BleedGopher
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per Judd:
In the Gophers’ 68-59 victory at Illinois, the game that began this winning streak for Minnesota, Murphy was a non-factor. He went 0-for-3 from the field, finished with two points and had four rebounds in 23 minutes. Pitino had seen enough and decided to have a sit down with Murphy around that time.
The discussion might not have been entirely pleasant but it proved to be highly effective. In his next game, Murphy had 25 points, making 10-of-13 shots, and 19 rebounds in 39 minutes in a 101-89 double-overtime victory over Iowa at Williams Arena.
“I think the biggest thing was when we spoke about it I gave him the truth as I saw it,” Pitino said. “Some people fight it and he didn’t fight it. He just embraced it and said, ‘You know what? You’re right.’ Ever since then he’s been a terrific player. It’s him that did it. He just said, ‘OK, this is the type of player I need to become.’ It’s impressive for a young guy to do that.”
Said Murphy: “I just had to figure out what my real identity is on the team. I came with rebounding. I’m a pretty good rebounder. That just gets the whole game going for me. If I get a couple offensive or defensive, it just gets everything rolling. … I was definitely fighting it a little bit. But then coach told me I was going to be a lot happier if I just focused on things that I’m good at. Once I did he was right, I’m a lot happier right now.”
More importantly, with the postseason approaching, Murphy also is a lot more productive.
http://www.1500espn.com/gophers-2/2...ssion-jordan-murphys-season-disappointing-no/
Go Gophers!!
In the Gophers’ 68-59 victory at Illinois, the game that began this winning streak for Minnesota, Murphy was a non-factor. He went 0-for-3 from the field, finished with two points and had four rebounds in 23 minutes. Pitino had seen enough and decided to have a sit down with Murphy around that time.
The discussion might not have been entirely pleasant but it proved to be highly effective. In his next game, Murphy had 25 points, making 10-of-13 shots, and 19 rebounds in 39 minutes in a 101-89 double-overtime victory over Iowa at Williams Arena.
“I think the biggest thing was when we spoke about it I gave him the truth as I saw it,” Pitino said. “Some people fight it and he didn’t fight it. He just embraced it and said, ‘You know what? You’re right.’ Ever since then he’s been a terrific player. It’s him that did it. He just said, ‘OK, this is the type of player I need to become.’ It’s impressive for a young guy to do that.”
Said Murphy: “I just had to figure out what my real identity is on the team. I came with rebounding. I’m a pretty good rebounder. That just gets the whole game going for me. If I get a couple offensive or defensive, it just gets everything rolling. … I was definitely fighting it a little bit. But then coach told me I was going to be a lot happier if I just focused on things that I’m good at. Once I did he was right, I’m a lot happier right now.”
More importantly, with the postseason approaching, Murphy also is a lot more productive.
http://www.1500espn.com/gophers-2/2...ssion-jordan-murphys-season-disappointing-no/
Go Gophers!!