Gopher Basketball
| Game Info | |
| Opponent: | Michigan Wolverines |
| When: | 8:00 pm, February 21st, 2008 |
| Where: | Williams Arena – Minneapolis, MN |
| Television: | ESPN2 |
Round two of Minnesota v. Michigan is on the horizon. The first meeting went to the Gophers, with the team dominating on the court for most of the game and the traveling members of the Barnyard dominating much of the crowd noises in the arena.
As always, please feel free to correct mistakes, add additional information you find interesting or post differing opinions by replying in the basketball forum.
University of Michigan, at a glance
- In 1870, Michigan became the first major university to admit women
- Michigan charges the highest out-state tuition of any public school in the United States, charging out-of-state students nearly 3 times what they charge Michigan residents
- Michigan’s Exhibit Museum houses a display featuring a full male and full female mastodons ““ putting to shame Iowa and their collection of extinct sloth bones, which is the 2nd largest in the country
- Michigan can related to Minnesota fans in basketball with regards to having Final Four banners sequestered away in the bowels of their buildings. Michigan had to removed their 1992 and 1993 Final Four banners following an NCAA investigation. Maybe these two banners and our 1997 banner have started an underground home for memorabilia of “œnever happened” accomplishments
- Former President and UM alum Gerald Ford used Michigan’s fight son, The Victors, instead of Hail to the Chief as his entrance music during his presidency
- Michigan was among the original 8 “œPublic Ivys” when they were first named in 1985. Recent updates have come to include all 10 public schools in the Big 10 conference, so the honor doesn’t quite ring as strongly as it once did
- Speaking of ““ here’s a joke: How many Michigan students does it take to screw in a light bulb? Three: One to screw in the light bulb and two others to tell him he screwed it in as well as any Ivy Leaguer would have
- Notable Michigan alumni include: Ann Coulter (say what you will about her), Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski, notable skeeze/pop singer Madonna, Robert Atkins, of Atkins Diet fame, and Carol Jantsch, who we all know is the only female tuba player in a major US orchestra
A Brief History of Minnesota/Michigan basketball
Of all the teams who were charter members of the Western Conference, Michigan was the last to play Minnesota head-to-head in basketball. Minnesota and Michigan first met on January 25, 1918 in Ann Arbor. The Gophers took this inaugural meeting by a score of 28-13. Later that year, Minnesota hosted Michigan and pummeled the Wolverines 49-10. Michigan scored its first victory over Minnesota on February 16, 1920, by a score of 21-20.
Minnesota and Michigan have played 129 times, making the Wolverines the Gophers’ 7th most played opponent in men’s basketball. The two have played at least once head-to-head every season since 1945-1946. The meeting in 1946-1947 broke a bizarre streak where the two teams, despite playing in the same conference, had not played in four years.
The Wolverines set the pace for the series in the early years, winning nearly two-thirds of the games played in the 1920s and 1930s. The comeback in the series began under the watch of Ozzie Cowles, who posted a stellar 15-3 mark against the Michigan during the late 1940s and 1950s as the Gophers head coach. During his time, Minnesota posted winning streaks of 5 and 6 games over Michigan, which still rank among the longest the Gophers have held during the entire series. The overall record of Jon Kundla, 8-6, doesn’t necessarily reflect dominance over the Wolverines, but he did win his first 6 in the series, giving the Gophers a dominating run from the late 1940s into the 1960s where the team won 21 of 24 meetings. As Kundla’s record began to fall closer to .500, the series entered an extended stage where if the teams weren’t even, Michigan was the dominate power. The scandal-marred 1986 season began a streak of 6 consecutive losses that spanned the first 5 meetings overseen by Clem Haskins. Clem lost 12 of his first 14 games to Michigan, and (including victories from forfeited seasons) posted an overall mark of just 8-17. Surprisingly, Dan Monson held a solid 7-4 mark over Michigan including the Gophers only win in the Big 10 tournament over the Wolverines (1-2 all-time).
This series doesn’t feature any particularly dominating winning streaks. The record for consecutive victories by one team over the other is 6, which has been done multiple times by each team.
The all-time series, if results are not altered for forfeited games is Michigan 78-62. The official all-time series, with Clem’s games removed, is Michigan 73-56.
Michigan this season
Michigan is among several Big 10 schools adjusting to a new head coach, in this case, John Beilein. Though the team has been playing better of late, their overall record remains well below .500 for the season.
Michigan is averaging 65.2 points per game this season, which is 9th in the Big 10. On defense, the Wolverines have been allowing 70 per contest, worst in the Big 10.
Michigan is 3-10 on the road this year, with their victories coming in the comatose gyms at Eastern Washington, Northwestern and Iowa. Of their 10 road losses, only 3 have been by a margin of less than 10 points.
Non-conference: The Wolverines played a tough non-conference schedule this year which included road trips to play Georgetown, Duke, and Butler as well as home games against UCLA and Boston College. All of these games resulted in losses for the Wolverines, by an average of 18 points. Some may recall that the UCLA game was actually close into the 2nd half, but the Bruins eventually pulled away to win the game by 15. Despite these thumpings by marquee opponents, no doubt the most painful loss of the non-conference season was the 62-51 loss at Harvard to deposed Wolverine head coach Tommy Amaker, who was still sporting the tie-less look on the sidelines. Though lacking the human element of drama that a match-up against the former coach possessed, equally tough to swallow was a loss on the home court to Central Michigan (who the Gophers dispatched by 18 points earlier in the year), 78-67. Michigan posted a 4-8 mark in the non-conference schedule.
In-conference: The conference season, to this point, has been divided into two parts. The first part features a Michigan team playing uninspired basketball and losing all but a single game, to hapless Northwestern, during a 1-9 start to conference play. The exclamation point on this stretch was a 6 game losing streak, including a loss at Crisler Arena to the Gophers, during which Michigan was losing by an average of 10 points per game. Michigan has been playing much better as of late, scoring 3 consecutive wins for the first time all season, the most recent being a victory last Sunday over Ohio State. This marked the first time a Thad Matta-coached Buckeyes team had lost to rival Michigan. The style in which Michigan won the game was also exceptional, as they continued to stave off Ohio State and maintained their lead as the game would be pulled to within a possession at various times in the second half. As I’ve stated in the basketball forum, the rushing of the court by the usually subdued Michigan faithful was the most recent and most glaring example of the abuse of the court rush we’ve witnessed this season. Ohio State wasn’t even ranked going into the game.
Judging on recent performances, this is not the same Michigan team Minnesota handily defeated in late January back in Ann Arbor. Michigan’s conference record right now stands at 4-9.
First Meeting with the Gophers: These teams’ first meeting was loaded with notable happenings. Going into the game, everyone knew that Cazzie Russell and other prominent members of the 1967-1968 Michigan team (minus Rudy Tomjanovch) were to be introduced at halftime as part of a celebration of Crisler Arena’s 40th anniversary. The celebration was dampened a bit, as the Gophers won the game 77-65. Gopher fans had reason to celebrate, not just over the victory, but because it was Tubby Smith’s 400th career win. This game is also notable because it was the Barnyard’s road trip, and according to all accounts, they made their presence felt among the few Michigan faithful who decided to attend.
The Gophers seniors had a rare game where they lead the team (and in some instances all players) in several major statistical category. Lawrence McKenzie had a team-high 18 points (Manny Harris dropped 19 for Michigan), Dan “œSlee-vye” Coleman had a game-high 11 rebounds, McKenzie had a game-high 5 assists, Spencer “œSmokey” Tollackson had a game high 5 steals (about 3 came in a bizarre spurt in the 1st half) and Coleman lead the Gophers with 2 blocks. The game was won on sharp shooting by the Gophers, who hit 58.5% of their shots from the field. Michigan’s 6-for-25 performance from beyond the arc (24%) also had a hand in allowing the Gophers to lead comfortably for much of the game.
The Wolverines you should know
2 ““ C.J. Lee (Jr.) Guard ““ Pittsford, NY (Pittsford Sutherland HS)
MPG 10.8 PPG 2.2 RPG 1.4 APG 1.2
-C.J. has struggled shooting the 3 this year. He’s 10-for-37 (27%). For his career, including his games at Manhattan, he’s 11-for-49 (22.4%)
-During Michigan’s current winning streak, C.J. has not shot a single 3-point shot. Priot to the winning streak beginning, he’d missed his last 9 in-game attempts. C.J. has not made a 3-point shot in a game since Jan. 8 against Indiana
-C.J. came to Michigan as a walk-on following the 2005-2006 season. He transferred from Manhattan College, and per NCAA transfer rules, sat out last season
-C.J. stands from Cecil Junior, as C.J.’s full name is Cecil Brian Lee, Jr.
-C.J. is a Political Science major
3 ““ Manny Harris (Fr.) Guard ““ Detroit, MI (Redford HS)
MPG 32.8 PPG 16.3 RPG 4.3 APG 2.9
-Manny has unfortunate timing. During most year’s, he’d be a lock to win Freshman of the Year in the Big 10. This year though, he will be runner-up to Eric Gordon of Indiana
-Manny is currently 3rd in the Big 10 in scoring, trailing only Gordon and Indiana teammate D.J. White. Manny’s strength is that he shoots well from all over the court, including at the free throw line
-Manny can occasionally play a bit of out of control. He fouled out of back-to-back contests against Iowa and Wisconsin in mid-January
-Manny is, in fact, not a nickname by Manny’s given name.
-Manny and I share a birthday, September 21st
11 ““ David Merritt (Sr.) Guard ““ West Bloomfield, MI (West Bloomfield HS)
MPG 11.0 PPG 1.6 RPG 1.4 APG 0.9
-David was injured for portions of the non-conference schedule and has seen more action as the Big 10 season has progressed. After not playing much in the Penn State and Iowa victories, David had one of his best games of the year last Sunday against Ohio State, posting 7 points (career high) and 4 assists ““ though he did miss a couple lay-ups and commit 3 turnovers
-David is a Sports Management major
12 ““ Anthony Wright (Fr.) Forward ““ Sterling, VA (Oak Hill Academy)
MPG 15.8 PPG 4.6 RPG 3.0 APG 0.6
-Anthony takes most of his shots from outside, with 80 of his 107 attempts coming from beyond the arc. As a result, his overall shooting percentage (34.6%) and his 3-point percentage (31.3%) are quite similar
-Anthony went into a lengthy funk shooting 3s earlier this season, when, over the course of 9 games he shot 1-for-16 (an almost non-existent percentage of 6.3%). This funk continued, though slightly improved, into Big 10 play, where he shot 4-for-15 (26.6%) during the first 5 games of the season before dropping a 5-for-8 performance in a loss to Illinois.
-Anthony attended Oak Hill Academy, the basketball factory responsible for producing numerous Division 1 and NBA talents
-Anthony’s middle name is Sylvester
15 ““ Jevohn Shepard (Jr.) Forward ““ Toronto, Ontario (West Hills Collegiate)
MPG 13.4 PPG 4.2 RPG 2.0 APG 0.7
-Jevohn has shot just 55.3% from the free throw line this year (21-for-38). For his career, Jevohn is a 52.2% FT shooter
-Jevohn also hasn’t shot particularly well from outside, hitting just 5-for-25 (20%) from 3 this year. For his career, he’s 12-for-54 (22.2%) when shooting 3s
-Jevohn has played just 11 minutes in the last two games combined. He’d only played fewer than 11 minutes in single game once during Big 10 play prior to this stretch
-Jevohn is a General Studies major
-Jevohn has been given the nickname “œAir Canada” by the Michigan student section, the always clever Maize Rage. Perhaps their time would be better spent working on their own nickname
22 ““ Ekpe Udoh (So.) Forward ““ Edmond, OK (Santa Fe HS)
MPG 25.4 PPG 5.9 RPG 4.7 APG 0.7
-Ekpe’s biggest contribution to the Wolverines is defensively as a shot-blocker. He’s averaging 3 blocked shots per game this year, and has posted two 6 block performances during Michigan’s current 3-game win streak. He has posted at least 1 block in all but 1 of Michigan’s game this season (lone exception, Jan. 2 against Wisconsin)
-Ekpe has had his issues from the free throw line this year, shooting a miserable 48.7%. For his career, he’s a 53.8% free throw shooter
-Ekpe’s middle name is Friday
-Ekpe is pronounced “œEpp-Ay” and means “œlion”
24 ““ Ron Coleman (Sr.) Forward ““ Romulus, MI (Romulus HS)
MPG 25.0 PPG 5.5 RPG 3.3 APG 1.4
-Ron is Michigan’s senior Coleman, and similar to our own, has had a season of ups and downs while being counted on to provide senior leadership. It includes performances of 14 points, 7 rebounds and 12 points 6 rebounds as well as terrible lines like 0 points in 29 minutes and 0 points, 0 rebounds in 17 minutes
-Ron’s highest point total in a Big 10 game this season is 14, which he dropped on the Gophers in Ann Arbor
-Ron has struggled when stepping out to shoot the 3 this year, hitting just 18-for-63 (28.6%)
-Ron committed to Michigan during his sophomore year of high school
-Ron is a General Studies major
32 ““ Zach Gibson (So.) Forward ““ Grand Blanc, MI (Grand Blanc HS)
MPG 14.6 PPG 5.6 RPG 2.8 APG 0.3
-Despite being 6’10″, Zach is willing to shoot 3s. He’s hit 9-for-29 this year, a 31% clip
-Zach is prone to foul, committing a foul, on average, once every 8 minutes played. He picked up 3 fouls in just 9 minutes in the team’s last game against Ohio State and has similarly posted totals of 3 fouls in 10 minutes, 3 fouls in 11 minutes and 3 fouls in 12 minutes in other Big 10 games
-Zach is a Sports Management major
34 ““ DeShawn Sims (So.) Forward ““ Detroit, MI (Detroit Pershing HS)
MPG 27.3 PPG 13.1 RPG 4.9APG 0.9
-DeShawn is the other major scorer on the team outside of Manny Harris. He averages about 12 FGAs per game
-DeShawn is coming off a strong 8-for-14, 22 point, 7 rebound performance against Ohio State last Sunday
-DeShawn didn’t play particularly well in the last meeting with Minnesota, shooting 3-for-10 and committing 5 turnovers
-DeShawn nickname is “œPeedi”
44 ““ Kelvin Grady (Fr.) Guard ““ Grand Rapids, MI (East Grand Rapids HS)
MPG 22.9 PPG 5.7 RPG 1.8 APG 2.8
-Kelvin has had a rough time shooting from the floor over the last 3 games, all Michigan wins, hitting just 4-for-14 combined. It is not the first time he’s gone into a drought, as earlier this year he went through a 6 game skid (Michigan was 1-5 during this run) where he hit just 7-for-28 (25%) from the floor
-Kelvin contribution to the offense comes as a passer, however. During the current win streak, he’s had 15 assists and just 2 turnovers, including a 9 assist/0 turnover performance against Iowa. This year, he’s only had 2 games where he’s committed more turnovers than assists
-Kelvin’s brother, Kevin, is a running back on Michigan’s football team
Talk about the Gopher – Michigan matchup on Tubby’s Barn message board.