University of Minnesota Athletics
Fast Break: Drake
12/11/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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SERIES, ETC.
Tonight's 68-67 win was the 20th all-time meeting between Minnesota and Drake, with the Gophers now holding a 13-7 lead in the series (Minnesota leads 10-1 at Williams Arena). Minnesota improved to 9-3 on the season, while Drake fell to 5-5. Head coach Richard Pitino is 1-0 against the Bulldogs, and 3-0 against Missouri Valley foes, while Minnesota now stands at 1,459-1,085 all-time (not counting vacated games). Coach Pitino's fifth-year record at Minnesota is 84-64, and his six-year career mark is 102-78.
STARTING FIVE
Coach Pitino utilized a starting lineup of seniors Nate Mason and Reggie Lynch, juniors Jordan Murphy and Dupree McBrayer, and sophomore Amir Coffey. Mason made his team-leading 81st career start (75th consecutive) in Maroon and Gold, while Murphy was in the starting lineup for the 66th consecutive time and McBrayer made his 46th start. Lynch, who transferred from Illinois State, has now started 45 games for the Gophers (95 career), while Coffey made his 45th career start.
GOPHERS OPEN SIX-GAME HOME STAND
Minnesota opened a six-game home stand with tonight's game versus the Bulldogs. The Gophers, who are now 6-1 at The Barn this season, follow with games versus Oral Roberts (Dec. 21), FAU (Dec. 23), Harvard (Dec. 30), Illinois (Jan. 3) and Indiana (Jan. 6) before heading to Northwestern on Jan. 10.
MR. DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Jordan Murphy finished with 24 points and a season-high 18 rebounds for his 12th-straight double-double to start the season (33rd career). He is the first NCAA Division I player to start a season with 12-consecutive double-doubles since Kansas State's Michael Beasley accomplished the feat during 2007-08. Murphy, who leads the nation in double-doubles this season, made 11-of-14 field goals, while also tying his career-high with four blocked shots and adding three assists. Murphy has averages of 20.3 points and 13.0 rebounds per game, while making 88-of-153 (.575) field goals this season.
MASON MOVING UP ALL-TIME SCORING CHART
Nate Mason had 12 points to give him 1,400 for his career, which ranks 10th all-time at Minnesota. This evening, he moved past Charley Mencel (1952-55, 1,391 points), and he now needs 46 points to pass Trent Tucker (1979-82, 1,445 points). Mason, a reigning First Team All-B1G guard, made just 4-of-13 field goals, but three of them were from beyond the arc, while also tying for a game-high with five assists (one turnover). He is averaging 15.5 points and 4.6 assists with just 14 turnovers.
COFFEY SCORES ALL 16 IN SECOND HALF
Amir Coffey went to the locker room at the half without a point or a rebound in 15 minutes. But he caught fire in the second half, making 5-of-7 field goals and 5-of-6 free throws for 16 points. Coffey, who now has seven-straight (32 career) double-figure scoring games, is averaging 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists, while making 16-of-40 (.400) three-pointers.
LYNCH SCORES 1,000th CAREER POINT
Reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Reggie Lynch had another strong game at both ends of the court. Lynch finished with seven points, including his 1,000th career point, while adding eight rebounds and five blocked shots. It is his eighth game this season with four or more blocked shots. Lynch is averaging 10.7 points and 8.1 rebounds, while leading the nation with 4.3 blocked shots (51 total) per game this season.
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES AND NUMBERS
Minnesota made just 9-of-30 (.300) first-half field goals, but the Gophers responded by making 18-of-29 (.621) in the second half to finish at 45.8 percent (27-of-59) … Minnesota was 21-of-35 (.600) on shots in the paint … the Gophers were outscored 17-2 on points off turnovers and 29-4 in bench points … tonight's attendance was 11,319, and the Gophers are averaging 11,397 per game through seven games … Lynch tied Joel Przybilla (1998-00) for fifth on the Gophers' all-time blocked shots list with 165 ... Amir Coffey scored his 575th career point during tonight's game.
