Nate Mason, the Gophers 19-year-old freshman guard, has played with exceptional first-year skill and poise during Minnesota’s early nonconference schedule.
Tonight the Gophers play on national TV (ESPNU) and at Madison Square Garden—one of college basketball’s most famous venues. Does Mason expect to be nervous? “Nah, not really,” he told Sports Headliners last week.
The Gophers face St. John’s tonight at the Garden starting at 6 p.m. Minneapolis time as part of the NIT Season Tip-Off Tournament. Mason is excited about playing in the building that has been the site of so many memorable college and professional games.
“I mean, it’s like a dream come true, but we’re going in for business,” he said. “Get this win.”
Among the first players off the bench so far this season, Mason is expected to help if 4-0 Minnesota is to defeat 3-0 St. John’s and play for the tourney title on Friday against the winner of tonight’s second game between Georgia and Gonzaga. The 6-1, 185-pound combo guard has been the most impressive of Minnesota’s four new scholarship players on this season’s roster. His statistics tell part of the story.
In four games Mason is averaging 20.3 minutes and scoring 10.8 points per game—tied for third best on the Gophers. He is making a team-leading 53 percent of his three point attempts. His overall field goal percentage is 50 percent. Despite his small size, he leads the team in rebounds with 19, or 4.8 per game. He has 12 assists, third most on the team.
Playing both point guard and shooting guard, he has only five turnovers. His poise was evident in the season’s opening game when Minnesota played Louisville, a top 10 team. He made his college debut a success with 10 points, five rebounds and two assists in 20 minutes of playing time.
The Louisville game was on national television. A big stage and a prominent opponent but Mason said he wasn’t nervous going into the game. “Actually got me hyped,” he said.
Mason admires Chris Paul, one of the NBA’s elite point guards. He played for a summertime team that Paul sponsored. “Actually he (Paul) taught me the poise that I play with,” Mason said. “He taught me always stay under control, don’t let no one speed you up. Just take care of the ball.”
The Georgia native is a long way from home in Minneapolis. Any homesickness? “Yeah, of course, especially when it started snowing,” he said.
Mason, of course, won’t be with his family for Thanksgiving because the Gophers are in New York. “It’s definitely hard for me, but again it’s like family here,” he said.
Mason said he “toughed it out” regarding homesickness and seems happy about the decision to play for the Gophers and coach Richard Pitino. “I knew Pitino would bring the best out of me. You can see that now. He’s bringing the best out of me defensively, offensively, rebounding, everything.”
As a high school senior, Mason averaged 15.6 points, 8.7 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 steals playing for Arlington Country Day School in Jacksonville, Florida. Colleges that showed interest in Mason, a Rivals.com three-star prospect, included Kansas State, Memphis and Virginia.
It seems safe to say they noticed several attributes about him including his poise.
Worth Noting
St. John’s and the Gophers have both played one common opponent, Franklin Pierce. Minnesota won that matchup 109-57, while the Red Storm had a 94-81 victory.
Pitino said the Red Storm’s starters are “as talented as any team we’ll play.” The regulars include D’Angelo Harrison who is averaging 18.3 points and 10.3 rebounds, and Rysheed Jordan, 17.3 points.
New York-based St. John’s is a program accustomed to playing in Madison Square Garden. “Essentially a home game for St. John’s,” said Gophers senior center Elliott Eliason.
The Gophers, though, did win the postseason NIT Tournament semifinals and finals at Madison Square Garden last spring. Minnesota players are familiar with the court, lighting and basket rims. “Yeah, that’s definitely helpful,” said Gophers junior forward Joey King.
Pitino has improved the athleticism on his roster since taking over as Gophers coach in the spring of 2013. That can translate to better defense and Eliason said “potentially” this is the best defensive team he has played on. “We turn people over a lot. That’s good.”
The Gophers have forced opponents into 87 turnovers. Minnesota’s turnover total is 48.
Saturday’s game between No. 14 Wisconsin and No. 22 Minnesota is the most important football matchup in Madison between the two schools since 1962. That year No. 3 ranked Wisconsin defeated No. 5 Minnesota 14-9 in a controversial game decided in the closing minutes that left the Gophers coaches, players and fans enraged about the officiating.
The winner of Saturday’s game will become the Big Ten West Division champion and play for the conference title in Indianapolis on December 6. The Gophers or Badgers will face Ohio State from the East Division.
The Big Ten champion will not advance to the Rose Bowl unless that team is one of the four schools participating in the first College Football Playoff and is sent to Pasadena (the other semifinal playing site is the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans). The lineup of destinations for all Big Ten bowl-eligible teams will be announced December 7 and the conference champion might play in the Cotton Bowl on January 1 in Arlington, Texas.
Even if the Gophers, 8-3, lose on Saturday they still will receive a more prestigious bowl game invitation than in the recent past. Possibilities, according to a Gophers source, include two January 1 bowls, the Outback in Tampa and Citrus in Orlando—and also the December 27 Holiday Bowl in San Diego and January 2 TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville.
Minnesota is about a two touchdown underdog to the Badgers but what’s interesting is that dating back to the 2013 season Minnesota has five times pulled off upsets when the opposition was a double-digit favorite.
As the college football world knows, the Gophers will have to control Badgers running back Melvin Gordon, a Heisman Trophy hopeful. But Minnesota defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said Wisconsin also has one of the “better offensive lines we’ve faced.”
The Badgers show variety in their offense before the ball is snapped. “They’ve ran more formations and shifts than we have room on our whiteboard for,” Claeys said.
The Badgers alternate two quarterbacks in their games, Joel Stave and Tanner McEvoy. “You know, they do have good quarterbacks, but they’re not the ones that are going to beat you,” Claeys said. “Wisconsin is Wisconsin. You’ve got to stop the running game… .”
Gophers quarterback Mitch Leidner, a redshirt sophomore, expects to earn his degree in kinesiology a year from this fall. He has about a 3.3 GPA and is interested in a coaching career.
All-time Gophers career rushing leader Darrell Thompson, now the team’s radio color analyst, celebrated his 47th birthday on Sunday.