like his franchise has done for six straight years. “We’re not playing to come in second or third or fourth,” he said. “We’re playing to win the Cup. That’s what we want to do. That’s our objective and I think if you asked our players, that’s the reason they play hard every night.”

The Wild has mostly been receiving quality play from all four lines, and goalie Devan Dubnyk has been sharp. Leipold knows after 18 games there is a lot of hockey remaining on the schedule but he is hopeful that among the reasons this team could avoid long losing streaks is team rapport. “We really do have outstanding leadership in the locker room,” he said.

Preseason concerns included not scoring enough goals but results have been better than expected. Mikael Granlund, long known for his potential, is part of the reason. He leads Minnesota in goals with 10 and also has eight assists for a Wild best 18 points.

“He’s a special player,” Leipold said. “I think a lot of people around the league have seen it. And now I think he’s believing it as well.”

Veteran stars Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, coming off injuries last season, are constantly scrutinized by interested fans to see if they appear healthy. They tell Leipold they are “100 percent” and even if they only currently check in at 90 the owner is happy. Suter and Parise have played in all the games so far, and Leipold praised their talent and work ethic.

After games Leipold can often be found sitting in a corner location at Herbie’s On The Park, the two-year old restaurant and bar located in the historic Minnesota Club near Xcel Energy Center. He enjoys watching patrons celebrate when the Wild win. He also allows himself to fantasize about being in Herbie’s after the Wild win the Stanley Cup.

“That is the ultimate,” Leipold acknowledged. “There is no finer dream that I could have.”

Worth Noting

In 2008 Leipold bought the Wild from Bob Naegele Jr. who died last week. The funeral is next Monday in the Twin Cities. “I wouldn’t miss it for anything,” Leipold said. “Many Wild employees will be there. He was a very popular man and he was a mentor to me.”

Because of Mr. Naegele’s funeral, the date for the Old Timers Hockey Association Luncheon has been moved from next Monday to the following day. The Tuesday, November 20 event begins at 11:30 a.m. at Mancini’s Char House in St. Paul.

Bill Robertson, men’s WCHA commissioner, will be the guest speaker. Dick Jonckowski will emcee.

I was reminded this week how badly conference leaders and the NCAA needs to make improvements to the game of college basketball. A typical game like Monday night’s early season matchup between Minnesota and Utah was frequently slowed to a crawl at Williams Arena. In the first seven minutes, for example, there were two timeouts and two stoppages for officials to view replays on a TV monitor.

In the second half, Utah called timeout with 8:10 remaining in the game. About 22 seconds later the play on the court stopped again for one of the eight mandated media timeouts during a game. Along with the coaches’ and media’s timeouts, add in how the college game is over officiated with unnecessary foul calls. The result is a roadblock to allowing the flow and rhythm that is a natural part of basketball.

It’s way overdue for college basketball to adopt policies regarding both officiating and timeouts similar to the NBA. The pro league knows what it is doing. The college game is clueless. The NCAA is stealing a lot of showtime from its so-called student athletes while infuriating fans.

Gophers senior forward Jordan Murphy, who was a preseason All-Big Ten candidate, had 17 rebounds and 11 points Monday night. His total play looked even better than hyped. Freshman guard Gabe Kalscheur, who hit his first five three-point shots and finished the game with 19 points, might have the smoothest shooting stroke of any Gopher in a long time.

Murphy and junior guard-forward Amir Coffey received some of the most enthusiastic applause in the pregame introductions. Head coach Richard Pitino, coming off last season’s 4-14 Big Ten record, received a very quiet reaction from the fans.

The Twin Cities Dunkers hear from Gopher women’s basketball coach Lindsay Whalen on Friday. Then Hugh McCutcheon, the Minnesota volleyball coach, talks to the breakfast group later this month.

McCutcheon’s volleyball team, 16-0 in Big Ten matches, concludes its regular season conference schedule on the road the next two Fridays and Saturdays with matches against Maryland, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers. No Gopher team in any sport has been undefeated in the Big Ten since the wrestlers were 19-0 in 2001-2002.

The Big Ten Network reported Monday that among major college football teams there are only four who are 13-1 in their last 14 conference games. Alabama, Clemson, Oklahoma and Northwestern who the Gophers play on Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium.

The Northwestern Wildcats, 6-1 in league games, have clinched at least a share of the Big Ten West Division title and are playing for the best bowl game invite in their remaining games. Minnesota, 2-5 in the conference standings, is averaging 452 yards of offense in its last four games. This is Minnesota’s longest streak of at least 400 yards of offense since it went seven straight games over the 2005-06 seasons.

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Big Stage for Tre Jones Tuesday Night

Posted on November 5, 2018November 5, 2018 by David Shama

Apple Valley’s Tre Jones will be on the biggest stage of his life tomorrow night when he makes his college debut in Duke’s game against Kentucky. The ESPN nationally-televised matchup of No. 4 Duke and No. 2 Kentucky is part of a network doubleheader Tuesday evening from Indianapolis that includes No. 1 Kansas and No. 10 Michigan State.

“It will be exciting, and I know he is looking forward to that,” Tyus Jones said about his younger brother who is following his path as a starting freshman point guard at Duke.

Tre and Tyus led Apple Valley to state championships. Tyus, in his one season at Duke, helped the Blue Devils to the 2016 national championship and was named the Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

As for advice from older brother to younger bro, Tyus said: “Continue to be yourself but at the same time soak everything in just because it’s something (college) that will fly by. You’re also playing for the greatest coach of all time (Mike Krzyzewski). So he is someone that every single day he can teach you something new. So make sure you’re paying attention. …”

Tyus is in his third season with the NBA Timberwolves, and a West Coast road trip with the team won’t allow him to be in Indy for tomorrow night’s game. However, he is looking for an opportunity later to attend one of his brother’s games. “It’ll be tough but gonna make something work,” Tyus told Sports Headliners.

Tyus isn’t the only Wolves player interested in the Blue Devils-Wildcats game. Wolves center Karl-Anthony Towns played for the Wildcats in the 2015 Final Four and knows about the rivalry of Duke-Kentucky, two of college basketball’s historic power schools.

Towns was asked about a possible wager with Tyus for tomorrow night’s game. He answered emphatically and said: “No, but I know for a fact that he better be ready for the trash talking that goes with that game. …”

Minnesota viewers of Duke-Kentucky will also have home town interest in the game because Reid Travis from Minneapolis plays for the Wildcats. The senior 6-foot-8 forward transferred from Stanford where last season he averaged 19.5 points and 8.7 rebounds. He was a first-team All-Pac-12 selection.

Worth Noting

Tyus is a restricted free agent after this season. He has never played for another NBA team except the Wolves and realizes he is fortunate to be in his home state.

“You know, I’ve always said I’d like to stay here,” he said.

Jones, who has mostly been a reserve with the Wolves, said there were no talks about a new contract during the past offseason. “We’ll revisit it after the season…and try to get something done. So I know it’s not personal. It’s part of the business.”

Sports Illustrated’s college basketball issue that came out last week has only three Big Ten teams in its top 25—Michigan State No. 10, Michigan 18 and Purdue 20. The issue includes an eight-page feature on former Wolves assistant coach Eric Musselman whose Nevada team is ranked No. 6 in the nation just three-plus years after taking over the Wolf Pack.

The magazine reported Musselman earns $1 million per year, after starting at $400,000. Talk about a bargain.

JT Gibson, the 2015 Minnesota Mr. Basketball, is a redshirt junior guard on the Omaha team the Gophers host tomorrow night at Williams Arena. The former Champlin Park prep played in 31 games last season, started 12, and averaged 10.2 points per game. The Summit League Mavericks had a 9-22 overall record last season, 4-10 in conference games.

All 14 Big Ten teams have games from November 6-9. Minnesota’s second game of the season, November 12 at home against Utah, figures to be one of the most entertaining on the early schedule.

The football Gophers gave up 646 yards to a poor Illinois team Saturday while losing 55-31. A friend asked via text if Gopher teams coached by Tracy Claeys ever gave up that many yards. As interim head coach for six games in 2015, and then as head coach in 2016, the most yards was 506 versus Iowa in 2015.

Known for his defensive coaching intelligence, Claeys coached the Gophers to a 40-17 win at Illinois two years ago when Minnesota gave up 245 yards.

The NFL is moving the Vikings-Bears game November 18 in Chicago from a start time of noon to 7:20 p.m. The game will be telecast by NBC instead of Fox as originally scheduled.

The game’s winner could take a significant step toward winning the NFC North Division title. Pittsburgh at Jacksonville had originally been scheduled for the nationally televised 7:20 p.m. slot.

Bill Brown, the former Vikings fullback who died yesterday, played in the 1960s when NFLers helped support themselves and their families with offseason jobs. Brown was a substitute teacher in the Minneapolis school system.

Chad Beebe, the Vikings rookie wide receiver who made his NFL debut yesterday after moving up from the practice squad, is interested in a career in corporate communications if pro football doesn’t work out for him.

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