University of Minnesota Athletics
Game Notes
12/5/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 5, 2014
MINNESOTA MEN'S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
Minnesota (6-2) 84, Western Carolina (3-6) 64
Friday, December 5 | Williams Arena | Minneapolis, Minn.
Attendance: 11,026 (14,625 capacity)
Team / Series Notes
• Tonight's game was the first all-time meeting in men's basketball between Minnesota and Western Carolina. The Gophers defeated the Catamounts during both the 1993 and 1997 seasons, but the games were later vacated by the NCAA.
• Head coach Richard Pitino improved his record at Minnesota to 31-15, while his three-year overall record moved to 49-29.
• Minnesota improved to 13-1 all-time against teams from the Southern Conference, while Coach Pitino is now 2-0 versus SoCon teams.
• The Gophers scored 84 points tonight after also tallying 84 points during Tuesday's win at Wake Forest. It's the first time Minnesota has tallied 80-plus points in back-to-back games since the first two games of last season.
• With the victory, the Gophers started the season 6-2 for the second time under Richard Pitino.
• The Gophers have held halftime leads in all but their season-opener this season. Minnesota's narrowest lead has been one-point margins in each of the past two games.
• Eight of the 10 players who saw time on the court for the Gophers scored points.
• The Gophers made 7-of-16 (.438) three-pointers, extending a streak of six or more treys made in each of the past seven games. Minnesota has combined to make 60-of-141 (.426) three-pointers in those seven games.
• Minnesota made 5-of-11 (.455) three-pointers in the second half.
• The Gophers dished out 23 assists on 31 field goals, with five players recording three or more assists.
• Five Gophers players scored in double-figures.
Individual Notes
• Junior guard Carlos Morris tied for team-high honors with 16 points, his fourth double-figure scoring output in the past five games. Morris made 7-of-9 field goals, while dishing out four assists and grabbing three steals.
• Senior guard DeAndre Mathieu tied Morris with a team-high 16 points to go with a team-best six assists.
• Senior guard Andre Hollins had 15 points and three assists. It is the 69th career double-figure scoring game for Hollins.
• Junior forward Joey King had 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting. It's King's 23rd career double-digit scoring game, and his fifth this season. He also tied for team-high honors with five rebounds.
• Freshman guard Nate Mason came off the bench to score 11 points and record five assists and a pair of steals. Mason made 4-of-6 field goals, including 3-of-5 three-point attempts.
• Senior forward Maurice Walker made 3-of-5 field goals and finished with nine points and four rebounds.
• Sophomore forward Charles Buggs tied his career-highs for rebounds (4) and blocks (2), while registering a new career-best with two assists and adding eight points.
Players Mentioned
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