University of Minnesota Athletics
Preview: Gophers at Illinois
2/3/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 3, 2017
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, February 4, 2017
Time: 3:00 p.m. CT
Location: Champaign, Ill.
Arena: State Farm Center (15,500)
TV: BTN - Cory Provus (Play-by-Play); Jon Crispin (Analyst)
Radio: Learfield/1500 ESPN - Mike Grimm (Play-by-Play); Spencer Tollackson (Analyst)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 135/XM 195 (Illinois Broadcast)
SERIES INFORMATION
Series: 177th Meeting (63-113)
Series (Away): 85th Meeting (19-65)
Current Streak: L-2
Richard Pitino vs. Illinois: 1-3
Minnesota vs. Big Ten: 738-809*
Richard Pitino vs. Big Ten: 21-47
* - excludes vacated games
STARTING FIVE
• After its second and final bye of the conference season, the Minnesota men's basketball team returns to action Saturday, traveling to face Illinois in Champaign.
• After capturing victories in their first two Big Ten road games, the Gophers are looking to return to their winning ways away from home. With a win Saturday, Minnesota would have three Big Ten road wins for the first time in a season since the 2011-12 campaign.
• In the latest edition of the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), the Gophers stand in 23rd place. Minnesota is the third-highest ranked Big Ten team in the RPI rankings, behind Maryland (17th) and Wisconsin (20th).
• Redshirt junior Reggie Lynch sits among the nation's leaders in blocked shots. The Edina, Minn. native now has 66 blocks on the season, leading both the team and the Big Ten Conference and fourth nationally with an average of 3.1 blocks per game. He is spearheading the Minnesota team blocking effort which leads the Big Ten and ranks second in Division I at 6.4 blocks per game. Lynch is also steadily moving up the single-season records, as he is currently 9th among all-time Gophers in blocked shots. Randy Breuer holds the record of 87 blocks in the 1982-83 season.
• The Gophers will split their time between home and road games over the next three weeks. The Gophers will not have back-to-back Big Ten games at home until February 15 and 19 against Indiana and Michigan. Minnesota, along with Rutgers, is the only Big Ten team that will not have a two-game homestand until February - although the Scarlet Knights hosted Wisconsin on Jan. 28 at nearby Madison Square Garden in New York City and then hosted Iowa three days later in Piscataway.
| Minnesota (15-7, 3-6) at Illinois (13-10, 3-7) | |
| Date / Time | Saturday, Feb. 4 | 3 p.m. |
| Location | Champaign, Ill. - State Farm Center |
| Tickets | Click Here |
| TV/Live Video | BTN/BTN2Go |
| Radio | 1500 ESPN |
| Live Stats | Click Here |
| Game Notes | Minnesota | Illinois |
| Official Sites | Minnesota | Illinois |
| Social Media | @GopherMBB | Facebook |
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, February 4, 2017
Time: 3:00 p.m. CT
Location: Champaign, Ill.
Arena: State Farm Center (15,500)
TV: BTN - Cory Provus (Play-by-Play); Jon Crispin (Analyst)
Radio: Learfield/1500 ESPN - Mike Grimm (Play-by-Play); Spencer Tollackson (Analyst)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 135/XM 195 (Illinois Broadcast)
SERIES INFORMATION
Series: 177th Meeting (63-113)
Series (Away): 85th Meeting (19-65)
Current Streak: L-2
Richard Pitino vs. Illinois: 1-3
Minnesota vs. Big Ten: 738-809*
Richard Pitino vs. Big Ten: 21-47
* - excludes vacated games
STARTING FIVE
• After its second and final bye of the conference season, the Minnesota men's basketball team returns to action Saturday, traveling to face Illinois in Champaign.
• After capturing victories in their first two Big Ten road games, the Gophers are looking to return to their winning ways away from home. With a win Saturday, Minnesota would have three Big Ten road wins for the first time in a season since the 2011-12 campaign.
• In the latest edition of the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), the Gophers stand in 23rd place. Minnesota is the third-highest ranked Big Ten team in the RPI rankings, behind Maryland (17th) and Wisconsin (20th).
• Redshirt junior Reggie Lynch sits among the nation's leaders in blocked shots. The Edina, Minn. native now has 66 blocks on the season, leading both the team and the Big Ten Conference and fourth nationally with an average of 3.1 blocks per game. He is spearheading the Minnesota team blocking effort which leads the Big Ten and ranks second in Division I at 6.4 blocks per game. Lynch is also steadily moving up the single-season records, as he is currently 9th among all-time Gophers in blocked shots. Randy Breuer holds the record of 87 blocks in the 1982-83 season.
• The Gophers will split their time between home and road games over the next three weeks. The Gophers will not have back-to-back Big Ten games at home until February 15 and 19 against Indiana and Michigan. Minnesota, along with Rutgers, is the only Big Ten team that will not have a two-game homestand until February - although the Scarlet Knights hosted Wisconsin on Jan. 28 at nearby Madison Square Garden in New York City and then hosted Iowa three days later in Piscataway.
Players Mentioned
Center
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