Coach K in typical scream mode.
SERIES INFORMATION
Series: 3rd Meeting (1-1)
Series (Neutral): 3rd Meeting (1-1)
Current Streak: 0-1
Last Meeting: March 24, 1989 (L, 87-70 – NCAA)
Tubby Smith vs. Duke: 4th Meeting (1-2)
Minnesota vs. ACC: 16-23
Tubby Smith vs. ACC: 22-15
Game Day Tid-Bits:
• Tubby Smith is 22-15 all-time against Atlantic Coast Conference teams and will be meeting Duke for the fourth time as a head coach.
• This is the third meeting between Minnesota and Duke. The last meeting came in the 1989 NCAA Sweet 16, the first NCAA Tournament appearance for a Clem Haskins-led Gophers team and also the first NCAA appearance for Minnesota since the 1981-82 team.
• Minnesota lost the game 87-70 to a Blue Devil team that would eventually lose in the Final Four to Seton Hall. The Gophers were led by Willie Burton with 26 points. Kevin Lynch chipped in with 14. Duke’s starting five contributed all but 11 points in the game, led by Phil Henderson and Robert Brickey with 21 apiece. Danny Ferry added 18 and freshman Christian Laettner finished with 10. The game was played in East Rutherford, N.J.
• The Gophers lone win in the series, a 79-73 victory, came on Dec. 28, 1954 during the Dixie Classic in Raleigh, N.C.
• The Blue Devils enter the Battle 4 Atlantis as the fifth ranked team in the nation. With that ranking, Duke will be the highest ranked team the Gophers have played in the Tubby Smith era since facing the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes during the 2011 Big Ten Conference season.
• Minnesota heads to the Battle 4 Atlantis with an overall record of 13-6 against the other seven teams in the field.
• Minnesota holds a record of 11-4 in regular-season tournaments during the Tubby Smith era, including the 2010 Puerto Rico Tipoff title after wins over Western Kentucky, #8 North Carolina & West Virginia.
Gophers and In-Season Tournaments:
• The Gophers have a combined record of 72-41 in in-season tournaments, dating back to the Chicago District Olympic Tournament during the 1935-36 season.
• The Gophers went 2-1 at the 2011 Old Spice Classic with wins over DePaul & Indiana State. Minnesota lost to Dayton in the championship game.
• Minnesota went 3-0 to capture the Puerto Rico Tipoff title during the 2010 non-conference season. The Gophers’ wins came against Western Kentucky, No. 8 North Carolina and West Virginia in the championship. Trevor Mbakwe was named the MVP of the tournament.
• Minnesota is 11-4 under Tubby Smith in in-season tournaments including a pair of victories over top-10 teams; the aforementioned victory over #8 UNC and a 82-73 win over #10 Butler in the 2009 ESPN 76 Classic in Anaheim.
• The most success in the history of the program in in-season tournaments came during the eight seasons in which the Gophers hosted the Pillsbury Classic from 1974-82. Minnesota never dropped a game in the history of the event, finishing 16-0
TUBBY HEADING TOWARD 500
• With the victory over Richmond on Nov. 18, Gopher head coach Tubby Smith now has 494 career wins.
• He will attempt to become just the 18th current active coach in NCAA D1 to reach the 500-win mark. Smith and three other current head coaches were within 12 games of the feat at the start of the season. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski is the all-time winningest coach with 930 career victories.
• Smith became just the eighth coach in Minnesota history to win 100 games with a victory over La Salle in the opening round of the 2012 NIT. He now sits with 107 wins on the Gopher sideline, four wins shy of passing John Kundla on the Gophers’ win list.
• Smith holds the fourth-highest winning percentage in Minnesota history.
• Smith has led Minnesota to the post season in four of his five seasons.
Minnesota Coaches with 100 Wins
L.J. Cooke 250-135 (28 seasons)
Clem Haskins* 240-165 (13 seasons)
Dave McMillan 196-156 (18 seasons)
Jim Dutcher 190-113 (11 seasons)
O.B. Cowles 147-93 (11 seasons)
Dan Monson 118-106 (7 seasons)
John Kundla 110-105 (9 seasons)
Tubby Smith 107-68 (6 seasons)
*includes vacated games