From The Barn

Single-plays should benefit Gophers in Pitino’s first season

Posted on May 14, 2013 by JF.

The Big Ten’s single-play match-ups for the 2013-2o14 season leaked today, and the Golden Gophers should benefit from their schedule. They didn’t quite win the lottery like Wisconsin did (really, playing Michigan State and Ohio State only once, and both games at home). However, they do play some very good teams only once and get [...]

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Now that Mathieu is a Gopher, a breakdown of next season’s back court.

Posted on May 7, 2013 by JF.

Dre Mathieu, a 5’8″ -5’11″ (could someone measure this kid, please) junior college point-guard out of Knoxville, Tennessee will be joining the Golden Gophers for the 2013-2014 season. He will have two seasons of eligibility. Despite a successful high school career which landed him on the all-state team, his lack of height scared away all Division I scholarship offers. A successful junior college season, one in which he scored 16.1 points per game and added six assists, and 6 rebounds, was enough to get him several scholarship offers and now a spot on the Gophers roster.

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Recapping Richard Pitino’s recruit-April-ooza.

Posted on May 3, 2013 by JF.

In his final few years at the helm of the Golden Gophers basketball team, Tubby Smith looked tired. Maybe he was beaten down by the endless string of bad luck, or simply resigned to his fate. He rarely looked like someone who enjoyed his job, and that played no small part in fans no longer enjoying how Tubby Smith did his job. Richard Pitino was billed as the opposite. He was supposed to be tireless, both on and off the court, and he has proven that in his first month on the job, especially on the recruiting trail.

During his whirlwind first month with the Gophers, which coincided with the April evaluation period, Coach Pitino has maintained a feverish travel schedule, offering several elite players in the 2014 class. While the Big Three of Tyus Jones, Rashad Vaughn, and Reid Travis will still be priorities, they will not be the only options. It is not a coincidence that many of the players offered recently play the same positions of the Big Three. With the possibility of five open scholarships for the class of 2014, there would still be space for additional players even if all of the Big Three did commit.

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Let’s wrap the 2012-13 season

Posted on April 24, 2013 by zipsofakron.

Okay, so I usually do a season-ending recap soon after the final game of the season when the misery/optimism/exhaling is extremely fresh. It provides the best foundation to really review the season, scrutinize what went wrong, praise what went right and dream of the following year when everything will be better … or something. This [...]

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Richard Pitino to hire Dan McHale, complete coaching staff.

Posted on April 23, 2013 by JF.

According to twitter, where everything is always true, Richard Pitino has completed his coaching staff with Seton Hall assistant coach Dan Mchale. Former Gopher player and Nebraska assistant Ben Johnson and former Florida International assistant Kimani Young were previously added to the staff. Steve “Zo” Goodson will be the director of basketball operations.

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An open letter to Richard Pitino

Posted on April 22, 2013 by JF.

Congratulations on your new job! I’m sure you are excited for your first big time coaching job. While the weather is better in south Florida, the basketball is better up here, and the weather can be nice too. By now you have been on the job for a couple of weeks, and those who have [...]

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Commitment of Daquein McNeil should bring backcourt flexibility.

Posted on April 17, 2013 by JF.

Each off-season the college basketball coaching carousel begins to spin, and as coaches settle in to their new jobs, the recruiting carousel begins. Players commit to coaches as much as they commit to schools, so it is not surprising that recruits often reevaluate their plans when there is a coaching change. Alex Foster and Alvis Ellis, two of Tubby Smith’s recruits, won’t be playing for the Gophers next year. Daquein McNeil, a point guard out of Baltimore, apprently will.

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Richard Pitino is the next Golden Gophers Basketball Coach

Posted on April 3, 2013 by JF.

Norwood Teague earned his reputation plucking unknown coaches out of obscurity, and with his first hire at the University of Minnesota, he has done it once again. Richard Pitino, 30 year old son of another Richard Pitino, will be the next Golden Gophers basketball coach after one season at Florida International.

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Career archetypes and the next Golden Gopher basketball coach

Posted on April 1, 2013 by JF.

Welcome to the half-way point of the great Golden Gopher Basketball coaching search. No, really, we are only halfway there. If a coach was somehow hired by midnight, it would be the quickest hire in the Big Ten since 2010, by a whole four days. While the rest of the world waits with baited breath for the next coach to be named, it seems prudent to pause for a moment and explore what type of coach will be available and what type of coach can be successful. This is what Norwood Teague is looking at right now. As should now be obvious, he is finding a winner than appeasing fans, the media, or anyone else. Today, we will at career archetypes, and their likelihood of success.

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Donald Rumsfeld, media vs. journalists, and the Golden Gopher coaching search

Posted on March 31, 2013 by JF.

There is only one person who ever enjoyed a coaching search, and he was fictional. Take it away Alfred. And the world does burn during a coaching search, especially for those with the unfortunate task of sorting through the rumors, innuendo, and the semi-transparent attempts by coaches involved to extract larger and longer contracts out [...]

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On a more thoughtful approach to the coaching search

Posted on March 31, 2013 by zipsofakron.

If the past few days have shown us anything it’s that this Gopher fan base is one demanding group. Crazy indictments on the administration, Norwood Teague in particular, and the media frenzy to come down with the most ridiculous takes that further inflame the search process continue to amaze me. Take a chill pill, people. [...]

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The 5 best wins and worst losses under Tubby Smith

Posted on March 29, 2013 by zipsofakron.

We’re in the middle of perhaps the most exciting time in recent Gopher hoops memory, and nothing gets the blood pumping like a good, ol’ fashioned coaching search. And while rumors will swirl, flights will be tracked, and TMZ will seem tame, I think it’s important to take a minute to revisit the highs and [...]

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Coaching changes from the player perspective: An interview with Damian Johnson

Posted on March 29, 2013 by JF.

Lost in the flurry of rumors and innuendo during the search to replace Tubby Smith is that the Golden Gophers basketball team is also awaiting news about who will coach them next. Damian Johnson, former Golden Gophers forward, was a redshirt freshman when Dan Monson was fired and Tubby Smith was hired. He kindly agreed to answer a few questions about what a coaching search is like for players, and how it affects them.

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Day two of the Golden Gopher coaching search: Not a Shaka, Smart stays home

Posted on March 27, 2013 by JF.

It is a sad day for the twitterati and bloggers everywhere. Puns won’t come easy once the next Gopher basketball coach is named. Shaka Smart has decided to stay at VCU, adding a bit of mystery to the coaching search. Logic would dictate that Smart was the leading candidate, especially given his relationship with Norwood [...]

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