Gophers' MO Coming Clear

I think I see a pattern emerging: Three quarters of lackadaisical play. Then, a knockout down the stretch. Last night, for example, the Gopher men trailed South Dakota State University 44-39 with 14:36 remaining. An 18-1 run put Minnesota firmly in charge at 57-45, and they coasted to a 71-55 final.

• The Gophers had squandered a 39-26 lead over Bemidji State in their 1st exhibition, as the Beavers fought to within 47-40 at 10:10. A 10-0 run with 4 different players scoring put Minnesota back in charge. Most of the points came on 7-of-8 FT shooting.

• The Gophers led Augustana by as much as 48-40 in the 2nd half, but Augie had come within 3 at 63-60 with 4:29 on the clock. A 9-0 run to the final buzzer gave Minnesota the win. This time, Trevor Mbakwe scored 7 of the 9 including 3-for-3 from the line. As a team the Gophers were 5-of-7 from the line during the run. Minnesota also blocked 2 shots down the stretch.

• Minnesota led Bucknell 39-35 early in the 2nd half, but fell behind 53-48 with just 5:53 to play. A 22-5 run to the buzzer made it a 70-58 final. Mbakwe scored 9 and Austin Hollins 8 of the 22, and 3 other players scored. The Gophers made 18-of-their-last-21 FT attempts including a rare 3-for-3 by Austin that made it 58-53 with 2:35 left. There were 2 blocks and a steal during the run.

This time Maverick Ahanmisi keyed the Gophers' winning burst with a much-needed 3, then he added an assist and a steal and 2 FT. 7 different players scored, but 13 of the 18 points came from the bench. In addition to Ahanmisi's 5, there was a 3 by Oto Osenieks, a 2+1 by Joe Coleman, a 2 by Andre Ingram. And Chip Armellin chipped in with 2 assists, a block and a board. Minnesota made 5-of-7 FG and 6-of-7 throws. There were 4 steals and 2 blocks, so defense again was a big part of the run.

Nate Wolters had given the Jackrabbits a shot. He scored 10 points in each half, but 8 of his 2nd half points came on 3-of-5 shooting in the 1st 3-and-a-half minutes. He would make only 1 bucket over the final 16:26. SDSU also somehow dominated the rebounding. By game's end it was 37-33 for the Jackrabbits, but at one point it was 27-17. The final count off the offensive glass was 13 for SDSU, 6 for Minnesota, and the 2nd chance points were 15-6 in favor of the Jacks.

Minnesota led on points off turnovers 14-10, however, and 32-22 on points in the paint.

Mbakwe made 6-of-7 shots and led the way with 17 points, 10 boards and 4 blocks. But he sure doesn't get many touches on the offensive end, and if people like Augustana and South Dakota State can deny him the ball in the paint, how much is he going to be handling the ball down low in the Big 10. The one guy who seems to have a knack for getting the ball to Mbakwe is Ralph Sampson. So a little 2-on-2 seems to be in order. Tubby needs to figure out something to get Mbakwe more touches and more shots.

Ralph Sampson made 5-of-7 for 10 points. Rodney Williams had a nice floor game with 7 points, 4 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks, and he was a little more aggressive than he's been on the offensive end.

The Gophers lost the possession game, but out-shot their opponents, 57 percent to 30 percent. In particular, Minnesota made 21-of-33 2-pointers, while SDSU made only 13-of-32 (41 percent) from inside the arc. There was no advantage, surprisingly, from beyond the arc. Minnesota was 6-of-14, SDSU 6-of-20. Each team made 11-of-21 throws.

Ahanmisi was the Gophers' player of the game for sparking the Gophers' winning run but Nate Wolters was the best player on the court.

The Gophers' minutes looked something like this:

C Sampson 28 Mbakwe 8 Eliason 4

PF Mbakwe 25 Osenieks 9 Ingram 5 Halvorsen 1

SF Rodney 32 Coleman 6 Osenieks 2

PG Austin 9 Welch 17 Ahanmisi 13 Shell 1

SG Andre 11 Amellin 19 Austin 9 Coleman 1

Armellin, Coleman and Ingram all had their best game of this season. Armellin in particular with 9 points, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block.

More of the Same from Gopher Men and Women

The Gopher men and women both won for the 3rd time in this young season last night, but that's where the similarities end.

The women beat a BCS school on a neutral court, while the men struggled to beat a mid-major (Bucknell, as it happens) at home.

Gopher women 68 Arkansas 60

The women stormed away from a 42-all tie against Arkansas. A 15-4 run made it 57-46 at 4:50. Still the Razorbacks got within 59-55 at 3:10 but buckets by Katie Loberg and Leah Cotton and 2 FT by Kiara Buford iced it.

Pam Borton played a 9-deep rotation:

Post-Loberg 29 minutes, Micaella Riche 11

PF- Kellogg 28 Jackie Voigt 12

SF- Sari Noga 22 Buford 9 and Br. Mastey 9

PG-Banham 31 Cotton 9

SD- Buford 23 Cotton 17

Banham led the way with 15 points and 4 assists, leading one poster over on Short Street to observe that she is making it hard for Gopher fans to have modest expectations of her. Buford added 13, and Loberg 12 with 7 boards. Kellogg scored 8 and had 6 steals.

The Gophers narrowly won the possession game as each team had 13 offensive boards. Arkansas had 24 turnovers and the Gophers 14 steals, while Minnesota turned the ball over 18 times. The Gophers also won the shooting contest, but narrowly, 44 percent from the field to 40 and 79-59 from the FT line. But Minnesota made just 1-of-7 3s, while Arkansas made 8-of-24 to stay close.

Minnesota men 70 Bucknell 58

This one was a lot closer than it looks. Minnesota trailed 53-48 at 5:53 and looked to be in a world of hurt. Bucknell was on a 9-4 run on 3s by Cameron Ayers (2 of them) and Bryan Cohen. The Gophers, meanwhile, had missed 8-of-14 2nd half FT.

But Trevor Mbakwe hit a pair of throws at 4:30, then Austin Hollins tied it up with a 3 at 4:55. Trevor hit another pair of throws, and Austin 3 throws at 2:35 and suddenly it was 58-53 Minnesota. Welch hit a 2+1, Mbakwe a 2, and Trevor, Welch and Andre Hollins made 7-of-8 throws the rest of the way.

It was a 22-5 run to the final buzzer, as impressive as the Gophers had been unimpressive to that point.

Tubby used 12 players, approximately as follows.

C- Sampson 26 minutes Eliason 9 Mbakwe 5

PF- Mbakwe 22 Oseniaks 10 Ingram 4 Rodney 4

SF- Rodney 25 Coleman 11 Armelin 4

PG- Andre 13 Welch 19 Ahanmisi 8

SG- Austin 24 Andre 8 Armelin 8

The Gophers won the possession game with 15 offensive boards to Bucknell's 6, and 10 turnovers to Bucknell's 14. The Gophers narrowly lost the shooting contest, however, hitting 40 percent from the field to Bucknell's 34. But the Bison made up for that by hitting 44 percent (7-of-18) 3s, while the Gophers made 20 percent (3-of-15) of theirs.

From the FT line, it was also another mediocre performance by the Gophers at 23-of-35 (66 percent)though they redeemed themselves with 15-of-17 down the stretch. Bucknell made 83 percent of its FT (19-of-23).

The Gophers scored 30 points in the paint to 15 for the Bison, and won on 2nd chance points 21-2. (We were 7-of-30 outside of the paint.)

No surprise, Mbakwe led the Gophers with 17 points and 10 boards for the 20th double-double of his career. Austin Hollins scored 13 points. Sampson scored just 8 but added 9 boards and 6 assists.

The starting 5 shot 15-of 33 (46 percent) while the bench shot just 7-of-22 (32 percent), 0-for-4 on 3s.

Bailey, Johnson, Mullaney Sign with Borton's Gophers

All 3 of Pam Borton's previously "verballed" recruits from the class of 2012 signed with the Gophers on the 1st possible signing day, just to remove any possible intrigue from the whole process.

Jackie Johnson, 6-2 post from Eden Prairie, was the 3rd and final signee for the year. Rated as the #1 player in the class of 2012, her verbal was received late last summer with sighs of relief among Minnesota high school and Gopher fans.

It has been pointed out, of course, that she is unlikely to play the post in college as Big 10 posts nowadays tend to run in the 6-4 to 6-7 range. The Gophers' current posts are Katie Loberg (6-4) and Amber Dvorak (6-7). If seniority were to hold sway, Loberg would start this year (which is what she is doing) and next.

The picture for 2014 is murky. Johnson will be a 6-2 sophomore while Micaella Riche will be a 6-2 senior. If 6-2 is too short for a Gopher or a Big 10 post, then you'd have to count Riche out, and yet she's been solid thus far (OK, just 2 exhibitions) as Loberg's back-up in the post. Maybe by 2014, the Gophers will also have 6-8 freshman Savanna Trapp of Esko (high school class of 2013) to pick from. But if Johnson's not the future solution in the post, it's getting to be about time for Borton to recruit somebody who is.

But seriously, you'd think that Johnson's optimal position would be the 4. She has the quickness and the shot to do that, while the 3 might be a little too far from the hoop. It will be a surprise if she is not a top contributor to the Gophers before she's done.

The jury is a little more out on guards Mikayla Bailey and Shayne Mullaney. Bailey, 5-8, from Osseo, is only rated the #19 high school senior in the state and the #11 guard. And, offensively, it's true, she's not one of the most gifted of 2012 guards, as she scored 10 points per game last year on an assortment of 3s, drives to the hoops and layups off of defensive prowess--hers and her teammates' at Osseo.

If she's a C as a scorer (maybe a B in transition), and she's a B as a ball-handler and distributor, she's an A on defense. She may be a roll player, but she'll be a roll player with a roll.

Then there's Shayne Mullaney, 5-8, from Eden Prairie. Some who've criticized the signing of Bailey are also lukewarm on Mullaney. Well, I remember when she was rated as about the #17 or #18 sophomore in the state and Tessa Cichy was #1. Now Mullaney is the #5 senior guard and Cichy #6. So this has been a volatile class.

But I think of Mullaney as a poor man's Rachel Banham, which is to say a combo guard who can handle the ball, set up the offense, set up your scorers and...oh, yes, not incidentally...put the ball in the hole herself. She was a 58 percent shooter as a junior. And, sure, she shot a lot of lay-ups but you're going to hold that against her? She can penetrate. But she can also pop the 3.

But of course you're saying, but, wait. She's the #5 senior guard? Why didn't the Gophers get 1 of the other 4? Kali Peschel of Sauk Centre, for example, who's got size (6-1) and who scores some 25 ppg? Well, she's not a Big 10 ball-handler. She'll have to be at least a 2 though I suspect that her foot speed makes her more of a 3. A good 3, perhaps, but not a guard. (She's going to Iowa, so we will find out how she stacks up with Mullaney and vice versa.)

But then there's the #2 guard, Marissa Janning of Watertown-Mayer, who was consistently rated as the #1 girl in her class as a freshman and sophomore. She's a solid offensive player with great explosiveness and quickness. And she's definitely a 2. She might be better than Mullaney and she might not. And, when in doubt, Mullaney's versatility might be the tie-breaker.

#3 is Sydney Coffey who does everything really really well except shoot it. #4 is Brittney Scherber is a great ball-handler and distributor but her slightly stature could be a problem.

Which of these girls is obviously better than Mullaney. Once upon a time, you would have said Janning. Then Cichy. Now, it's not clear. In a couple of years Alexis Foley (White Bear Lake and Illinois State) might be the answer. Personally, I like Mullaney.

Of course, she won't be called upon to start as a freshman, as Rachel Banham and Leah Cotton are the obvious candidates for next year. Then in 2014 it will be Banham and either Mullaney or Sari Noga or somebody from 2013 (Becca Dahlman or Nia Coffey), and in 2015 Banham and Mullaney or somebody from 2013 (again), unless Kenisha Bell and/or Grace Coughlin are ready to contribute as freshmen which seems doubtful. Alex Ionescu, maybe?

So if you're a Gopher fan, get used to the idea of Shayne Mullaney as a significant competitor to the Gopher program. There's a lot of guards in the Gophers' present and future, but nobody else (except Mikayla Bailey, of course) is positioned to run with Rachel Banham for 3 years. Think of her finally, then, as the 2nd coming of Shannon Schonrock, if you like.

And, now, on to the 2013s where the air is thick with intrigue.

Gopher men 63 Augustana 60 (with 3 minutes to go)

"There's still plenty of work to do for head coach Tubby Smith's men's basketball team." So says the Gophers own Web site.

In fact, the Gophers labored mightily to defeat D2 Augustana 72-60 last night in a game that was closer than the final score. The Augies led 38-33 at the half, and were within 63-60 with 3 minutes left to play.

3 Reasons Why Augies Stayed Close

1. Drae Murray's 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting (5-of-6 3s) in the 1st half.

2. The Augies rebounded with the Gophers, though the Gophers came out ahead 44-41 in the end (but Augustana had an astounding 19-12 edge on the offensive end).

3. The Augies shut Ralph Sampson down cold. When Sampson or Mbakwe got the ball down low, a double- or more often even a triple-team would follow. Ralph hit 1-of-5 shots and scored 3 points against this D. Of course, the Augies fouled out 4 inside guys--count 'em, 4--with this strategy and, so, late in the 2nd half the Gophers asserted themselves a little better on the boards.

3 Reasons Why the Gophers Ultimately Won the Game

1. Trevor Mbakwe

2. Trevor Mbakwe

3. Trevor Mbakwe

Mbakwe ultimately caught up to Murray for scoring honors with 22 points, and he did it on just 6 FGA. He made 5-of-6 shots and an astonishing 12-of-13 FT. Here, after all, is a guy who made 63 percent of his throws a year ago.

Secondly, while Augie's triple-teams kept Mbakwe from making a lot of FG, he still dominated inside with 13 boards and 6 blocked shots.

But, on second thought, let's make the Gophers defense the #3 reason why the Gophers won the game. There was the inside defense. The 4 guys who fouled out for Augie did so with 14 points among them on 6-of-16 shots in 63 minutes. And then there was the perimeter D. Granted, Murray lit 'em up in the 1st half, but he added just 3 points in the 2nd. And Augie's biggest threat, Cody Schilling, was held in check, making just 6-of-21 shots for 16 points.

And it was Rodney Williams who shadowed and frustrated Schilling, mostly just one-on-one, all night long. So while he had another Rodney game in the box score (3-of-4 FG, 4-0f-9 FT, 4 boards, 1 assist, 1 block), he was extremely valuable on D, which is really how he earned his 28 minutes of play, 3rd after Mbakwe and Austin Hollins in the rotation.

Overall, Augie made 22-of-68 FG (32 percent) and 8-of-26 3s (31 percent). More to the point their shooting percentage fell to 20 percent (2s) and 11 percent (3s) in the 2nd half. Along with Mbakwe's 6 blocks, the Gophers blocked another 7 shots and disrupted Augie's flow to the point that they managed just 7 assists on 22 buckets. That flow disruption is mostly to the credit of Rodney and the Hollinses.

The Run

Trailing 38-33 at half-time, the Gophers came out and snapped off a 15-2 run in the first 3+ minutes. Austin Hollins hit a 3 just 10 seconds into the half (and later added another 3 plus a fast-break dunk off an Andre Hollins steal). Otherwise it was the Mbakwe show, as Trevor got 4 offensive boards in the run, converted 3 of them into buckets (2 of those of the +1 variety), and on the 4th assisted a dunk by Rodney Williams.

Meanwhile Augie went 1-for-9 (2 of the misses were blocked) with a turnover.

Still Augie came back within 48-46 and 63-60 when Minnesota ran the last 9 points of the game. Mbakwe got another block, then a 2+1 from Austin at 2:52 and another layup from Ralph at 1:58. Trevor, Rodney and Ralph made 4-of-6 throws for the final margin.

The Rotation

The rotation looks to be pretty set with one exception. 4 of the starting 5 (Mbakwe, Sampson, Rodney, Andre and Austin) have all played over 50 minutes in the 1st 2 games, the exception behind Andre with 44. But it was Julian Welch, who missed the Bemidji game, who was on the court at crunch time last night in place of Austin Hollins. So there's your big 6.

Joe Coleman has 30 minutes and Chip Armellin 24. Coleman has scored 12 points and Armellin 9. They'll be in the mix.

Elliott Eliason has 21 minutes so far but he's a project. His minutes are about to fall off the cliff. Oto Oseniaks, on the other hand, can score, though he lacks some quickness. Still, he'll be in the mix as the 9th man.

Maverick Ahanmisi is also in the mix. He logged a few minutes with the starting 5 (or 4), though it also looks as if Welch has pushed him back to the 3rd point guard slot. But he's the one guy after the 2 Hollinses who excels on the defensive end.

Ingram and Halvorson are not going to be in the mix.

So in summary the Depth Chart looks like this:

C- Sampson, Mbakwe

PF- Mbakwe, Rodney

SF- Rodney, Oto, Coleman, Armellin

G-Austin and Andre, Welch, Ahanmisi, Coleman, Armellin

If you're obsessing about which one is the point guard, Andre had 8 assists and no turnovers against Bemidji, but last night Austin had 3 assists and no turnovers while Andre was 1 and 2. Both of them can pass and score. And Welch had 7 points, 1 assist and 1 turnover last night. It's only when Ahanmisi is in there that you've got more of a classic 1 and 2 situation going.

The Outlook

Well, not good, unless the NSIC is approximately as good as the Big 10. 2 nail-biters against D2. Not that nail-biters are a bad thing to experience at this stage of the season. But here's 3 things the Gophers need to do going forward.

1. Get Sampson untracked. Mbakwe is not going to be able to do it alone in the Big 10 like he did last night.

2. Hit a 3. They were 2-for-10 in the 1st half (and 1-for-7 vs. Bemidji). They showed some hope in the 2nd half last night, hitting 3-of-7. 2 of 5 3s on the night were from Austin Hollins, who also made that 1 against Bemidji. He's 3-for-6 overall, and when Tubby says they're a better shooting group than last year, this is your man.

3. Keep up the defensive pressure because this team isn't going to just flat out out-score people, not with Ralph and Rodney MIA on the offensive end so much of the time. But the guard rotation will get better as time goes by, or maybe I should say that that's the 4th thing the Gophers are going to need to survive another year in the brutal Big 10 (or the Brutal 10).

So, finally, that's the reason for hope: Hollins and Hollins are going to be a fine pair, and Joe Coleman will one day make major contributions to this program as well. And Welch, well, the jury's still out after 1 game but I think he can play, too.

Iowa Hawkeyes women 65 Winona State 51

I'm a little late getting to this one, but I wanted to comment on the Iowa-Winona State women's exhibition game in Iowa City on Sunday afternoon. Not only because I have an interest in both of these 2 teams, but also because of all the discussion about what one should think of exhibition games generally.

In the aftermath of the Gopher men's uninspired and uninspiring win over Bemidji State 71-58 last week, of course, Gopher partisans are saying that exhibition game are meaningless. And when somebody posted on the Gopher Hole that Augustana is a lot better than Bemidji, somebody else said that, since exhibitions are meaningless, Minnesota is better than Augustana even if the Augies should happen to win.

Well, I'm seeing the Gophers play the Augies in a couple of hours, but for now...I just couldn't let pass the fact that the Winona State women led Iowa 23-19 at half-time. The Hawkeyes came back to score 46 2nd half points (shooting 56 percent versus 26 percent in the 1st half) to get the win.

You may recall that I picked Winona to win the NSIC title this year, whereas the coaches have picked Augustana. So thanks to Winona coach Scott Ballard and his women for making me look good today. Senior post Michelle McDonald led Warriors scorers with 16 and all players with 12 boards.

But, meanwhile, I was also intrigued by the performance of Iowa freshman point guard Sam Logic. Whereas our own Rachel Banham was rated as the #18 senior in the class of 2011, Logic was rated #10. And like Banham, Logic got off to a fast start--not in the 1st half, so much, but in the grand scheme of things (a 4 year college career) have a good 2nd half in your 1st game will be remembered as a pretty good start. Logic finished with 16 points to lead all scorers with 6 assists, 6 steals and 1 turnover.

All I can say is DAMN it's a shame that Logic and Banham will not meet on the Williams Arena floor as freshmen, though the will play in Iowa City on February 9. I am also heartsick that I won't see Iowa senior (and Crookston, MN, native) Kamille Wahlin play the Gophers for a final time. (Wahlin contributed 10 points and 3 assists in the Winona State win. Meanwhile, last year's prize recruit, Jamie Printy, a pre-season 1st team all-Big 10 selection, scored just 6 points, but added 5 assists and 4 steals, but 4 turnovers as well.

The coaches and media had Iowa 3rd or 4th in the pre-season rankings. I say #2 is as low as I'm gonna go with the Hawks, and a Big 10 title is hardly out of the question. The Hawks have 4 starters back (Kelly Krei and Morgan Johnson joining Wahlin and Printy) plus Logic.

Iowa may not have great depth, however, due to an epidemic of knee injuries down there. St. Paul Central grad Theiarra Taylor had 2 points in 5 minutes as she attempts to come back from her 2nd ACL. Freshman post Bethany Doolittle, from Hill-Murray, had 2 points and 4 boards in 14 minutes in her debut.

Pre-Season High School All-State Teams Revised 11-6-11

Boys

State Champs: Eastview, Benilde-St. Margaret's, Waterville-Elysian-Morristown, Ellsworth

1st

Tyus Jones, Apple Valley, soph., G. Based on his play this summer for the U.S. 16U national team, now the pre-season Player of the Year.

Siyani Chambers, Hopkins, sr., G

Joey King, Eastview, sr., F. Led the Eagles to Sweet 16 final win over Hopkins. Mr. Basketball.

Isaiah Zierden, Benilde-St. Margaret's, sr., F

Michael Busack, Redwood Valley, sr., F-G-C. A stud, will be a superstar at Mankato State.

Coach of the Year: Mark Gerber, Eastview

2nd

Casey Schilling, Ellsworth, sr., G. He's no Cody, but quietly put together a hell of a career.

Sanjay Lumpkin, Benilde-St. Margaret's, sr., F

Tyler Vaughan, Braham, sr., G

Johnny Woodard, Duluth East, sr., G. The catch is he's hurt right now.

Riley Dearring, DeLaSalle, jr., F. Formerly Hopkins.

3rd

Zach Stahl, Hopkins, sr., F. Do not underestimate Stahl or Hopkins.

Cortez Tillman, Cretin-Derham Hall, sr., G. One of Cretin's 3-headed monster.

Thomas Sjoberg, St. Thomas, sr., C

Anders Broman, Lakeview Christian, jr., G. Will be state's all-time scorer by the time he's done.

Marcus Marshall, St. Paul Johnson, sr., G. Will try to replace Estan Tyler.

One of These Days, Alice

Alex Illikainen, Grand Rapids, fr., C. Played all-stater Shelby Moats to a draw last March.

Iam Theisen, Osseo, soph, C

Rashad Vaughan, Robbinsdale Cooper, soph., F

Reid Travis, DeLaSalle, soph., F

Tyus Jones, soph.

Girls

1st

Rebekah Dahlman, Braham, jr., G, Player of the Year

Jackie Johnson, Eden Prairie, sr., C, Ms. Basketball

Nia Coffey, Hopkins, jr., G

Tyseanna Johnson, DeLaSalle, jr., F

Kenisha Bell, Bloomington Kennedy, soph., G

Coach of the Year: Brian Cosgriff, Hopkins

State Champs: Hopkins, DeLaSalle, Braham, Maranatha (all repeats from 2011)

2nd

Sydney Coffey, Hopkins, sr., G

Shayne Mullaney, Eden Prairie, sr., G. Way underrated.

Tessa Cichy, Hill-Murray, sr., G. Can she get her shooting mechanics fixed?

Marissa Janning, Watertown-Mayer, sr., G

Whitney Tinjum, Chisago Lakes, sr., F-G

3rd

Kayla Timmerman, Wayzata, sr., C

Alexis Foley, White Bear Lake, sr., G

Jessica January, Richfield, jr., G

Katybeth Biewen, Edina, sr., G

Kali Peschel, Sauk Centre, sr., F

One of These Days, Alice

Cayla McMorris, Park Center, soph, F. The next big thing.

Kenisha Bell, Bloomington Kennedy, soph., G

T. T. Starks, Hopkins, fr., F

Sam Trammell, Hopkins, fr., C

Viria Livingstone, Hopkins, fr., G. Played at Mpls. Edison as an 8th grader.

Claire Lundberg, Anoka, soph., F

Kanani Ascuncion, Rochester Century, fr., G

Delilah Taylor, Bloomington Kennedy, fr., F. Transfer from Mpls. South.

Jordyn Alt, Mounds View, soph., C

Grace Coughlin, Benilde-St. Margaret's, soph., G

Another Rout for Gopher Women

Pam Borton's Minnesota Gopher women picked right up where they left off in last Thursday's 86-51 shellacking of St. Cloud State. The victim was another NSIC team, this one from Bemidji State, and the result this time was a 92-50 win.

The Beavers actually jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but the Gophers roared back for a 13-6 lead as Katie Loberg scored half of Minnesota's 1st 6 buckets, 2 of them off the offensive glass. From there it was off to the races. Bemidji came within 17-15, but the lead went into double figures at 32-21 at 5:01. It was 46-32 at the half, and 58-38 at 15:21 of the 2nd.

The Gophers dominated every aspect of the game except 3-point shooting. Minnesota made just 1-of-11 long shots to Bemidji's 6-of-24. But from 2-point range the Gophers made 30 (of 36, 49 percent) buckets to just 8 (of 25, 32 percent) for Bemidji. The possession game was all Minnesota--22 offensive rebounds to 5, and just 8 turnovers to 21 for the Beavers.

Loberg, Kionna Kellogg, Sari Noga, Rachel Banham and Kiara Buford started for the 2nd time in as many games. Noga, Banham, Buford and reserve Leah Cotton now have played more than 20 minutes in each game, while Loberg has played 18 and 18. Banham, Buford and Cotton combined for exactly 80 minutes on Wednesday, and 74 today, so there's your 3-headed monster at the guard positions.

Kellogg played 25 points in Wednesday night's win over St. Cloud but, frankly, struggled. Today she played just 9 minutes and struggled some more. 3-year starter Jackie Voigt played 21 minutes today at the same position, the 4, and had a fine game with 12 points, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Whether she is in the process of winning her spot in the starting lineup back remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, Micaella Riche played 18 minutes on Wednesday and 15 minutes today; Brianna Mastey 11 and 16; Amber Dvorak 4 and 14; Shonte Clay 3 and 3; Nicole Mastey 3 and 3; and Alex Ionescu 2 and 3. So, with the exception of Kellogg and Voigt and maybe Dvorak, the roles appear to already be pretty well-defined.

Leading scorers after 2 games are Buford 17.5 ppg, Banham 14, Loberg 11 and Cotton 11.5. Loberg is the leading shooter at 9-for-17 and the leading rebounder with 15. Riche has 13 boards and Voigt 12. Banham has 10 assists and 6 turnovers, Buford 9 and 4, and Cotton 6 and 6; and Banham also has 6 steals and Buford and Cotton 5 each.

The Gophers are next in action on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the WBI Tip-Off at Daytona Beach, FL, where Arkansas, Florida State and South Florida will provide the opposition. They return to the Barn the following Saturday and Sunday for the Subway Classic. We will know a lot more about this team and its potential by the time of its tip-off against Binghampton in the 1st round.