Where are the Gophers?

[Gunner55]

Keegan was able to stay out of foul trouble & they shot >40%from the floor for the 1st time in a week or so. Bohannon playing the point was big too as he had 0 TO's & the team only had 6 for the game. That's been the recipe for W's this year IMO. I like Ulis & Perkins getting more minutes at the off guard too as they both play some good D.

[Gunner55]

  Too many TO's & only 2 guys makin anything. Glad to see Rutgers beat Ohio St though.

[KEN W]

Gophers are now the worst team in Big Ten. Losing to a team with an 0-14 record in the conference. Even though they have 1 more win.

[Dotch]

Yup, had this in the back of my mind when I saw the game was at Nebraska. Gophers dug a big hole in the 1st half. Came out of the chute throwing lazy passes into traffic like they were confident the Fuskers (as our friend, former NDSU an-sci prof Bert Moore calls them) were gonna roll over and play dead. They turned the ball over 18 times, gave up 25 points off those turnnovers, Curry, Stephens & Loewe all had an off night, then they got all 11 of their bench points from Sutherlin. Usually not a recipe for success. I don't get too worked up about where they are in the Big 10 standings. Nebraska is o-fer on the road. They are a horrible basketball team. So are the Gophers. The Gophers have an excuse. Nebraska doesn't. Next up: Penn St. on Sat. 7:30 at The Barn.     

[dutchboy]

Yup, had this in the back of my mind when I saw the game was at Nebraska. Gophers dug a big hole in the 1st half. Came out of the chute throwing lazy passes into traffic like they were confident the Fuskers (as our friend, former NDSU an-sci prof Bert Moore calls them) were gonna roll over and play dead. They turned the ball over 18 times, gave up 25 points off those turnnovers, Curry, Stephens & Loewe all had an off night, then they got all 11 of their bench points from Sutherlin. Usually not a recipe for success. I don't get too worked up about where they are in the Big 10 standings. Nebraska is o-fer on the road. They are a horrible basketball team. So are the Gophers. The Gophers have an excuse. Nebraska doesn't. Next up: Penn St. on Sat. 7:30 at The Barn.     

Yes the Gophers always have a excuse despite being in one of the largest cities of Big 10 teams.

[Steve-o]

Yes the Gophers always have a excuse despite being in one of the largest cities of Big 10 teams.

I think that has always worked against them.

When you go to other smaller Big 10 towns, the university is the biggest thing going.  And if you are a star athlete on a good team, you truly are a Big Man on Campus.

I don't care if you are an All Big 10 caliber quarterback, in this town, that person won't get as much press coverage as the Vikings starting left guard who is playing like crap.

Plus, with the U of M...

Who was it Gov. Jesse V (or was it Perpich?) who dubbed us the Brain Power State or the Education State?

The MN Legislature and U of M Board of Regents has always been behind the power curve when it comes to funding athletics at the highest level in the Big 10.  They assume if they spend money on athletics (facilities, coaches, etc.), that they will be held accountable for not spending more on education.  Other states figure out how to fund both, but we can't seem to get that done here.

And now they have been so far behind for so long - even though they are catching up in many areas - they have gone for so long without a winning tradition - that top athletes rarely consider coming here.

[dutchboy]

'The MN Legislature and U of M Board of Regents has always been behind the power curve when it comes to funding athletics at the highest level in the Big 10.  They assume if they spend money on athletics (facilities, coaches, etc.), that they will be held accountable for not spending more on education.  Other states figure out how to fund both, but we can't seem to get that done here.

And now they have been so far behind for so long - even though they are catching up in many areas - they have gone for so long without a winning tradition - that top athletes rarely consider coming here."



I'm not buying that. They overpay both Football & Basketball coaches vs their success rate. They have some of the best facilities in the Big 10 especially if you consider they haven't won anything since Clem was around.
The metro has everything athletes look for, girls, clubs, girls, girls and more girls. They just don't sell the program for whatever reason. Are the expectations to low? The only expectation I remember was in the mens hockey. But that went away also when they grabbed the money and turned the hockey program into a also ran.

My fandom for the U pretty has evaporated. Once upon a time I was a big hockey guy. I would watch the basketball and football. To date I have watched zero basketball, about 5 minutes total of football and I did see a few periods of hockey. I think the people of Minnesota really want a winner at the U, however it's been forever since they have done anything and the people like me just give up.

[Dotch]

The Gopher's excuse in the case of the basketball program is legit for now but it'll be short lived if it doesn't produce better results than the last go round relatively quickly. This basketball program has been snake bit for a long time and this state, not just the TC, is hungry for a consistently competitive team. The talent is here. We need to keep it here.

As far as facilities, ya, their stadium, hockey arena & practice facilities now are without a doubt some of the best in the country. Wasn't always that way up until recently. You may not follow the women's BB program but we've had front row seats in Bugtussle. Carlie Wagner grew up about a mile across the fields from us as the crow flies. She finished up in 2018 and never got to use the new practice facility and athlete housing. She said it was amazing. One other thing as nostalgic as it may be to us old farts, Williams or The Barn may not hold the same attraction to some of the blue chip athletes. They tend to like bright shiny objects.

Steve-O alluded to it and it was Rudy Perpich who declared this the "Brainpower State". Not sure if this was before or after his chopsticks factory brainfart but I digress. It was about that time that the elitists and academics really started to look down their noses at practitioners and made requirements to get into the U more difficult. Used to be they'd take anybody. Hell, they took me! They got rid of the general college and University Without Walls curriculum where they could stash athletes and make it easy for them to stay eligible. Mychal Thompson was in the Physical Geography class I had on West Bank. Boring as hell but if you had a pulse you passed that course. I saw him in class, once. Johnny Kundla was my conditioning instructor at the old gym on St. Paul campus. Inside it looked like someplace the Mandelbaums would hang out and throw the medicine ball. Murray Warmath was still on staff over on Mpls. East Bank campus in those days. He taught a class called "Angling Moderate Intensity". A lot of the athletes took that one and spent it watching films of Murray with his fishing buddies. Good times.

My zeal for University sports has dwindled as well db. Was fun watching Carlie and even before that, we went to The Barn many times to watch their games. That program tanked & is still in recovery mode, we hope. We used to come home Friday night, do chores and tune in Gopher hockey. Rinse and repeat Saturday nite. Listening to Wooger, Motzko and Doug McCloud was so easy. They messed that up. Tough to get the games & the  Big Ten Network would rather broadcast OH St., Michigan & Notre Dame. Marriucci used to be the toughest ticket in town to come by. Now there are empty seats galore. Been a Gopher BB fan thru thick and thru thin. Recent years tho, too much turnover and I don't have the passion for it I once did. Always been more lukewarm about football altho I enjoyed getting bombed on Mad Dog at Memorial Stadium & passing girls up back in the day. When the dummies tore down the stadium & moved the games downtown to The Dome, that set my interest back for decades, aside from the brief flash in the pan that was Lou Hoax perhaps. Start beating Ohio St., Michigan, Bucky and Gunner's beloved Hawkeyes consistently and then we'll talk.   

[Steve-o]

Mychal Thompson was in the Physical Geography class I had on West Bank. Boring as hell but if you had a pulse you passed that course. I saw him in class, once.

I took that class my first semester at the U (198...?).  I loved the class and the lectures.  Mychal missed out. 

But then compared to what Mychal was probably doing while I was in class, maybe I missed out.   

[dutchboy]

Start beating Ohio St., Michigan, Bucky and Gunner's beloved Hawkeyes consistently and then we'll talk.   


Not in my lifetime nor your kids lifetime will that happen. As far as the barn goes I have a simple solution. Since the Big 10 likes 2:30 & 5 o'clock hockey games move the men into Ridder with the women. They would darn near (well at least 2,000 anyway) sell that out. Turn Mariucci into the basketball arena. But I'm sure the state would rather spend $75 to $100 million on another arena.

[Gunner55]

There's a lot $ that comes into the major college's coffers because of the revenue generated by their athletic programs. Specifically, the ones with the big TV contracts like BB & FB & without that cashflow there would most likely be some major cutbacks at all the schools. So, like almost everything else in our world today ....................it's all about the money.

[Gunner55]

Bohanon & Murray didn't miss many in Iowa's win over the Terps & Michigan had 5 guys in double figures while throttling Purdue. 

[dutchboy]

There's a lot $ that comes into the major college's coffers because of the revenue generated by their athletic programs. Specifically, the ones with the big TV contracts like BB & FB & without that cashflow there would most likely be some major cutbacks at all the schools. So, like almost everything else in our world today ....................it's all about the money.

And yet tuition keeps rising at a amazing rate. These kids are coming out of college nearly bankrupt, well at least the ones not working a job while going to school. I would love to see a audit of a place like Michigan where the football team prints money. I think we would be surprised how little money actually funneled down to the school.

[Dotch]

Mychal Thompson was in the Physical Geography class I had on West Bank. Boring as hell but if you had a pulse you passed that course. I saw him in class, once.

I took that class my first semester at the U (198...?).  I loved the class and the lectures.  Mychal missed out. 

But then compared to what Mychal was probably doing while I was in class, maybe I missed out.   

I took that class in the fall of '77. Would've been Thompson's senior year so he (or someone) was probably just signing the guestbook just enough to stay eligible. They'd been on suspension the year prior. Biding his time until the Jail Blazers picked him as overall 1st draft pick in '78. The TA who taught the lab was a stoner, like, wow man... I also had Physical Geology that quarter on east bank. That was more my speed. Some cute girls in my lab but the way they dressed, betting they didn't do a lot of leg or armpit shaving. 

[fishwidow]

Had a class at the U with a running back, a defensive back and a lineman-not sure if he was offensive or defensive. The RB insisted that his name was preceded by “Mister”. The lineman would raise his hand and paraphrase what someone else just said-no original thoughts there. The DB actually was drafted, but never went anywhere. I was lucky enough to be seated in the same row of these gentlemen. We had a team assignment, and they all decided that I was the one to do all the work on the team. I dropped the class.

[Dotch]

Bohanon & Murray didn't miss many in Iowa's win over the Terps & Michigan had 5 guys in double figures while throttling Purdue. 

Iowa didn't take any prisoners, that's for sure. That was one of the few nites I liked seeing Michigan win a BB game. Most of the people I know who went to school at Purdue majored in Arrogance. Their 💩 don't stink. Purdue is very beatable on any given nite despite the announcers during the game putting them in the Final Four already...

Be interesting to see if the Gophers have anything left in the tank tonite or if they folded up their tents and went home.   

[KEN W]

Would be nice to beat Penn State tonight.

[Gunner55]

Gopher's game 'bout ready to start, I'll be watchin. Not many smiles from everyone's favorite Badger Bball player, #34  , today as Rutgers got a rare win in Madison. Ohio St's defense had a good 2nd 1/2 in Ann Arbor too so the conference title is still up in the air. The BIG 10 Tourney should be fun to watch too.

[Dotch]

😄 Whoever plays Bucky next better send out the nut cup memo! He's due. Rodents tied at the half. Took great personal satisfaction in watching the men's hockey team squash The Ohio St. University & sweep their sorry assets. 

[Dotch]

Nice 76 - 70 win back in The Barn. Not a dominating performance but they controlled the tempo in the 2nd half & played well enough to win. Dared Curry to keep taking that jump shot and he did , ending up with 22 pts. Getting Farrar in foul trouble didn't hurt. The way they started out I figured he'd just keep jamming down their throats all night.  Got outrebounded something like 36 - 20 but they only turned the ball over 3 times vs. 18 the last time out. Penn St. coughed it up 13 times and the Gophers capitalized on it. At OH St. Tuesday. That one probably won't end so well.

[KEN W]

Nice win....they got out rebounded because Curry sat on the bench the final 10 minutes until 25 seconds left. Still after getting bombed at Nebraska because they didn't come ready to win, they have to be feeling good.

[Gunner55]

Willis & Loewe played every minute while Battle only missed 4. Gopher's had nice day at the FT line only missing 1, for a +8, to go along with winning the TO battle. Putting Farrar on the bench gave 'em a lift IMO too as he can be a beast on the boards. A really good W for still only having 7 guys suited up.

[Gunner55]

I'd love to see the Gophers make it 2 in a row today!! Gonna be cheering for Penn ST. & the Hoosiers in their home games today too.

[LPS]

I haven't been a BB fan for many years.  Mayhaps I should jump on board.

[KEN W]

Set to record.....skip over commercials.

[Dotch]

Well, that ended about as expected. The Gophers team that beat Penn St. on Saturday played the 1st half and the one that stunk against Nebraska last Wednesday played the 2nd half. I'm sure the OH St. halftime speech probably went something like, "You're paid a lot to play better than that!"  Seriously, the Gophers looked gassed in the 2nd half. Lazy passes, short jump shots, getting beat to the ball for rebounds, missing assignments, sagging off and allowing open 3's. Yup, same team that got beat by Nebraska. Now they play at Penn St. Thursday afternoon at 3 p.m. (WTH?!?!) and then have Northwestern in The Barn on Saturday. If they think they're tired now, there will be nothing left of these guys by then. Brutal schedule for a shorthanded team thanks to COVID. If the Gophers win one of those two I'll be impressed.

[Gunner55]

Just the opposite for the home team, they looked like they thought the Gophers wouldn't even get off the bus. Probably more of a letdown after a big win at Ann Arbor though. They, OH St., have an extra 3 games to play yet so.............. At least Penn St. beat Tommy , looked like Indiana gave Buckey all he could handle too.

[Gunner55]

Rutgers just put a thumpin on the Illini too. Nowhere near as close as the final score might indicate. Almost 1/2 time before they made a 3 & they got killed on the boards.

[Dotch]

I watched that last one too. Every time IL made a run at 'em Rutgers had an answer. Purdue bested Northwestern 70 - 64 at Evanston. Was surprised that the final score was that close altho 7 points was about as close as Northwestern could get the entire game. When I looked before going outside again the deficit was worse than that. Still not convinced that Purdue is the 2nd coming or that the Big 10 is as strong as some think it is. Watched some of the Baylor - TT game and that was a slugfest. I see Tubby is stepping down from his alma mater at High Point. Always liked Tubby as a person. Hated his offense (nonexistent). If he could've found someone to run his offense plus keeping players happied up & out of trouble so they'd stay (Royce White - clepto & head case; Devoe Joseph - doobie brother; to name a few) no telling what he might've accomplished.

I see our favorite Bucky puke got another flagrant one the other nite. Wasn't a nut cup violation tho. He's probably just getting warmed up. Can't understand why so many people continue to defend this POS. One broadcast they made a big deal out of saying he didn't go to MN, chose to go to WI. After seeing him play, glad he didn't. Even coach Izzo, whom I have less respect for all the time, recently brushed it aside as just hard nosed basketball, someone you'd want on your team. Seriously Tom? You really want someone on your team who's willing to risk causing a potential career ending injury to their opponents in order to win a game? Wow. Must've gone to the Sean Payton school of coaching I guess.   

 https://www.thebiglead.com/posts/wisconsin-brad-davidson-cheap-shot-loss-dirty-plays-01dzpn74t94w   

[Gunner55]

Don't forget the Gophers are a 3:00 start today at Penn St , & the Hawks have Michigan in Carver at 6.