University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Crowned NABC Classic Champions
11/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Minnesota men’s basketball team was crowned champions of the 2008 NABC Classic after completing an undefeated weekend with a 60-52 victory over Georgia State in front of an announced crowd of 11,882 Sunday night at Williams Arena.
Junior shooting guard Lawrence Westbrook scored a team-high 15 points and was named tournament MVP. Freshman power forward Ralph Sampson III and sophomore shooting guard Blake Hoffarber added eight a piece. Sophomore point guard Al Nolen, who joined Westbrook on the NABC Classic All-Tournament Team, finished with five steals and six assists.
Joe Dukes paced the Panthers with 12 points and five assists.
One night after notching a career-high 20 points against Bowling Green, Westbrook helped the Gophers improve to 3-0 on the young season. Nine first-half points from the Chandler, Ariz. native propelled Minnesota to a 17-point first half lead. And late, after the Gophers took Georgia State’s best punch a rally that cut the Gophers advantage to five - it was Westbrook who sealed the games’ fate with four free throws in the final minute and a half of play.
“(Westbrook) stepped up big and did some good things for us throughout this tournament,” coach Tubby Smith said.
For Minnesota, Sunday’s contest must have felt eerily similar to Saturday night’s 68-61 win over Bowling Green. In that game, the Gophers built a 20-point first half advantage only to see their lead dwindle to three in the final minutes of regulation.
Still, in both weekend games, the Gophers were able to hold on and keep their record perfect.
“I didn’t expect to blow them out," Westbrook said of Georgia State. “They are a Division 1 team so I knew if we came out and had an early lead, they’d fight back.”
From the onset, Minnesota was the aggressor Sunday night. Eight minutes into the contest, the Gophers built a 15-6 advantage after a three by Hoffarber . And, after forcing 11 Georgia State turnovers in the half and holding the Panthers to 16.7 percent from the perimeter (1-of-6), four straight points by Sampson III with 1:10 left in the half put Minnesota ahead 35-18.
But the Panthers, much like Bowling Green, wouldn’t go down quietly.
A three by Panthers’ guard Leonard Mendez right before the end of the half cut the Gophers’ lead to 35-23 at the break. And, after opening the half on a 6-0 run, Georgia State was able to trim Minnesota’s once 17-point lead to six at 35-29.
A three-pointer by junior forward Travis Busch made it 40-29 with 14:47 left in regulation. But with the Gophers scoring only six points in the first 10 minutes of the second stanza, the maroon and gold couldn’t separate themselves from the Panthers on the scoreboard.
After exchanging baskets midway through the final half, the Panthers got to within five, 50-45, following a three by Xavier Hansbro with 3:32 to play. But that was as close as Georgia State would come.
Hoffarber and Sampson III connected on back-to-back field goals to build Minnesota’s lead to nine and Westbrook added four free throws in the final 1:17 of regulation to secure the victory.
“(Georgia State) gave us all we wanted,” Smith said. “I thought our kids really grinded it out. I think our depth really paid off for us."
Post-Game Notes:
NABC CLASSIC MVP:
Lawrence Westbrook
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM:
Lawrence Westbrook-Minnesota
Al Nolen-Minnesota
Darryl Clements-Bowling Green
Joe Dukes-Georgia State
Craig Heiman-Concordia (The leading scorer in the tournament)
Team Notes:
Tubby Smith moved to 23-14 as the head coach of Minnesota, and 410-159 for his career.
This was the first ever meeting between Minnesota and Georgia State. The 60-52 win was the Gophers’ first against a team from the Colonial Athletic Association.
Minnesota has started 3-0 for the second consecutive season.
By winning the NABC Classic, Minnesota celebrated its first in-season tournament title since going 2-0 at the Pillsbury Classic, also at Williams Arena, during the 1981-82 campaign.
Individual Player Notes:
Al Nolen recorded five steals for the second straight game, matching his previous high (five times; last vs. Bowling Green - 11/15/08). Nolen averaged 3.0 steals per game in the tournament, and added 7.0 assists.
Lawrence Westbrook averaged 16.0 points, and scored in double-figures in all three games. It marks the second time in his career that he has had three-straight games with 10 points or more (last at Michigan, vs. Wisconsin, at Northwestern - 1/31/08-2/6/08).
Three Minnesota players topped the blocking leaders for the tournament, with Colton Iverson leading the way with 10, while Paul Carter and Ralph Sampson III each added five blocks.
Westbrook scored in double figures for the 21st time and the third-straight game overall.
Jamal Abu-Shamala started his 50th career game for the Gophers.
Post-Game Quotes:
Tubby Smith Quotes:
Opening Statement:
“I want to compliment the NABC. The people that ran the tournament did a good job. The fans did a good job getting out and supporting this tournament. I want to congratulate all the players that were placed on the all-tournament team: Darryl Clements, Joe Dukes, Craig Heiman, Lawrence Westbrook, Al Nolen, and especially Lawrence because he stepped up big.”
“I want to congratulate all the teams that were here. Head coach Rod Barnes from Georgia State, really gave us all we wanted. Three games in three days is really a grind, and I thought our kids really grinded out. The depth really paid off for us. Our bench played well and stepped up. But then all the teams that were here, like Concordia, I appreciate them for participating because we had a situation where they were the only non-division one team playing. I think all three teams are going to have good years. Hopefully everybody left here with a good feeling about coming here to Minnesota and playing in the barn.”
On player depth...
“We still have a long way to go, but we have confident, skill level of guys coming off the bench, like Ralph (Sampson), Devron Bostick and Devoe Joseph. Before that we had Jamal Abu-shamala, but he started today, and Blake Hoffarber. It’s a good feeling to know that we have some weapons that can help us compete.”
What did you learn from these three games?
“It’s still early, but it did help us appreciate what we’re capable of doing defensively. We really played excellent defense for the most part, and we played good team defense. Our free-throw shooting might not seem that high, but in clutch situations, like yesterday and today when we had to make our free-throws, we were able to do that, so those were some of the positive things.”
Senior Forward Jamal Abu-Shamala:
Any dj vu from the Bowling Green game when they cut the lead at the end?
“Yes it was a similar situation. They played tough and made a little run but, once again, we held them off. I thought we did a good job as a team controlling the game.”
What feedback have the coaches given you on the last three games?
“We improved defensively each game getting to our spots. Coach wants us to improve a little bit each game. He was happy with the improvements but we have to get better in order to compete against tougher competition.”
Are you ready to go on the road?
“This weekend will be a good test for us.”
On the second half of play tonight...
“Whenever you play three games back-to-back-to-back it will take its toll on you. Your legs get tired during practice but games have a different intensity. I think that definitely was a factor in how things turned out but you just have to push through it like you do in practice everyday.”
Junior Guard Lawrence Westbrook:
What can you take away from these games?
“I think that we can learn a lot. Obviously, we are 3-0 in this tournament. We are going to watch film and Coach is going to dissect us and figure out what we did wrong.”
Any comments on the offensive struggles at the end of the game tonight?
“I think that fatigue had a lot to do with it. There were a couple of times where there was a steal in front of my face but I just did not have the extra push to get it. It was a close game and they were pressing a little bit and I think that fatigue lead to the problems offensively. Free throws were big for us at the end. We just had to play good defense because it was tough for us to score at the end of the game.”
