Postgame Notes
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POSTGAME NOTES Big Ten Tournament – First Round Wednesday, March 10, 2021 Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Ind.) 13-seed Minnesota 51, 12-seed Northwestern 46 SERIES, ETC. Tonight's 51-46 victory was the 169th all-time game between Minnesota and Northwestern, and the Gophers lead the series, 100-69 (Gophers lead 5-2 at neutral sites). This was the eighth time these two schools have faced each other in the B1G Tournament, and the Gophers are 6-2 in those games, with wins in 2021, 2020, 2012, 2009, 2008 and 1998. It was the second meeting between the teams this season, as the Wildcats posted a 67-59 win at The Barn on February 26. 13th-seeded Minnesota recorded its first win away from Williams Arena this season and improved to 14-14 overall, while 12th-seeded Northwestern ends its season at 9-15 overall. Minnesota's all-time record now stands at 1,516-1,143 overall (not counting vacated games). Coach Pitino’s eighth-year record at Minnesota is 141-122 and his nine-year career mark is 159-136. Pitino is 7-7 all-time versus the Wildcats. STARTING FIVE For the fifth straight game, Coach Pitino went with a starting lineup of redshirt senior forward Brandon Johnson (23rd start at Minnesota, 114th career start), redshirt senior forward Eric Curry (seventh start this season, 13th career start), redshirt junior guard Marcus Carr (28th start this season, 59th start at Minnesota, 86th career start), sophomore guard Tre’ Williams (12th start this season, 17th career start), and freshman guard Jamal Mashburn Jr. (seventh start this season, seventh career start). GAME RECAP Minnesota jumped out to a 7-0 lead at the first media timeout of the game, getting a layup from Marcus Carr, a three-pointer from Tre’ Williams and a dunk by Brandon Johnson on a great pass from Carr. The Gophers held NU scoreless for almost seven minutes to start the game. Leading 9-2 at the second media timeout, Both Gach scored five points during a 7-0 run to put the Gophers up, 16-2. So, just as they did against the Wildcats on Feb. 26, when they jumped ahead 17-3, the Gophers enjoyed an early 14-point lead. Williams hit his second three to stop a 5-0 run by NU, and buckets by Eric Curry and Jamal Mashburn Jr. made it 23-11, before a 6-0 run for the Wildcats cut the lead to six. At the half, Minnesota had a 27-20 advantage. Mashburn led the Gophers with eight first-half points, while Williams added six and Gach had all five of the team’s bench points. Three times in the opening minutes of the second half, NU was able to pull within four points, but Williams and Mashburn had answers for the Gophers. Up 36-30, the Gophers went cold, and NU responded with a 16-3 run over eight-plus minutes to take a 46-39 lead with 3:58 remaining. Williams, though, knocked down his fourth trey of the night and Carr added six-straight points during a 10-0 run to put the Gophers back in front 49-46 late. A free throw by Johnson made it 50-46 with 21 seconds left, and the Gophers advanced to play Ohio State. Minnesota outscored NU, 12-0, over the final 4:15 to snap a seven-game losing streak. WILLIAMS LEADS GOPHERS WITH 14 Tre’ Williams recorded his third-straight double-figure scoring game, as he paced the Gophers with 14 points. The majority of Williams’ total came from long-range, as he made 4-of-7 three-pointers during a 5-of-8 night overall. Williams is averaging 14.0 points per game over those past three games, and tonight was his sixth double-digit game this season. Williams added five rebounds, an assist and a steal in 33 minutes for the Gophers. JOHNSON AND CURRY MAN THE BOARDS With Liam Robbins missing his fifth-straight game with an injury, Brandon Johnson and Eric Curry worked the glass for the Gophers. Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds for his second straight double-digit rebound output, while Curry tied for game-high honors with a career-best 12 boards. The rebounding total for Curry topped the 11 rebounds he grabbed versus Southern Illinois on Nov. 25, 2016, his sixth career game at Minnesota. Johnson added five points, and Curry scored four, while both players had a pair of steals. CARR CLUTCH WHEN IT COUNTS, MASHBURN IN DOUBLE-DIGITS Marcus Carr was limited to 10 points, but eight of those points came during the late stages, when the Gophers rallied from down seven to record the victory. Carr led the Gophers with six assists and added five rebounds in 38 minutes. Jamal Mashburn Jr. also reached double-digits for the Gophers, ending the game with 11 points, his 11th double-figure scoring game this season and ninth in the past 11 games. MISCELLANEOUS NEWS AND NOTES In holding NU to 20 points at the half, Minnesota had its second-best first half defensive effort versus a Big Ten team this season (allowed 16 points vs Michigan State on Dec. 28) … the Gophers improved to 7-2 when wearing their Gold uniforms this season … uncharacteristically, Minnesota was just 10-of-24 (.417) at the free throw line and turned the ball over 17 times, tying a seasaon-hgih … Both Gach scored five points in 21 minutes … Liam Robbins missed his fifth-straight game due to an injury … the Gophers continue play in the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis on Thursday, facing Ohio State at approximately 1:00 p.m. CST on BTN. .