University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers' Busy Week Ends Against Richmond at Williams Arena
11/17/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
| Minnesota (3-0) vs. Richmond (3-0) | |
| Tickets | www.MyGopherSports.com |
| Date | Sunday, November 18, 2012 |
| Time | 6:00 p.m. CT |
| Location | Williams Arena (14,625) |
| Series Record | Richmond leads 1-0 |
| Last Meeting | L, 67-66 (March 18, 2002 - NIT) |
| Television | BTN (Eric Collins, Sean Harrington, Ann Carroll) |
| Radio | Learfield/1500 ESPN (Listen Online) |
| (Mike Grimm, Spencer Tollackson) | |
| Satellite Radio | Sirius 132/XM 192 |
| Live Stats | |
| Game Notes | Minnesota | Richmond |
| Season Statistics | Minnesota | Richmond |
| Gopher Basketball Blog | A Look at Minnesota's Opponent - Richmond Spiders |
| Social Media | Facebook | @GopherBBall | @CoachTubbySmith |
SERIES INFORMATION
Series: 2nd Meeting (0-1)
Series (Home): 2nd Meeting (0-1)
Current Streak: 0-1
Last Meeting: March 18, 2002 (L, 67-66 - NIT)
Tubby Smith vs. Richmond: First Meeting
Minnesota vs. Atlantic 10: 16-10
(Losses: Dayton, George Washington (2), Richmond, St. Joe's, St. Louis, Temple (2), VCU, Xavier)
Tubby Smith vs. Atlantic 10: 9-5
(Losses: Dayton (2), UMass, VCU, Xavier)
Game Day Tid-Bits:
• The Gophers are 16-10 all-time against teams currently in the Atlantic 10. Minnesota went 1-1 last season against A-10 teams, losing to Dayton in the championship game of the Old Spice Classic in Orlando and defeating La Salle in the opening round of the NIT in Philadelphia.
• Tubby Smith is 9-5 all-time against Atlantic 10 teams but will be facing Richmond as a head coach for the first time.
• This is the second meeting between Minnesota and Richmond. In the only previous contest, the Spiders emerged with a 67-66 win in the second round of the 2002 NIT at Williams Arena. The Spiders made seven of eight free throws down the stretch and overcame a 44-31 Gopher rebounding advantage to claim the road win.
• Richmond is 3-0 on the year with victories over Liberty (84-42), UNC-Wilmington (101-58) and Hampton (68-58) at home.
• Richmond returns eight letterwinners and three starters from a team that went 16-16 in 2011-12, including a 7-9 mark in Atlantic 10 play. Chris Mooney is in his eighth season as the head coach at Richmond. Mooney led the Spiders to NCAA berths in 2010 and 2011.
• Minnesota opened the American game on a 15-0 run, holding the Eagles to without a field goal for the first 5:49 of the first half. The Gophers then started the Toledo game on a 12-0 run by holding the Rockets to without a field goal for the first 4:21 of the first half. The Gophers held Tennessee State scoreless for the first 4:25 of the half and opened up a 9-0 lead.
Sharing the Ball:
• Minnesota finished the game against Tennessee State with 22 assists on 26 made filed goals. So far this season the Gophers are averaging 19 assists per game.
• Every season under Tubby Smith, Minnesota has recorded at least 23 assists for the season high in a game.
• The Gophers have averaged at least 14.1 assists per game in the Tubby Smith era and as many as 16.7 apg, which occurred during the 2009-10 season.
• Smith's 2009-10 team dished out a program-best 583 total assists while last year's team dished out 573 dimes, second most in program history.
| Season | Top Assist Game |
| 2012-13 | 22 vs. Tennessee State (11/15/12) |
| 2011-12 | 24 vs. Central Michigan (12/13/11) |
| 2010-11 | 23 vs. North Dakota State (11/24/10) |
| 2009-10 | 25 vs. Tennessee Tech (11/13/09) |
| 25 vs. Brown (12/05/09) | |
| 25 vs. South Dakota State (12/23/09) | |
| 2008-09 | 24 vs. South Dakota State (12/10/08) |
| 24 vs. High Point (12/28/08) | |
| 2007-08 | 24 at Colorado State (12/8/07) |
| 24 vs. South Dakota State (12/12/07) |
Glass Cleaners:
• Minnesota outrebounded Toledo University 51-27 on Nov. 12 at Williams Arena.
• It was the first time that the Gophers have reached the 50-rebound mark since collecting 50 boards in the second round of the 2010 Big Ten Tournament against Purdue (3/13/2010).
• The 51 rebounds is the second most by a Tubby Smith-led Gopher team. The most in the Smith era occurred during the 2008-09 season when Minnesota outrebounded Concordia-St. Paul 56-33 in the season opener as part of the NABC Classic.
| Season | Top Rebounding Game |
| 2012-13 | 51 vs. Toledo (11/12/12) |
| 2011-12 | 44 vs. Northwestern (3/8/12) |
| 2010-11 | 48 vs. Akron (12/15/10) |
| 48 vs. Cornell (12/4/10) | |
| 2009-10 | 50 vs. Purdue (3/13/10) |
| 2008-09 | 56 vs. Concordia-St. Paul (11/14/08) |
| 2007-08 | 44 vs. North Dakota State (12/3/07) |
Gophers are a Little Defensive:
• Minnesota opened the American game on a 15-0 run, holding the Eagles to without a field goal for the first 5:49 of the first half.
• Minnesota then opened the Toledo game on a 12-0 run by holding the Rockets to without a FG for the first 4:21 of the first half.
• The Gophers narrowly missed starting a third-straight game with a double-digit run but had to settle for a 9-0 start, holding Tennessee State scoreless for the opening 4:25 of the game.
• The Gophers' defense held American University to 36 points and a .261 field goal percentage.
• Through three games Minnesota is holding its opponents to .266 from the field (42-158), .188 from three-point land (9-48) and an average of 45 points a game.
• Minnesota is currently the top defensive team in the Big Ten Conference. Iowa has held its opponents to 50.7 points per game which is second in the conference.
• The 36 points given up are the lowest since Minnesota held Illinois to 36 points on Jan. 29, 2009 at Williams Arena.
• The 36 points is the least amount of points given up in a season-opener by Minnesota since the 1945-46 team held South Dakota State to 27 points in a 71-27 victory on Dec. 1, 1945.
• Minnesota held the Eagles to just 14 points in the first half, the lowest since holding Purdue to 11 points in the second round of the 2010 Big Ten Tournament.
• The Gophers finished with 10 blocks and 15 steals. Minnesota has led the B1G Conference in blocked shots the last four seasons, including four of the top five season block totals in the history of the Gopher program: a program leading 201 in 2008-09, 199 in 2009-10 & 169 in 2010-11.
• Sophomore Joe Coleman and junior Austin Hollins both collected a career-high five steals against American.
