University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Open Tip-Off against Western Kentucky
11/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Minnesota vs. Western Kentucky:
The Gophers open the 2010 Puerto Rico tip-off against Western Kentucky on Nov. 18. Minnesota has never faced Western Kentucky. Both teams come into the tournament with identical 2-0 records.
Junior Trevor Mbakwe has made quite an impression in his first two games in Maroon & Gold, as he has contributed a pair of double-doubles to open the season. His 14 points against Wofford and 11 rebounds against Siena qualify as career highs.
Western Kentucky has shot the ball well in the early portion of its schedule, as the Hilltoppers come to San Juan with four of the five probable starters shooting over 50 percent from the field. Senior forward Sergio Kerusch leads the way with a .700 shooting percentage.
The winner of the Minnesota/Western Kentucky tilt will play the winner of the Hofstra/North Carolina on Friday, Nov. 19.
Gophers and In-Season Tournaments:
The Gophers have a combined record of 67-40 in in-season tournaments, dating back to the Chicago District Olympic Tournament during the 1935-36 season.
Minnesota is 6-3 under Tubby Smith in in-season tournaments, including a 3-0 record in the NABC Classic to start the 2008-09 season. The Gophers hosted the event to coincide with Tubby Smith's stint as NABC President.
The most success in the history of the program in in-season tournaments came during the eight seasons in which the Gophers hosted the Pillsbury Classic from 1974-82. Minnesota never dropped a game in the history of the event, finishing 16-0.
About the Golden Gophers:
- Golden Gopher Head Coach Tubby Smith's all-time record stands at 452-184 (20th Season), while his record at Minnesota is 65-39 (Fourth Season).
- The Gophers opened the regular season with a 69-55 victory over Wofford on Nov. 12 and a 76-69 victory over Siena on Nov. 15.
- Ralph Sampson III & Trevor Mbakwe both collected a double-double on Nov. 12 against Wofford. It was the first time since 2005 that a pair of Gophers finished with a double-double in the same game (Jonathan Williams - 11 points, 10 rebounds; Vincent Grier - 15 points, 10 rebounds vs. Iowa)
- Mbakwe's followed that up with a 10 point, 11 rebound game against Siena on Nov. 15.
- Minnesota had four freshman make their collegiate debuts in the season opener. Chip Armelin scored 11 points in 12 minutes while Maverick Ahanmisi, Austin Hollins and Mo Walker went scoreless.
- The Gophers made their first trip to the championship game of the Big Ten Tournament last season, where they posted wins over Penn State (76-55), 11th-ranked Michigan State (72-67 in OT), and sixth-ranked Purdue (69-42), before losing to #5 Ohio State (90-61) in the title game.
- Minnesota went in to the NCAA Tournament having won seven of its past 10 games. The Gophers, who finished second in the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense, held opponents to a combined 34.5 percent from the field (136-of-394) in those wins. In four of the games, Minnesota held the opposing team's leading scorer to 10 points or less - Verdell Jones III, IND (10), Demetri McCamey, ILL (9), Talor Battle, PSU (10), and E'Twaun Moore, Purdue (2).
- Minnesota led the Big Ten Conference last season in blocked shots (199: 5.7 bpg), steals (273: 7.8 spg), assists (583: 16.7 apg), and three-point field goal percentage (.399), while ranking second in the league for scoring offense (72.4 ppg) and third indefensive field goal percentage (.400), field goal percentage (.468) and rebounds per game (35.3).
- Hoffarber averaged a career-high 10.0 ppg last season and shot .496 (119-of-240) from the field and .467 (85-of-182) from three-point land, also career highs. His 85 treys for the season set a new single-season record at Minnesota, breaking the previous mark of 79 set by Lawrence McKenzie during the 2007-08 season.
- Hoffarber finished the season by hitting two treys against Xavier in the NCAA Tournament to give him 200 for his career, which is also a Minnesota record. He passed Michael Bauer's record of 191 in the 76-55 win over Penn State.
- Ralph Sampson III led the 2009-10 Gophers with a career-high 5.8 boards per game. He is currently second on the team in rebounding through two games this season.
About the Hilltoppers:
- Western Kentucky is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky and is a member of the Sun Belt Conference.
- Head coach Ken McDonald is in his third season at WKU. He enters the tipoff with a career record of 48-22.
- The Hilltoppers have started the season 2-0 with victories over St. Joseph's and Alabama A&M.
- WKU went 21-13 a season ago, including a 12-6 conference record.
- WKU is led by senior forward Sergio Kerusch, who is averaging 20.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per game and is shooting .700 from the field.
- WKU entered the 2010-11 season with the 14th most wins in NCAA history with 1,627.
Series History:
- First meeting
- The Gophers are 5-2 all-time against teams currently in the Sun Belt Conference.
(1-1 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock; 1-0 vs. Denver; 1-0 vs. Florida International; 1-0 vs. Louisiana-Lafayette; 1-1 vs. Middle Tennessee State) - Minnesota also had a matchup with Florida Atlantic during the 1997 season and two games against Middle Tennessee State (1993 & 1994) that have since been vacated.
- Tubby Smith is 1-1 against Western Kentucky and a combined 3-1 against teams in the Sun Belt.
(2-0 vs. North texas; 1-1 vs. WKU)
