Gophers Don’t Have Enough to Upset OSU

It was probably too much to hope for. No Gopher team has won back-to-back games against ranked opponents since the 1997 team did it in San Antonio to get to the Final Four (I’m still allowed to say that, right?), so it was highly unlikely that this year’s team would after getting off to their 0-6 start. They hung close for most of the game, but the Buckeyes were able to pull away late for a 67-53 victory.

Minnesota oscillated between being down by 9 and getting within 2 for most of the game. The only reason they were able to do so in the first half was the play of freshman Jamal Abu-Shamala. Jamal scored 13 points in the opening half on 5 of 6 shooting. He had his jumper working and, for the first time as a college player, was very aggressive in looking for his shot.

The Buckeyes got wise to Jamal’s game quickly and didn’t get him an inch in the second half. That’s when a few other Gophers stepped up. J’son Stamper knocked down a few early jumpers, Adam Boone later hit a couple of 3s, and Vincent Grier had a brief flashback to last season with a couple of tough hoops in the final quarter. But it wasn’t enough, as OSU’s hot 3-point shooting (9 for 20 overall; 7 for 8 by Je’Kel Foster) was ultimately too much for the Gophers.

This was a very sloppy game by both teams, as most of Minnesota’s 18 turnovers were unforced. The Gophers shot the ball ok (just 42% from the field, but 43% from 3-point range) and rebounded well, but they gave Foster too many looks on the perimeter and didn’t make life tough enough for Terence Dials (15 points on 6 for 11 shooting) on the inside.

Abu-Shamala was the game’s second highest scorer with 16 points. Boone scored 10 points and had a decent game with 4 assists, 4 rebounds, and no turnovers. Grier was quiet again with 9 points on 4 of 11 shooting.

Up next for the Gophers is a trip to Penn State on Wednesday. That game looks much more difficult today after seeing the Lions win at #6 Illinois. Didn’t see that one coming.

Here’s the box score.

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