University of Minnesota Athletics
Portland up next for Minnesota at 76 Classic
11/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
2009 76 Classic - Anaheim Convention Center:
Minnesota opened the third annual 76 Classic with an 82-73 victory over the No. 10/12 ranked Butler Bulldogs on Thanksgiving night. The Gophers will face the University of Portland tonight in the semi-final round. The Pilots defeated the UCLA Bruins in the opening round.
The final round of the 76 Classic will take place on Sunday, Nov. 29. The Gophers will play either West Virginia, the eighth ranked team in the nation, or Texas A&M on Sunday. The Moutaineers defeated the Aggies 73-66 to reach the championship game.
Minnesota opened the season on Nov. 13 with a win over Tennessee Tech, in what was Tubby Smith's 600th career game as a head coach. They followed that up with a 40-point victory over Stephen F. Austin on Nov. 16 and a 76-51 victory over Utah Valley.
About the Golden Gophers:
- Minnesota has a combined record of 26-2 under Tubby Smith in regular-season non-conference games, including a perfect 12-0 record to start the 2008-09 season.
- Under Tubby Smith, Minnesota is 20-0 in regular season non-conference games at Williams Arena. Dating back to the 2006-07 season under Jim Molinari, Minnesota has won 22 consecutive non-conference regular season home games.
- Smith is now 7-3 with Minnesota in neutral site games.
- Smith is 31-8 (.795) overall at Williams Arena during his two-plus seasons at Minnesota.
- Minnesota is allowing just 59.2 points per game at Williams Arena under Smith (39 games). The Gophers allowed just 58.4 ppg at the Barn in 2008-09 in 18 games and 62.2 in 2007-08. Under Smith, opponents have only reached 70 points eight times in 39 games (21% of the time).
- Colton Iverson recorded his first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds Nov. 26 against Butler. His 11 boards was also a career high.
- The Gophers were led a season ago by guard Lawrence Westbrook. He averaged a career-high 12.6 ppg. He also established career-highs in average minutes played (24.1), field-goal percentage (.430) and free-throw percentage (.833). He is now 190 points away from 1,000 for his career.
- Guard Devoe Joseph led Minnesota during the exhibition season with a 19.5 ppg average.
- Gopher freshmen Justin Cobbs and Rodney Williams made their collegiate debuts on Nov. 13 against Tennessee Tech. Williams scored 14 points in 21 minutes played while Cobbs was scoreless in seven minutes.
About the Pilots:
- Portland is a member of the West Coast Conference.
- The Pilots are coached by Eric Reveno (Fourth Season).
- Portland is also 4-0 this season, with wins over Eastern Washington, Seattle, Oregon and UCLA.
- The Pilots are led by senior guard Nik Raivio, who is averaging a team-high 17.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.
Series History:
- This will be the first meeting between the two schools.
- Tubby Smith has never faced Portland as a head coach.
- Smith is 3-0 all-time versus teams in the West Coast Conference (1-0 vs. Gonzaga and 2-0 vs. Santa Clara).
