University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Postgame Notes
12/6/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Minnesota improves to 8-0 with today’s victory. It is the Gophers’ best start since Minnesota opened the 1976-77 campaign with 11 straight wins.
Minnesota ran its record in the all-time series vs. Cornell to 5-0 with today’s win. It was the first meeting between the Gophers and the Big Red since 1975.
With the win, Tubby Smith improves to 28-14 as the head coach of Minnesota, and 415-159 for his career.
Today’s win by the Gophers marked the first time that Tubby Smith has guided his team to an 8-0 start. Coach Smith’s previous best start came during the 2003-04 season, when he guided Kentucky to a 7-0 start before falling in game No. 8 vs. Louisville.
The Gophers’ lineup of Al Nolen, Blake Hoffarber, Jamal Abu-Shamala, Damian Johnson and Colton Iverson started together for the third consecutive game and remains undefeated. Tubby Smith has used four different lineups in eight games this season. Nolen and Iverson are the only Minnesota players to start all eight games this year for the Gophers.
Minnesota outrebounded Cornell, 40-30, which included holding a 25-14 advantage on the boards in the second half. Ralph Sampson III led the way with six boards, while Colton Iverson and Travis Busch each grabbed five caroms.
The Gophers made 16-of-28 (.571) field goals in the second half, including 3-of-5 attempts from three-point range. Meanwhile, Minnesota’s defense limited Cornell to just 8-of-33 (.242) field goals after the break, and the Big Red was ice-cold from behind the arc after halftime, making just 0-of-13 attempts.
Minnesota’s 13 point deficit twice early in the second half was its largest of the year. The Gophers rallied behind a 21-2 run to get back into the game and ended up outscoring Cornell 43-14 in the second half after trailing by 12 at the break. The 14 points scored by Cornell in the second half was the fewest points allowed by the Gophers under Tubby Smith.
Lawrence Westbrook came off the bench for the third consecutive game after starting 38 straight games for the Gophers. He contributed 17 points, scoring in double figures for the sixth time in seven games this year and for the 23rd time in his career. Westbrook also scored 17 points in the win against North Dakota State (Nov. 22). His season-high is the 20 points he scored during the Gophers’ victory versus Bowling Green during the NABC Classic (Nov. 15).
Sampson scores in double figures for the second time in the past three games, finishing with 10 points on 5-of-9 field goals. The 6-foot-11 freshman also pulled down a team-high six rebounds.
Damian Johnson’s 13 points was a season-high, and the most since scoring 14 points in last season’s NIT loss to Maryland. Johnson added four assists, three rebounds, two blocked shots, and one steal to help the Gophers rally for the comeback victory.
