Lawrence Westbrook leads Minnesota in scoring

The Golden Gophers are very balanced on offense; eight Minnesota players average at least five points per game, while three more average at least three points per game.  Lawrence Westbrook and Damian Johnson are the only two Golden Gophers averaging double-digit points per game, with thirteen and ten points per game, respectively.  As a team, Minnesota is third in the Big Ten in scoring, averaging a little more than seventy-three points per game.  I plan on keeping a close watch on Westbrook and Al Nolen, who comprise one of the better guard pairs in the conference.  Nolen leads the Golden Gophers in assists, with slightly more than six dishes per game.

Defensively, Minnesota is also ranked third within the conference, allowing exactly sixty-two points per game.  Although statistics such as scoring offense and scoring defense are often skewed by the system a team runs, they tell me a great deal about these Golden Gophers.  Minnesota has played a fairly weak schedule, but Tubby Smith still has his team playing well on both sides of the ball.

For the Hawkeyes, I expect coach Lick to come into the game with the same game plan as always, with an added emphasis on reduced turnovers and strong defense.  I’m expecting Minnesota to pressure Iowa’s offense early and often by putting on a pressing defense, but at the same time, I don’t foresee Minnesota coming anywhere close to its seventy-three points per game average.  The Golden Gophers have played in just one actual road game this year (a one-point win over Colorado State), so look for a close game on Thursday in Iowa City.

Tidbits:

• Iowa is favored by one to two and a half points
• The Golden Gophers are off to their best start since 1996–97
• Last season, Iowa got its twelfth win on February 19

Much to the chagrin of referees Dan Chrisman, Eddie Hightower and Zelton Steed, the Hawkeyes pulled out a win against hapless Indiana on Saturday, 65–60. Obviously, I’m kidding about the referees, because neither team received many favorable calls.  But regardless, Iowa won the game, so I should probably write about how well the Hawkeyes played against what is likely the worst team in an improving Big Ten Conference.

Cyrus Tate gets hacked on his way up

Cyrus Tate led Iowa throughout the game, evidenced by his twenty-two points and eleven rebounds.  Tate missed only one shot in the entire game; he was six-of-six from the field and ten-of-eleven from the free throw line.  All in all, it was much-needed performance from Tate, to whom I believe will take on a larger role as the Hawkeyes get deeper into the Big Ten schedule.  At this point in time, Tate is Iowa’s only established big man.  His role will expand by default as the level of competition rises.

Jeff Peterson was his usual self against the Hoosiers; he had sixteen points and five assists, but turned the ball over on four occasions.  Peterson has significantly cut down on his turnovers since last season, but he still has a little ways to go if he wants to be an upper-level point guard within the Big Ten.

Outside of those two, the Hawkeyes received noticeable contributions from Jermain Davis (nine points, eight rebounds), Matt Gatens (six points, three rebounds) and Jake Kelly (ten points, three rebounds).  To put it bluntly, everyone else was invisible.  Call me harsh, call me critical, but when the bench scores just two points on a pair of free throws, I don’t really plan on saying much else.

So, it might be a good thing Iowa has a few days to prepare for Minnesota.  The Golden Gophers are 13–1 this season, the only loss coming at home to Michigan State.  Minnesota owns a neutral court win over Louisville, as well as a home win over Ohio State, so the Golden Gophers are definitely battle-proven.

More on Minnesota in several days.

I’m Dan, and I will be writing the content you see within this blog.  A few of you may know me from a website called Big Ten Fever, where I post on a regular basis about topics generally relating to sports within the Big Ten Conference.

In this blog, I plan on primarily writing about the Iowa Hawkeyes football and men’s basketball teams.  Wrestling, women’s basketball and other sports teams will receive coverage from time to time, provided they do something particularly noteworthy.  As I ease into blogging on a regular basis, I expect to write a post or two in a three to four day period (which is roughly the length between men’s basketball games).

For any questions or comments, please send an e-mail to danielman12[at]aol[dot]com or post a comment below a relevant post or page on the blog.  Depending on how busy I may be, replies will usually occur within a day or two of your message being sent to me.

That being said, I would like to conclude this inaugural post by once again extending my welcome to you, the readers.  I hope you enjoy this blog as much as I will.  On Iowa and go Hawkeyes!