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Stanford (25-11, 10-8) and their freshman standout Chasson Randle (13.8 ppg) take on Minnesota (23-14, 6-12) for the NIT Championship at Madison Square Garden. Game time is 6pm CT and can be seen on ESPN.
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/142045?referrer_id=388419
Game 38. We've finally made it. The Gophers will end their season Thursday night, capping off an improbable postseason run that has seen them win three road games and beat the PAC-12's regular season champion in Madison Square Garden. The goal for the rest of the year is simple: beat Stanford. Like so many of these games recently, this one could easily go either way.
Stanford goes fairly deep with their bench and, like the Gophers, they have a relatively young team. Minnesota has been starting three freshman and a sophomore these past few weeks, but at this point—game 38—those young kids who are still called freshman in the media guide are no longer new to this. Both squads are playing some of their best basketball of the season and want to end the year with a win.
The top scorer for the Cardinal is freshman combo guard Chasson Randle and he's been very good since the beginning of the year. Meanwhile, Minnesota's freshman combo guard Andre Hollins went through some growing pains and injury pains, but is now giving the Gopher faithful a preview of what he is capable of. Not only have his recent performances, as well as those of junior forward Rodney Williams, given fans reason to be optimistic about next season, but it's put Minnesota one win away from the NIT championship.
WASHINGTON WRAP-UP
Minnesota never trailed in their 68-67 overtime victory in the NIT semifinals, but they sure did make it interesting. In the first half everything went Minnesota's way and they went into the break with a 12 point lead. In those first 20 minutes of the contest, the Gophers outshot Washington (eFG%) 54.8% to 38.3%, held the edge in rebounding and only turned it over 6 times.
Victory made things feel much better at the end of the night, but the second half was ugly for Tubby Smith's team. No longer were they the better shooting team. The Huskies imposed their will on the offensive glass and Minnesota handed the ball over repeatedly. A comparison of first half and second half factors illustrates the differences:
MINNESOTA - OFFENSE
................eFG%...TO%...OR%
1st Half...54.8%...17%....33%
2nd Half..32.6%....33%...29%
MINNESOTA - DEFENSE
................eFG%...TO%...oOR%
1st Half...38.3%...18%.....27%
2nd Half..45.2%....22%....55%
Nonetheless, the Gophers pulled out another overtime victory and continue on to the championship game. However, Minnesota must clean up the turnovers next year if they want to have a shot at finishing in the top five of the Big Ten.
My quick look at the numbers tells me that of the 68 NCAA tournament teams, only 2 turn the ball over at a higher rate than the Gophers and none give up more steals to the defense than the Maroon & Gold. Dre Hollins and the gang should improve with experience, but even during this nice postseason run the team's turnovers have consistently been an issue.
STANFORD
Note: Certain statistics below obtained from kenpom.com.
SHOOTING
The edge goes to Minnesota because of their two-point shooting, but Stanford has been the better team from long-range. At 37.9%, the Cardinal's three-point attack is good when it's coming from Chasson Randle or Aaron Bright, both of whom are converting at a 43.4% clip. Excluding those two, Stanford shoots 31.3%, with Anthony Brown (34.7%) being the only other real threat.
While the Gophers' 2FG% of 50.9% is good (and considerably better than Stanford's 47.5%), they'll be facing a solid defense that allows its opposition to make only 45.0% of their 2FG attempts.
TURNOVERS
Not only is Minnesota very poor at taking care of the ball, but few teams give the ball away via a steal more often than the Gophers. Stanford tends to plod along on offense at times, trying to work the ball around for a good shot, but if transition buckets are available they can take advantage.
Miscues have burned the Gophers in games earlier this year and almost almost did Tuesday night. Advantage Stanford.
REBOUNDING
One thing that has impressed me about the Gophers this season is their offensive rebounding. With Mbakwe out, Minnesota has put together a very good year on the offensive glass (36.5% OR%) and it's kept them in some games. Things won't be so easy against Stanford who has limited opponents to an OR% of 28.4% thanks to several good rebounders.
The Cardinal also does fairly well on the other side of the court (35.1% OR%) while Minnesota has been mediocre on the defensive glass this year. Advantage Stanford.
OVERALL
Stanford is not a good offensive team and at times can be ugly with the ball. They don't shoot particularly well and turn it over a fair amount. However, defensively Stanford is better than Minnesota and Thursday it'll probably take the Gophers shooting a higher percentage by a fair margin over the Cardinal in order to get the victory because the turnovers should favor Stanford and most likely rebounding will as well.
KEY PLAYERS
#5 Chasson Randle
6'1" 175 FR
13.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 43.4% 3FG
At one time this freshman guard from Rock Island, IL had Gopher interest. Just a couple of days after Randle's commitment to Stanford last October, Andre Hollins gave his pledge to the Gophers after also considering Stanford during his recruiting process. Chasson has enjoyed a strong first year on campus, including 82 three pointers made. Just 6'1", but long and can score from in a number of ways. Very talented combo guard.
#13 Josh Owens
6'8" 240 SR
11.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 57.3% FG
Very efficient big man who is a good rebounder (including OR% of 9.6%) and steady scorer.
#2 Aaron Bright
5'11" 177 SO
11.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 3.6 apg, 43.4% 3FG
Small point guard gets it done scoring himself as well as helping others. Only half his shots come from behind the arc, but he has shot better there (43.4%) than on his two-point tries (42.3%). Dangerous floor general.
#3 Anthony Brown
6'6" 210 SO
8.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg
Not as strong of a season as he might have hoped for (46.9% eFG% is down from 51.4% as a freshman), but he's still got a lot of promise and could turn out having a great junior year. Highly talented, just hasn't reached his full potential yet, but is young (won't celebrate his 20th birthday until just before the beginning of next season). Coming off a season-high 18 point performance against UMass in the NIT semifinals. He can pull up for the mid-range jumper, strike from beyond the arc, or impress at the rim.
#33 Dwight Powell
6'9" 225 SO
5.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg
This product of Canada moves well at his size and came to Stanford as a highly regarded recruit with NBA potential. With the ball he hasn't had an impressive year, struggling with turnovers and shooting just 45.3% eFG%, plus he still has not found his range from deep (1/17 3FG). Still, Powell has plenty of potential and is an excellent rebounder as well as a good shot blocker. Often finds himself in foul trouble and most nights his stat line isn't very impressive, but he's capable of an occasional big game. Like Brown, his best playing days are still ahead of him.
#24 Josh Huestis
6'7" 225 SO
5.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg
Doesn't offer much on offense, but has been excellent on the boards and blocks shots at an impressive rate.
Cardinal reserve forward #11 Andy Brown doesn't see the court often, but may get a few minutes late in the game Thursday. A story of perseverance, he's in his third year at Stanford yet played for the first time this past November.
s a senior in high school, Brown tore his left ACL. That was in January of 2009. He made it back on the court in time for the first day of practice as a freshman at Stanford when he tore the same ACL (October 2010). Fast forward to August 2010 and a simple drive toward the rim during open gym resulted in a third tear of the left ACL.
His surgeon says the repeated injury is likely due partly to an inadequate blood flow being generated by his body to the knee. Utilizing extra tissue in the repair and a longer rehab process, Brown finally played in his first college game in November 2011.
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/142045?referrer_id=388419
Game 38. We've finally made it. The Gophers will end their season Thursday night, capping off an improbable postseason run that has seen them win three road games and beat the PAC-12's regular season champion in Madison Square Garden. The goal for the rest of the year is simple: beat Stanford. Like so many of these games recently, this one could easily go either way.
Stanford goes fairly deep with their bench and, like the Gophers, they have a relatively young team. Minnesota has been starting three freshman and a sophomore these past few weeks, but at this point—game 38—those young kids who are still called freshman in the media guide are no longer new to this. Both squads are playing some of their best basketball of the season and want to end the year with a win.
The top scorer for the Cardinal is freshman combo guard Chasson Randle and he's been very good since the beginning of the year. Meanwhile, Minnesota's freshman combo guard Andre Hollins went through some growing pains and injury pains, but is now giving the Gopher faithful a preview of what he is capable of. Not only have his recent performances, as well as those of junior forward Rodney Williams, given fans reason to be optimistic about next season, but it's put Minnesota one win away from the NIT championship.
WASHINGTON WRAP-UP
Minnesota never trailed in their 68-67 overtime victory in the NIT semifinals, but they sure did make it interesting. In the first half everything went Minnesota's way and they went into the break with a 12 point lead. In those first 20 minutes of the contest, the Gophers outshot Washington (eFG%) 54.8% to 38.3%, held the edge in rebounding and only turned it over 6 times.
Victory made things feel much better at the end of the night, but the second half was ugly for Tubby Smith's team. No longer were they the better shooting team. The Huskies imposed their will on the offensive glass and Minnesota handed the ball over repeatedly. A comparison of first half and second half factors illustrates the differences:
MINNESOTA - OFFENSE
................eFG%...TO%...OR%
1st Half...54.8%...17%....33%
2nd Half..32.6%....33%...29%
MINNESOTA - DEFENSE
................eFG%...TO%...oOR%
1st Half...38.3%...18%.....27%
2nd Half..45.2%....22%....55%
Nonetheless, the Gophers pulled out another overtime victory and continue on to the championship game. However, Minnesota must clean up the turnovers next year if they want to have a shot at finishing in the top five of the Big Ten.
My quick look at the numbers tells me that of the 68 NCAA tournament teams, only 2 turn the ball over at a higher rate than the Gophers and none give up more steals to the defense than the Maroon & Gold. Dre Hollins and the gang should improve with experience, but even during this nice postseason run the team's turnovers have consistently been an issue.
STANFORD
Note: Certain statistics below obtained from kenpom.com.
SHOOTING
The edge goes to Minnesota because of their two-point shooting, but Stanford has been the better team from long-range. At 37.9%, the Cardinal's three-point attack is good when it's coming from Chasson Randle or Aaron Bright, both of whom are converting at a 43.4% clip. Excluding those two, Stanford shoots 31.3%, with Anthony Brown (34.7%) being the only other real threat.
While the Gophers' 2FG% of 50.9% is good (and considerably better than Stanford's 47.5%), they'll be facing a solid defense that allows its opposition to make only 45.0% of their 2FG attempts.
TURNOVERS
Not only is Minnesota very poor at taking care of the ball, but few teams give the ball away via a steal more often than the Gophers. Stanford tends to plod along on offense at times, trying to work the ball around for a good shot, but if transition buckets are available they can take advantage.
Miscues have burned the Gophers in games earlier this year and almost almost did Tuesday night. Advantage Stanford.
REBOUNDING
One thing that has impressed me about the Gophers this season is their offensive rebounding. With Mbakwe out, Minnesota has put together a very good year on the offensive glass (36.5% OR%) and it's kept them in some games. Things won't be so easy against Stanford who has limited opponents to an OR% of 28.4% thanks to several good rebounders.
The Cardinal also does fairly well on the other side of the court (35.1% OR%) while Minnesota has been mediocre on the defensive glass this year. Advantage Stanford.
OVERALL
Stanford is not a good offensive team and at times can be ugly with the ball. They don't shoot particularly well and turn it over a fair amount. However, defensively Stanford is better than Minnesota and Thursday it'll probably take the Gophers shooting a higher percentage by a fair margin over the Cardinal in order to get the victory because the turnovers should favor Stanford and most likely rebounding will as well.
KEY PLAYERS
#5 Chasson Randle
6'1" 175 FR
13.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 43.4% 3FG
At one time this freshman guard from Rock Island, IL had Gopher interest. Just a couple of days after Randle's commitment to Stanford last October, Andre Hollins gave his pledge to the Gophers after also considering Stanford during his recruiting process. Chasson has enjoyed a strong first year on campus, including 82 three pointers made. Just 6'1", but long and can score from in a number of ways. Very talented combo guard.
#13 Josh Owens
6'8" 240 SR
11.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 57.3% FG
Very efficient big man who is a good rebounder (including OR% of 9.6%) and steady scorer.
#2 Aaron Bright
5'11" 177 SO
11.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 3.6 apg, 43.4% 3FG
Small point guard gets it done scoring himself as well as helping others. Only half his shots come from behind the arc, but he has shot better there (43.4%) than on his two-point tries (42.3%). Dangerous floor general.
#3 Anthony Brown
6'6" 210 SO
8.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg
Not as strong of a season as he might have hoped for (46.9% eFG% is down from 51.4% as a freshman), but he's still got a lot of promise and could turn out having a great junior year. Highly talented, just hasn't reached his full potential yet, but is young (won't celebrate his 20th birthday until just before the beginning of next season). Coming off a season-high 18 point performance against UMass in the NIT semifinals. He can pull up for the mid-range jumper, strike from beyond the arc, or impress at the rim.
#33 Dwight Powell
6'9" 225 SO
5.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg
This product of Canada moves well at his size and came to Stanford as a highly regarded recruit with NBA potential. With the ball he hasn't had an impressive year, struggling with turnovers and shooting just 45.3% eFG%, plus he still has not found his range from deep (1/17 3FG). Still, Powell has plenty of potential and is an excellent rebounder as well as a good shot blocker. Often finds himself in foul trouble and most nights his stat line isn't very impressive, but he's capable of an occasional big game. Like Brown, his best playing days are still ahead of him.
#24 Josh Huestis
6'7" 225 SO
5.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg
Doesn't offer much on offense, but has been excellent on the boards and blocks shots at an impressive rate.
Cardinal reserve forward #11 Andy Brown doesn't see the court often, but may get a few minutes late in the game Thursday. A story of perseverance, he's in his third year at Stanford yet played for the first time this past November.
s a senior in high school, Brown tore his left ACL. That was in January of 2009. He made it back on the court in time for the first day of practice as a freshman at Stanford when he tore the same ACL (October 2010). Fast forward to August 2010 and a simple drive toward the rim during open gym resulted in a third tear of the left ACL.
His surgeon says the repeated injury is likely due partly to an inadequate blood flow being generated by his body to the knee. Utilizing extra tissue in the repair and a longer rehab process, Brown finally played in his first college game in November 2011.