University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Face NDSU Monday Night at Williams Arena
12/2/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GOPHERS/BISON PREVIEW
The Gophers and Bison meet tonight for the third season in a row and for the 24th time in each school’s history. Minnesota leads the series 23-1. NDSU’s lone victory came during the 1936 season by a score of 33-29. The Bison(4-3) are led by juniors Ben Woodside, who is averaging 26.4 ppg & 2.7 rpg, and Brett Winkelman, who is averaging 20.9 ppg & 8.9 rpg.
Last season, the Gophers came away with a 63-49 victory thanks to 20 points and 10 rebounds by current senior guard Lawrence McKenzie. Fellow seniors Dan Coleman and Spencer Tollcakson contributed 13 and 12 points, respectively. NDSU was led byAndre Smith with 17 points.
MINNESOTA/UC RIVERSIDE NOTES
By holding UC Riverside to 38 points, Minnesota held an opponent under 40 points for the first time since Nov. 27, 1991 when the Gophers beat Arizona State 69-37.
The 37-point victory was the largest since beating Fairleigh Dickinson 104-66 on December 13, 2002.
The Gophers posted a 30-point victory for the second time in four wins this season. The last time Minnesota had at least two 30+ point wins was 1992-93 when it had two as well.
Minnesota’s 13 three-pointers are the third most in school history.
Minnesota posted season highs across the board with 14 steals, 13 three-pointers, and 21 assists.
Minnesota is 4-0 all-time against Big West competition. This was the first meeting between Minnesota and UC Riverside.
Minnesota’s bench has outscored its opponent’s in all five games by a combined 159-77.
Blake Hoffarber tied a career-high with 12 points and made a career-best four three-pointers.
With six points, Dan Coleman is now 29 away from 1,000 career points.
Jamal Abu-Shamala had a season high 11 points. He scored in double figures for the 14th time in his career.
Lawrence McKenzie tied a career-high with five three-point field goals. He scored in double figures for the fourth time this season and the 56th time in his career.
Damian Johnson tied a career-high with 12 points and made a career-best five field goals on five attempts. He recorded multiple blocks in a game for the fourth time in five games this season.
BENCH BONANZA
Minnesota’s bench has provided a big punch this season, outscoring its opponents in each of the four games this year. The Gophers hold a cumulative 159-73 bench scoring edge on its foes including a 27-4 advantage over UC Riverside on December 1.
A Gopher has scored at least nine points off the bench in every game, led by Lawrence McKenzie’s 20 points against Iowa State. Damian Johnson came off the pine for 12 points against Army; Blake Hoffarber scored 12 off the bench against Florida State while Hoffarber and Johnson chipped in with 13 and 12 points, respectively, off the bench against UC Riverside.
FRESHMAN FIRE
Minnesota has relied heavily on its two freshmen, Al Nolen and Blake Hoffarber in the early part of the season. Nolen has led the Gophers in assists in four of the five games and has recorded 12 steals, which rank him second in the Big Ten overall at 2.4 thefts per game.
Nolen also ranks fifth in the Big Ten in assists at 4.25 per game.
Hoffarber scored 13 points off the bench Dec. 1 against UC Riverside, making 4-of-7 field goals, all three-pointers. The Hopkins native is fourth on the team in scoring at 8.4 ppg.).
COLEMAN ON CHARTS
Senior Dan Coleman is on pace to join several Minnesota career record lists. He needs just 29 points to become the 34th player in school history to record 1,000 career points and 56 rebounds to amass 500 boards in his career. He will become just the 17th Gopher player with 1,000 points and 500 boards in his career. Michael Bauer was the last Gopher to join the club, reaching the milestone in 2004. Also, Coleman has 80 career blocks, just 13 shy of Minnesota’s top-10.
