The Next Two

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Gopherbbdude

Gopherbbdude

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The next two games will be tough. As good as these guys are, I'm not sure they will win either.

I'd be super happy with a split
 

I'd say the next 5 could be real tough. Win 3 of the 5 and we'll be looking really good down the stretch.
 

For reference:

@ MSU
@ PSU
VS wisconsin
@ OSU
VS Maryland
@ Illinois
VS Iowa
@ Rutgers
VS IU
VS Michigan
@ Maryland
VS PSU
VS Nebraska
@ wisconsin
 

MadtownGopher said:
For reference:

@ MSU
@ PSU
VS wisconsin
@ OSU
VS Maryland_______________________2-3 Either hold your home court or steal one on the road. PSU is tougher than expected
@ Illinois
VS Iowa
@ Rutgers
VS IU
VS Michigan
@ Maryland____________________________4-2 Best section of our schedule, starts with winning at home. We are better than Rutgers and Illinois.
VS PSU
VS Nebraska
@ wisconsin________________2-1 Two must win home games
Click to expand...

Do the above and we have had a great turnaround season 11-7 Big Ten
 

This is a really hard 5 game stretch. However, I thought we had a decent chance of being 0-4 at this point so I am hopeful we can go at least 2-3 in these five games.

Would love to steal another road victory on Wednesday night! Go Gophers!
 


The Golden Gophers are flying pretty high right now. They want pay back from MSU, if they get that they could reel off 7 more. Then we get IU at home. I see @Wisconsin as real tough challenge. (not predicting a 2 loss B1G record, just feeling a little froggy)
 

MadtownGopher said:
For reference:

@ MSU - lose
@ PSU - win
VS wisconsin - lose
@ OSU - win
VS Maryland - lose
@ Illinois - win
VS Iowa - win
@ Rutgers - win
VS IU - lose
VS Michigan - win
@ Maryland - lose
VS PSU - win
VS Nebraska - win
@ wisconsin - lose
Click to expand...

23-8 overall
11-7 conference
 


It's foolish to predict what will happen in any of the games to come, as injuries/suspensions/poor play could all come out of nowhere, and we could be faced with different challenges.

However, I don't look at the schedule and see a game that is un-winnable. The Gophers have shown that they can compete against all different types of foes and be competitive... the tall team (Purdue, FSU), the experienced team (OSU, NW), the zone defense (NW). I saw in one of the posts above that a user projected losses against Wisconsin, Maryland, and Indiana at home. Based on what I've seen, I would be SHOCKED if the Gophers lost all three of those home games.

I'm sure we'll lose a game or two that we should win, and that we'll win a few that we "shouldn't". Assuming that all of the players can stay on the court.

Super fun team to watch that makes every game winnable and has a super high compete-level!

Go Gophers
 



Totally agree - I watched WI @ PUR yesterday, and at no point did WI have real momentum / seem to have a chance to win that game. MN was in control for majority of game @ PUR and it was PUR who had the uphill climb to compete / stay in game - I'm not sure why we are still considering WI, or anyone else for that matter, a superior opponent at this moment in time. There's nothing that would make me believe we would not be a favorite on our home court against WI if match up were today
 

Realistically, it doesn't get any easier. The team needs to be able to accelerate instead of coast. The work has just begun.
 

The Big Ten is so middle heavy this year. Not really any teams that are head and shoulders above everyone else but not a lot of guaranteed wins either. Should be a lot of fun!
 

This years Big has the most parity it has had in years. Talent and depth wise we can play with anybody. Should be an exciting finish and I hope our young players continue to improve.
 



Really energized by the strong start after a successful preseason with no bad losses. The one thing this team was missing was a little senior leadership and now we have that - in spades it seems - with Springs. To bounce back after the loss to MSU with a win on the road to ranked Purdue was so encouraging. I think we can play with anyone, but every game is going to be tough. We have a week to prepare for Wisconsin, and hopefully that will be a good thing.
 

A sweep (either way) isn't out of the question so when faced with back-to-back road games, at this stage of the Gopher program I refuse to sneeze at any road split. Gophers are playing 2 average to above-average B1G teams on the road. If they're 4-2 in the B1G at 1:30 Saturday afternoon, I'll take it. Still very much on the right path, especially if the win is Sparty.
 

SelectionSunday said:
A sweep (either way) isn't out of the question so when faced with back-to-back road games, at this stage of the Gopher program I refuse to sneeze at any road split. Gophers are playing 2 average to above-average B1G teams on the road. If they're 4-2 in the B1G at 1:30 Saturday afternoon, still very much on the right path, especially if the win is Sparty.
Click to expand...

4-2, yes, I'd take that right now and love it, going into the Wisconsin game. It will be interesting to see what kind of chip our guys have on their shoulders over the close loss at MSU and how the coaches deal with the combination of Bridges and Ward. And Penn State- they are solid.
 

At this point this team just has to avoid an extended losing streak. If the main guys (Lynch, Mason, Coffey) stay out of foul trouble this team can play with pretty much anyone and should only get better as they get more experience together. Trying not to get too excited but they are such a fun team to watch and they don't just rely on one or two guys to carry them each night that they could be a team that can make some noise in the NCAA tournament.

To me Lynch is the key. They don't have anyone else that can do what he does when he isn't on the court for long stretches. 51 blocked shots....that is just unreal. In the BIG there is one other player at 49 a second at 40 and nobody else is over 30. It can't be undersold what that means to have a presence like that under the basket where players have to worry about getting their shot blocked if they drive to the hoop.
 

MNVCGUY said:
At this point this team just has to avoid an extended losing streak. If the main guys (Lynch, Mason, Coffey) stay out of foul trouble this team can play with pretty much anyone and should only get better as they get more experience together. Trying not to get too excited but they are such a fun team to watch and they don't just rely on one or two guys to carry them each night that they could be a team that can make some noise in the NCAA tournament.

To me Lynch is the key. They don't have anyone else that can do what he does when he isn't on the court for long stretches. 51 blocked shots....that is just unreal. In the BIG there is one other player at 49 a second at 40 and nobody else is over 30. It can't be undersold what that means to have a presence like that under the basket where players have to worry about getting their shot blocked if they drive to the hoop.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately they also have to worry about being fouled.
 

MNVCGUY said:
. ... To me Lynch is the key. They don't have anyone else that can do what he does when he isn't on the court for long stretches. 51 blocked shots....that is just unreal. In the BIG there is one other player at 49 a second at 40 and nobody else is over 30. It can't be undersold what that means to have a presence like that under the basket where players have to worry about getting their shot blocked if they drive to the hoop.
Click to expand...

Agree about Lynch. Most indispensable player on the Gophers roster. He needs to start understanding that, don't commit the silly, reach-in, reach-over type fouls. Vastly different looking team when he's on the pine.
 

MNVCGUY said:
At this point this team just has to avoid an extended losing streak. If the main guys (Lynch, Mason, Coffey) stay out of foul trouble this team can play with pretty much anyone and should only get better as they get more experience together. Trying not to get too excited but they are such a fun team to watch and they don't just rely on one or two guys to carry them each night that they could be a team that can make some noise in the NCAA tournament.

To me Lynch is the key. They don't have anyone else that can do what he does when he isn't on the court for long stretches. 51 blocked shots....that is just unreal. In the BIG there is one other player at 49 a second at 40 and nobody else is over 30. It can't be undersold what that means to have a presence like that under the basket where players have to worry about getting their shot blocked if they drive to the hoop.
Click to expand...

100% on Lynch. He made a huge block at a key time in the OSU game that turned it for us (along with the Springs 25 footer). The other thing Lynch does is give us a huge body down low on offense that the other team has to at least deal with. While he is not a polished offensive player- he has to be respected and that give the other guys a little more room to work.
 

SelectionSunday said:
Agree about Lynch. Most indispensable player on the Gophers roster. He needs to start understanding that, don't commit the silly, reach-in, reach-over type fouls. Vastly different looking team when he's on the pine.
Click to expand...
Exactly. Fouling out reaching for a rebound that was never going to be his was frustrating to watch. Still, I'm pleased with how he's improving and coming back after sitting out/injury.
 

Lynch is the only one of our bigs that can effectively guard Ward.....hence the reason we lost to them the first time.
 

Another note on Lynch. Deceptively quick for a guy his size. You don't see too many guys getting around him on a drive.
 

The Big 10 is extremely middle heavy - it's also probably as weak as its been in a long time.

No knock on Gophs here. They are obviously much improved...but this Big 10 is softer than usual. Hope MN takes advantage and goes at least 9-9. My original hope was six wins - coming off an 8-win season I thought six wins was a solid step up. With how they look combined with how a lot of other teams look, I think 9 wins is really doable.
 

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