Gopher Basketball
Opponent: Ohio State
When: Noon, January 9, 2000
Where: Schottenstein Center – Columbus, OH
Television: MSC
The Gophers got the Big Ten season started right with a blowout win over Michigan, but things will be a lot tougher when they face the Ohio State Buckeyes on Sunday. If the Gophers can steal a win in this game, they’ll be off to a great start.
Ohio State was a consensus pick to finish in the top two in the conference, while most people picked the Gophers to finish in the bottom third. The two teams are more evenly matched than that, though. While the Buckeyes return the extremely talented tandem of Scoonie Penn and Michael Redd from last year’s Final Four team, they don’t have a lot of size or depth to complement them. Because of this, a liken Ohio State to an experienced version of Michigan. The Gophers will be able to exploit things inside again, but they won’t be able to pressure Penn and Redd into turnovers like they did with the Michigan freshmen.
Ohio State has had a very easy schedule this year. They’re 8-3, but the three losses were against the only good teams they’ve played – Notre Dame, Kansas, and Illinois. Penn and Redd are both leading the team with 14.9 points per game. The other Buckeyes averaging over 5 points are 6’7″ George Reese (12.1 ppg), 6’3″ guard Brian Brown (9.7 ppg), 6’11” center Ken Johnson (7.7 ppg), and 6’8″ forward Slobodan Ocokoljic (6.5 ppg).
Ohio State has struggled with their outside shooting this year, and Minnesota will have a very good chance of winning if they can continue that trend. That’s because the Buckeyes don’t have much of an inside threat. Johnson is a good shot-blocker and decent offensive player, but that’s about it. Joel Przybilla should be free to help out defensively. Joel will also be able to dominate offensively, along with Dusty Rychart and Nick Sinville. These three will need to have big games and control the boards. I don’t think we’ll need Terrance Simmons, Kevin Burleson, and Mitch Ohnstad to score much, but they’ll have to do a good job defensively and taking care of the ball.
Gopher Hole Prediction: Obviously this will be a tough game for the Gophers, but I think they have a decent chance of pulling it out. I believe there are two keys to the game: 1. Will John Blair Bickerstaff’s knees allow him to effectively guard the ultra-quick Redd? and 2. Will Joel and Dusty stay out of foul trouble? If the answers to these two questions are “Yes”, I think the Gophers have a pretty decent chance. My (optimistic) prediction is Minnesota 73 Ohio State 70.
Note: I will be at the Vikings’ playoff game tomorrow, so I won’t be posting anything until I’m home and have watched the Gopher game on tape. It will be at least 6 pm.
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