- Joined
- Nov 3, 2008
- Messages
- 5,172
- Reaction score
- 1,386
- Points
- 113
Road to Selection Sunday: U Already Behind 8-Ball, So Beating Boilers Becomes Paramount
By SelectionSunday
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/127719?referrer_id=331171
As the second weekend of the B1G season arrives Saturday, the Minnesota Golden Gophers (12-4, 0-3, #40 RPI) already have reached something of a crossroads. Losses in Champaign and Ann Arbor certainly were frustrating missed opportunities, but not unexpected. There were glimpses the Gophers would be able to compete against like B1G teams, even without potential All-American forward Trevor Mbakwe.
Then came Wednesday, a deflating and, yes, unexpected B1G home-opening loss to improved Iowa. Fifteen minutes of good basketball and an 11-point lead was flushed down the toilet in the final 4-5 minutes of the first half. The Gophers still led 32-31 at the half, but everyone in the building knew which team had the upper hand and the momentum heading into the final 20 minutes. The end result, we all know. A 64-62 Iowa win, one that had Gopher fans shaking their heads and harkening back to the end of a difficult era in Gopher basketball history just 6 (long) seasons ago.
All is not lost, yet, but any Gopher fan thinking clearly probably acknowledges that Sunday's 5 p.m. tilt with Purdue (BTN) at Williams Arena is about as close to a must-win game as one can get in the month of January. A 1-3 conference record with another top 50-75'ish win heading to Bloomington -- where the Hoosiers have beaten a who's who of ranked teams -- sounds a lot less daunting than 0-4 with 2 home losses just 22% of the way into the B1G slate.
It's this simple for the U.
Beat the Boilers, get to 1-3, take some pressure off, then go see what you can do against Tom Crean's red-hot Hoosiers. But even with a loss in Bloomington, the Gophers' "most winnable" road game (Penn State) follows, surely in front of 700-1,000 of the Nittany Lions' closest friends and family. Yes, I'm aware the Nitts took down Purdue last night in Happy Valley, but that doesn't change the fact Bryce Jordan Center is the least imposing venue in the conference. If the Gophers can get to 2-4 at the one-third mark of the conference season, it's not where most of us hoped they'd be (I expected 3-3) but it would get them back where they need to be. ... on track (but with a small margin of error) for a 9-9 conference mark, one that likely would have them in the mix for at-large NCAA tourney consideration.
The impact of a 0-2 start to the home schedule, with the likes of Indiana, Sparty, Ohio State and Bucky Badger still on the Williams Arena docket? Let's not go there.
Here's one set of B1G power rankings, based completely on road wins - (minus) home losses, with point differential thrown in for good measure. The intent is to give an idea of which teams are ahead of the curve & which ones have fallen behind the 8-ball early in the season.
The Gophers certainly have earned the "close but no cigar" award through three games, with their losses by a total of 16 points, including one by 9 in double overtime. But we all know the saying about coming close. ... horseshoes and hand grenades my friends, horseshoes and hand grenades. Current RPI ranking is noted in parentheses.
The B1G Plus/Minus Rankings
1. Michigan State (#6): +2 (2 road wins), +31 point differential
2. Illinois (#18): +1 (1 road win), -5 point differential
3. Purdue (#45): +1 (1 road win), -2 point differential
4. Iowa (#120): +1 (2 road wins, 1 home loss), +6 point differential
5. Indiana (#8): Even, -9 point differential
6. Ohio State (#11): Even, +60 point differential
7. Michigan (#31): Even, +21 point differential
8. Penn State (#127): Even, -10 point differential
9. Northwestern (#36): -1 (1 home loss), -22 point differential
10. GOPHERS (#40): -1 (1 home loss), -16 point differential
11. Wisconsin (#61): -1 (1 road win, 2 home losses), +14 point differential
12. Nebraska (#116): -2 (2 home losses), -68 point differential
Best 2 Wins (in order of teams with the best RPI win)
Ohio State -- Duke (#2), Northwestern (#36)
Northwestern -- vs. Seton Hall (#3), vs. LSU (#82)
Michigan State -- Indiana (#8), @ Gonzaga (#10)
Indiana -- Kentucky (#9), Ohio State (#11)
Illinois -- Gonzaga (#10), @ Northwestern (#36)
Wisconsin -- UNLV (14), vs. BYU (46)
Purdue -- vs. Temple (#17), Illinois (#18)
Michigan -- vs. Memphis (#34), Gophers (#40)
GOPHERS -- Virginia Tech (#37), South Dakota State (#68)
Iowa -- @ Gophers (#40), @ Wisconsin (#61)
Penn State -- Purdue (#45), vs. South Florida (#114)
Nebraska -- South Dakota State (68), @ TCU (98)
Next RTSS: Sunday, Jan. 15 or Monday, Jan. 16 -- A Field of 68 projection as we hit the 1/3 mark of the B1G season.
By SelectionSunday
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/127719?referrer_id=331171
As the second weekend of the B1G season arrives Saturday, the Minnesota Golden Gophers (12-4, 0-3, #40 RPI) already have reached something of a crossroads. Losses in Champaign and Ann Arbor certainly were frustrating missed opportunities, but not unexpected. There were glimpses the Gophers would be able to compete against like B1G teams, even without potential All-American forward Trevor Mbakwe.
Then came Wednesday, a deflating and, yes, unexpected B1G home-opening loss to improved Iowa. Fifteen minutes of good basketball and an 11-point lead was flushed down the toilet in the final 4-5 minutes of the first half. The Gophers still led 32-31 at the half, but everyone in the building knew which team had the upper hand and the momentum heading into the final 20 minutes. The end result, we all know. A 64-62 Iowa win, one that had Gopher fans shaking their heads and harkening back to the end of a difficult era in Gopher basketball history just 6 (long) seasons ago.
All is not lost, yet, but any Gopher fan thinking clearly probably acknowledges that Sunday's 5 p.m. tilt with Purdue (BTN) at Williams Arena is about as close to a must-win game as one can get in the month of January. A 1-3 conference record with another top 50-75'ish win heading to Bloomington -- where the Hoosiers have beaten a who's who of ranked teams -- sounds a lot less daunting than 0-4 with 2 home losses just 22% of the way into the B1G slate.
It's this simple for the U.
Beat the Boilers, get to 1-3, take some pressure off, then go see what you can do against Tom Crean's red-hot Hoosiers. But even with a loss in Bloomington, the Gophers' "most winnable" road game (Penn State) follows, surely in front of 700-1,000 of the Nittany Lions' closest friends and family. Yes, I'm aware the Nitts took down Purdue last night in Happy Valley, but that doesn't change the fact Bryce Jordan Center is the least imposing venue in the conference. If the Gophers can get to 2-4 at the one-third mark of the conference season, it's not where most of us hoped they'd be (I expected 3-3) but it would get them back where they need to be. ... on track (but with a small margin of error) for a 9-9 conference mark, one that likely would have them in the mix for at-large NCAA tourney consideration.
The impact of a 0-2 start to the home schedule, with the likes of Indiana, Sparty, Ohio State and Bucky Badger still on the Williams Arena docket? Let's not go there.
Here's one set of B1G power rankings, based completely on road wins - (minus) home losses, with point differential thrown in for good measure. The intent is to give an idea of which teams are ahead of the curve & which ones have fallen behind the 8-ball early in the season.
The Gophers certainly have earned the "close but no cigar" award through three games, with their losses by a total of 16 points, including one by 9 in double overtime. But we all know the saying about coming close. ... horseshoes and hand grenades my friends, horseshoes and hand grenades. Current RPI ranking is noted in parentheses.
The B1G Plus/Minus Rankings
1. Michigan State (#6): +2 (2 road wins), +31 point differential
2. Illinois (#18): +1 (1 road win), -5 point differential
3. Purdue (#45): +1 (1 road win), -2 point differential
4. Iowa (#120): +1 (2 road wins, 1 home loss), +6 point differential
5. Indiana (#8): Even, -9 point differential
6. Ohio State (#11): Even, +60 point differential
7. Michigan (#31): Even, +21 point differential
8. Penn State (#127): Even, -10 point differential
9. Northwestern (#36): -1 (1 home loss), -22 point differential
10. GOPHERS (#40): -1 (1 home loss), -16 point differential
11. Wisconsin (#61): -1 (1 road win, 2 home losses), +14 point differential
12. Nebraska (#116): -2 (2 home losses), -68 point differential
Best 2 Wins (in order of teams with the best RPI win)
Ohio State -- Duke (#2), Northwestern (#36)
Northwestern -- vs. Seton Hall (#3), vs. LSU (#82)
Michigan State -- Indiana (#8), @ Gonzaga (#10)
Indiana -- Kentucky (#9), Ohio State (#11)
Illinois -- Gonzaga (#10), @ Northwestern (#36)
Wisconsin -- UNLV (14), vs. BYU (46)
Purdue -- vs. Temple (#17), Illinois (#18)
Michigan -- vs. Memphis (#34), Gophers (#40)
GOPHERS -- Virginia Tech (#37), South Dakota State (#68)
Iowa -- @ Gophers (#40), @ Wisconsin (#61)
Penn State -- Purdue (#45), vs. South Florida (#114)
Nebraska -- South Dakota State (68), @ TCU (98)
Next RTSS: Sunday, Jan. 15 or Monday, Jan. 16 -- A Field of 68 projection as we hit the 1/3 mark of the B1G season.