Posted on Wed, Nov. 24, 2004
Gophers focus on rematch with Furman
BY JASON WILLIAMS
Pioneer Press
The few Gophers basketball players still around remember it well. And those who weren't around, well, they've been made aware that Furman embarrassed Minnesota on its home court last November.
It wasn't a total embarrassment for Minnesota, which, after all, defeated the Paladins 91-84 at Williams Arena. But it took overtime to beat the middle-tier Southern Conference team. And it adds a little intrigue to an otherwise unglamorous Great Alaska Shootout first-round game at 12:45 a.m. CST Thursday.
"We've got a little chip on our shoulder," said Gophers senior guard Brent Lawson, one of only two healthy and eligible Gophers who played against Furman last season. "We didn't play very well last year. It was closer than we would've liked it to be, and we can't let that happen again."
It could be an even tougher task for the Gophers this season. Furman (1-1) has three starters back from last season's team, which finished with a 17-12 record. Leading the way are forwards Quan Prowell and Nick Sanders, who scored 15 and 11 points, respectively, against Minnesota.
The Gophers (1-0), on the other hand, have 12 new players and no returning starters currently healthy or eligible. Lawson (no points in five minutes) and senior point guard Aaron Robinson (three points in 14 minutes) are the current Gophers who played in last year's Furman game.
Both teams' star players from last season are gone. Furman's Maleye Ndoye and Minnesota's Ben Johnson each scored 32 points in the game, while the Gophers' Kris Humphries added 26 points.
Furman diced up the Gophers' defense, shooting 53 percent from the field and held a 78-76 lead with 34 seconds remaining in regulation. After the Gophers' Michael Bauer tied the score on a putback with 14 seconds left, Furman missed two shots in the closing seconds of regulation. In overtime, Gophers point guard Adam Boone converted a layup and three-pointer, and Minnesota made 8 of 12 free throws to pull away.
"It was really demoralizing," said senior center Jeff Hagen, who sat out the game with an injury. "That game left a bad taste in our mouth, even though a lot of these guys weren't around for that. But we've told them about it, and the guys who were here haven't forgotten about it.
"It's one of those teams you look at on paper, and you should beat them. But we just didn't come out prepared to play and they didn't get our best shot."
Hagen said that game, which was the third of the season, helped set the tone for the Gophers' miserable, 12-18 season.
"Early in the season, it's nice to get a couple of those bigger (margin) wins and get your confidence going," Hagen said. "Those are the kind of games that hurt your confidence even when you win. It was frustrating."
