Gardner-Webb shocks Gophers

When an opponent hits 12/20 three-point attempts it hurts you. When an opponent hits an old-fashioned three-point play with less than four seconds remaining trailing by two points it kills you. And that was exactly the formula at The Barn on Monday night as Gardner-Webb shocked the Minnesota Gophers with a surprising 73-72 win.

The scouting report was simple ““ the Bulldogs like to shoot three-pointers. Executing on the defensive end proved to be too difficult, however, as the Bulldogs came back from an early 8-2 Gopher lead and turned the chilly Minnesota night into a steaming hot Barn. The Bulldogs started shooting from all over the court, hitting three-pointers from every spot on the court and as deep as a few feet beyond NBA-range.

The Gophers, who have had a shortened bench all season long, had an even shorter one on Monday night as regular starting PF, Dan Coleman, was not with the team as he was dealing with a personal matter. The loss meant an increased role for Spencer Tollackson, and the big man from Chaska was up to the task. From the opening tip, Tollackson was determined to run the offense through him and had a few early buckets which fired him and the team up.

Gardner-Webb could do little wrong though in the first half as they hit 9/14 from three-point land, while the Gophers were 0/7. This disparity led to a 40-32 Bulldog lead at halftime.

The start of the second half was unfortunately more of the same for the Gophers as Gardner-Webb hit two three-pointers and opened a commanding 46-32 lead before a stunned Gopher crowd.

But for the Gopher fans who have been hoping for an increased role from Tollackson this year ““ that is exactly what they got tonight. Tollackson single-handedly put the team on his back in the second half scoring with a variety of post-moves, put-backs and solid defensive play. He was the emotional leader out there tonight and was the catalyst for a ferocious Gopher comeback.

Tollackson’s play and intensity spilled over to senior Maurice Hargrow who did his best Vincent Grier impersonation and absolutely dominated down the stretch. He hit from all over the court including a bit three-pointer, a few up and under moves and a spinning jumper. But it was a big assist from Hargrow to J’son Stamper that gave the Gophers a huge 72-70 late in the second half. The Gophers squandered a chance to build on the lead as Adam Boone missed a jumper, giving the Bulldogs one last possession with about 10 seconds remaining.

The Bulldogs’, who had hit 12 three-pointers, did their damage much closer to the basket as Tim Jennings drove to the hoop and hit a lay-up as he was fouled by Stamper. Jennings hit the free throw and after a missed desparation three-pointer by the Gophers, Gardner-Webb walked out of Williams Arena with the oine point win.

Despite a brutal loss to Gardner-Webb, there are a few bright spots for the Gophers. Tollackson had a career night with 21 points and eight rebounds and Hargrow also added 21, with a few spectacular shots down the stretch. The Gophers outrebounded the Bulldogs by a commanding 45-24 margin (with an impressive 20 offensive rebounds), but they must live with giving up 60% from the three-point line and committing a crucial foul in the games remaining seconds.

The good news is Minnesota will not have time to think about this brutal loss as it has three games in the next seven days. The bad news is Minnesota travels to Maryland on Wednesday night for the Big Ten/ACC Challenge and half a week later has to travel to Arizona State to take on the Sun Devils. In between there, the maroon and gold host Coastal Carolina, and the team proved tonight that no home game is an easy win.

Talk about the loss on the Gopher Basketball Message Board.