University of Minnesota Athletics
Golden Gophers Thump Penn State 94-70
1/30/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The win marked the largest Big Ten victory since downing Penn State Feb. 2, 1999 in State College 93-69, while running the Golden Gopher home-court winning streak to seven games.
The Golden Gophers opened the first half on fire, building a 13 point lead midway through the stanza and extending their advantage to 20 points, 47-27 at halftime. Gold Country shot a stellar 57.6 percent from the floor to open the game. In comparison, the Nittany Lions were ice cold from the field, converting on only 38.7 percent of their attempts.
In Minnesota's last four victories, the Gophers have shot 62.7 percent from the field. In their last two losses, Minnesota has shot just 44.4 percent.
Rickert finished the first half as the only player with double digits in points, scoring 17 on 6-of-8 shooting.
Minnesota's shooting success continued in the second half as the Golden Gophers went 17-of-25 (.680) from the floor. Penn State's woes also followed them into the second stanza, shooting 37.9 percent.
The Maroon and Gold opened the second half with a 15-5 run to push the lead to 62-32, following a Dusty Rychart basket. The Golden Gophers upped their advantage to 31 points after a Maurice Hargrow dunk at 68-37 with 11:49 remaining. Penn State did not get closer than 19 points the rest of the contest.
Rychart and Jerry Holman each added 14 points, while Michael Bauer scored 12 off the bench. Holman also led the team with a game-high eight rebounds and three blocked shots.
PSU's Tyler Smith led the Lions with 18 points and three rebounds.
The Gophers will next be in action when they host Indiana Saturday at 3:30. The game can be seen locally on KSTC-Channel 45.
Post-Game Notes Minnesota 94, Penn State 70 January 30, 2002 Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minn. Minnesota leads the all-time series with Penn State 12-6 and 9-1 at Williams Arena. Minnesota has won seven straight games at home. Minnesota's 24-point win is the largest in a Big Ten game since beating Penn State 93-69 on Feb. 17, 1999 in State College. Minnesota beat Michigan State by 25 (68-43) on Jan. 4, 1997. Rick Rickert scored in double figures for the fifth straight game and the 12th time this season. He topped the 20-point mark for the third time this season. Rickert is averaging 19.4 points per game over the last five contests. In Minnesota's last four wins, it has shot 62.7 percent (131-209). In its last two losses, Minnesota has shot 44.5 percent (49-110). Minnesota's 20-point lead at the break is its largest halftime lead since a 21-point margin (45-24) against Maryland -Eastern Shore on Dec. 13. Minnesota has held the lead at the half in four straight games. Minnesota's +11 rebound margin is the largest since defeating Maryland-Eastern Shore on Dec. 13, 2001. Minnesota improved to 7-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field. Minnesota attempted 11 three-pointers, the fewest in a game this season. Michael Bauer scored in double figures for the 12th time this season and the 27th time in his career. Dusty Rychart scored in double figures for the sixth straight game and the 15th time this season. He notched double-digits for the 64th time in his career. Rychart moved into 21st place all-time in scoring at Minnesota with 1,117 points. Jerry Holman reached double figures for the ninth time this season. Minnesota is 8-1 in those games. Holman tied a career-high with eight rebounds. Tyree Bolden scored his first career field goal. Justin Lorang scored a career-high six points. GOLDEN GOPHER BASKETBALL POST-GAME QUOTES
Williams Arena January 30, 2002 Minnesota 81, Penn State 62 Attendance: 13,130
Penn State Head Coach Jerry Dunn "I thought we started out soft in the interior. We did not do a good job of taking care of the basketball in the opening minutes. We had six-seven turnovers then, we can't do that against a good conference team."
"I think Minnesota could compete for and win the Big Ten championship. They are a deep team. They have skill at every position 2-deep."
Minnesota Head Coach Dan Monson "Anytime you win a Big Ten game, you have to be happy; because every game is tough. When you win by 20 (points), I'm even more happy. It's tough to get wins in this conference."
"Our defense was better through the end of the game. We had the same energy and we dove for loose balls on the floor, and I think that helps the offensive pace. For the most part, I liked the way we stayed in control. We shot 62 percent and that feels good."
[on Penn State] "I've seen them come back from 17 on Wisconsin on tape. They've come back on everybody, and our guys didn't let that happen tonight."
[on Rick Rickert] "What Rick did tonight was play a solid all-around game. He scored, he rebounded, he made smart plays. He and Jerry (Holman) have just scratched the surface of what they are capable of here. The two of them are growing by leaps and bounds, and will only continue to improve as players and help improve this program."
Minnesota forward Rick Rickert "One of the big keys tonight was how well we worked the ball inside and out. We played great high-low offense. Our post players are such good passers that when we were collapsed on, we were able to find the open shooters. Tonight, more than usual, we were able to pound it inside and were able to score, rather than just kick it out."
Minnesota forward Dusty Rychart "Tonight was a great victory. It was a team effort from top to bottom. We did not let down all game, and kept taking it at them. It is tough to beat us when our second five play as well as our first five, as we did tonight."
Minnesota guard Kevin Burleson "Our maturity showed tonight. We are starting to mesh and are more used to playing with each other than we have been. We have been playing in a lot of spurts this year, and I felt tonight was one of our best games at eliminating our bad spurts. We played hard the whole game."
