University of Minnesota Athletics
MBB: Gophers Look to Extend Winning Streak Against Chicago State
12/15/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Matchup
The Minnesota Golden Gophers look to extend their three-game winning streak against the Chicago State Cougars at Williams Arena. The Gophers are fresh off a second half rally to defeat Central Michigan, 77-63, on Saturday. Chicago State comes to Minneapolis with a deceiving 0-5 record. CSU has lost four road games, three of those to major conference opponents. The Cougars lost at UCLA to begin the season, 64-53; at Northwestern, 78 -53, on Dec. 4; and to No. 1 Illinois on Dec. 6, 78-59.
Scouting the Cougars
Chicago State was one of the most improved teams in the nation last season and returns three starters to a team that went 9-7 in the Mid-Continent Conference last year. Head coach Kevin Jones was named Mid-Con Coach of the Year, sophomore guard Royce Parran was named the league's Sixth Man of the Year, senior guard Craig Franklin earned second team All-Mid-Con accolades and senior guard Tony Weeden was named to the conference's all-newcomer team. Weeden leads the team in scoring averaging 14.2 points per game. Parran is second at 13.4 and leads the team in steals with seven. At 7-1, 240, sophomore center Deji Akindele is the tallest player to ever wear a CSU uniform. The Lagos, Nigeria native is averaging 12.4 points and a team-leading 8.4 rebounds per contest. Akindele led the Mid-Con in blocked shots last season as a freshman and is averaging nearly three blocks per game this year. The Cougars get a big boost tonight when Franklin, their leading scorer from a year ago, is academically eligible for the first time all season.
The Series
Minnesota leads the all-time series 1-0. The only other meeting was in 1989 with Minnesota winning, 85-62, at Williams Arena. The Gophers have never lost to a Mid- Continent Conference team going 13-0 all-time against the Mid-Con.
What's Next
Minnesota takes a week off for finals and resume game action next Wedneday against St. Francis (Pa.), at Williams Arena. Game time is 6 p.m., due to the men's hockey game at 8 p.m. as part of the Dodge Holiday Classic. The game will not be televised.
