From The Barn

Quick throughts: Gophers 64 – Michigan State 65

Posted on 23. Jan, 2010 by JF.

A familiar feeling huh?

This is Minnesota’s sixth singe digit loss, and the third that was decided on the last play of the game or in overtime. I don’t know how things could get more frustrating at this point, but I’m sure we will soon find out.

It is hard to say how Al Nolen would have [...]

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Quick Thoughts

Posted on 23. Jan, 2010 by Face.

An incredibly tough loss to swallow for several reasons.  Not only did the Gophers control the game for 34.5 minutes, but they actually looked like they understood how to score consistently against a difficult team.  However, their panicked, inexperienced-looking final four minutes just sh0wed how far they are from being a team that can handle [...]

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Game 19 Preview: Gophers vs. Michigan State

Posted on 22. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Michigan State Spartans

11:00 am (CST) at Williams Arena (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: CBS

Tickets: Gone

“As the Barn Turns,” “The Young and the Barnless,” “General Barnspital” (sorry, one too many)… whatever you want to call this season, it has seen more surprises and plot twists than the average soap opera, or so [...]

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Wanted: New Starting PG

Posted on 21. Jan, 2010 by Face.

As if the hits wouldn’t stop coming for Minnesota, it’s starting to look like a distinct possibility that Al Nolen could be lost for the rest of the season due to academic ineligibility.  The full story is still coming together, and it’s possible that he might find himself off the hook due to an NCAA [...]

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Liveblog: Gophers at Indiana

Posted on 17. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Gophers at Indiana

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Game 18 Preview: Gophers at Indiana

Posted on 16. Jan, 2010 by JF.


Golden Gophers vs. Indiana Hoosiers

3:30 pm (CST) at Assembly Hall (Bloomington, IN)

Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network

Welcome to the wacky world of Big Ten basketball, where with injuries, suspensions, and unbalanced schedules everything appears and is possible. At the beginning of the day, Illinois was tied for Michigan State in first place. Michigan State [...]

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Respectable at least: Gophers 53 – Michigan State 60

Posted on 13. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Well, that wasn’t too bad.
Any Gopher fan with any sort of memory dreads heading to the Breslin Center, which has been a house of horrors in recent years for the Gophers including last season’s disaster. The Gophers were run out of they gym that night. Tonight, they probably should have run some more.
Superficially, the goal [...]

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Liveblog: Gophers at Michigan State

Posted on 13. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Share your thoughts as you watch the game!
Gophers at Michigan State

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Game 17 Preview: Gophers at Michigan State

Posted on 12. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Michigan State Spartans

5:30 pm (CST) at Breslin Center (East Lansing, Michigan)

Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network

Could this be the year that Spartan speed doesn’t kill the Gophers? Michigan State’s speed during the Tubby Smith Era has been the deciding factor in Minnesota’s five straight losses against the Spartans. The speed advantage [...]

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Quick thoughts: Gophers 73 – Ohio State 62

Posted on 09. Jan, 2010 by JF.

The Gophers move to 3-1 in the Big Ten with an excellent performance against Ohio State who was finally at full strength. There will be a more in-depth review after I re-watch the game and overcome my post exciting game amnesia.

Blake Hoffarber has finally, definitively, shut up his critics. After every great game he has [...]

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Game 16 Preview: Gophers vs. Ohio State

Posted on 09. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Ohio State Buckeyes

2:30 pm (CST) at Williams Arena (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network

Tickets: Best available- Row 11, upper deck, baseline (obstructed)

Evan Turner has had this game circled for a while. As early as December 19th, 2009, only two weeks after an ugly and scary back injury that easily [...]

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Game 15 Review: Not too embarassing

Posted on 06. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Minnesota’s goal going into last night’s game at #4 Purdue was of course to win, and if not win, at least be competitive. That secondary goal was achieved, though the scoreboard may indicate otherwise.
The scoreboard is not always a reliable narrator. The 12 point Gopher victory in Iowa City was more of a blow [...]

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Live Blog: Gophers at #4 Purdue

Posted on 05. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Gophers vs. Purdue

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Game 15 Preview: Gophers vs. #4 Purdue Boilermakers

Posted on 04. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Purdue Boilermakers

6:00 pm (CST) at Mackey  Arena (West Lafayette Indiana)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: ESPN

College basketball is the most forgiving of all sports. There is not a set number of teams in each conference that advance to the NCAA tournament. One bad game won’t spoil a season. The season is long enough to [...]

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Quick thoughts: Gophers 86-74

Posted on 03. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Ten hours in the car over two days and one night in Iowa City in a motel room pushing 80 degrees aren’t conducive to writing a coherent article (just ask Marcus Fuller who thinks the Gophers almost lost to Iowa). So instead, add your own transition sentences, or enjoy the bullets.

My journey to Iowa was [...]

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Game 14 Preview: Gophers vs. Iowa

Posted on 02. Jan, 2010 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Iowa Hawkeyes

3:00 pm (CST) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City, Iowa)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network

One year removed from questioning whether the Minnesota-Iowa rivalry, once one of the most intense in all of college basketball, was dead, I’ve decided to find out first hand. In a first but hopefully not last [...]

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Big Ten Preview: Michigan State Spartans

Posted on 31. Dec, 2009 by JF.

The last Big Ten preview of the year checks in with The Only Colors to discuss the best Big Ten team of the decade, the Michigan State Spartan.
FTB: Derrick Nix recently improved his free throw shooting to 10.7%. Did the MSU coaches have any idea this was coming, and is his shot really that bad?

TOC: [...]

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Game 13 Review: Gophers get on Westbrook’s back, beat Penn State

Posted on 31. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Everyone knew which player would get the ball, and everyone knew he would shoot at the first opportunity. No one could stop the shots, or the ball from hitting nothing but the bottom of the net. No, I’m not talking about Talor Battle, who did have quite the game. Instead it was Lawrence Westbrook that [...]

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Quick Thoughts: Gophers 75 – Penn State 70

Posted on 29. Dec, 2009 by JF.

That was closer than it should have been, but the Gophers took care of business when it matter most. A few quick thoughts before a full review tomorrow:

This close win is probably more meaningful in the long run than any blow-out would have been. The Gophers needed a confidence boost, especially in a close game. [...]

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Livechat: Gophers vs. Penn State

Posted on 29. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Gophers vs. Nittany Lions – Fullscreen

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Big Ten/Game 13 Preview: Gophers vs. Penn State

Posted on 28. Dec, 2009 by JF.

This regularly scheduled preview has been replaced by a conversation with Eric from Battle Does It Again, has answered a few pressing questions about The Fighting Talor Battles and tomorrow night’s game.

Golden Gophers vs. Penn State Nittany Lions

8:00 pm (CST) at Williams Arena (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: ESPN 2

Tickets: Best available- Row 15 [...]

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Big Ten Preview: Wisconsin Badgers

Posted on 28. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Part four of the Big Ten preview hops across the border to learn more about the hated Wisconsin Badgers, and asks important questions like who should we hate, and why? Hoops Marinara generously provided the following information:
FTB: Wisconsin has picked up quite the reputation for their border raiding ways. How are the Minnesotans coming along?
HM: [...]

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Big Ten Preview: Illinois Fighting Illini

Posted on 27. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Part three of the Big Ten Preview takes a look at the Fighting Illini, a team with tons of potential but little identity heading into the season. Joe of Hail to the Orange has helped attempt to make sense of a very confusing season for Illinois.
FTB: Who are the real Illini, and how did they [...]

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Big Ten Preview: Northwestern Wildcats

Posted on 26. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Part two of our pre-conference swing around the Big Ten features the most surprising team in the Big Ten and national media darlings, the Northwestern Wildcats.  Ryan of Welsh-Ryan Ramblings stopped by to answer a few questions.
FTB: Northwestern is off to its best start in years. Has anyone in the greater Chicago area noticed?
W-RR: This [...]

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Game 12 Preview: Gophers vs. South Dakota State

Posted on 22. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. South Dakota State Jackrabbits

6:00 pm (CST) at Williams Arena (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network
Tickets: Best available- Row 11 upper deck, corner

This is South Dakota State’s Big Dance, their Superbowl, their national championship game. Every year the Minnesota game is circled on the calendar, and in the last two [...]

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Big Ten Preview: Purdue Boilermakers

Posted on 22. Dec, 2009 by JF.

With the conference season only a week away, we’ll be checking in with bloggers covering the rest of the Big Ten. To tip things off, Pete from The Purdue Basketball Blog answered a few questions. Needless to say, he is a bit optimistic.
FTB: Purdue is the lone remaining undefeated team in the Big Ten, when [...]

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Blake Hoffarber is Big Ten Player of the Week

Posted on 21. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Not bad…not bad at all…
The conference office announced on Monday the sixth weekly men’s basketball award for games played Dec.14-20. Minnesota junior Blake Hoffarber collects his first weekly award after helping the Gophers improve their win streak to four with a win over Northern Illinois last week.
Player of the Week:
Blake Hoffarber, Minnesota
6-4 – G – [...]

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Quick Thoughts: Gophers 89 – Northern Illinois

Posted on 15. Dec, 2009 by JF.

It is always a pleasant surprise when a boring non-conference game is not only interesting, but worth talking about for days (years?) to come.

Blake Hoffarber set a school record with 8 three pointers, and scored 26 points on 11 shots in only 22 minutes.  He made four threes in a row in the first half, [...]

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Livechat: Gophers vs. Northern Illinois

Posted on 15. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Warning, you may need the company of others to make this game watchable.

Livechat: Gophers vs. UNI – Fullscreen

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Game 11 Preview: Tempo-free stats instead Huskie analysis

Posted on 15. Dec, 2009 by JF.

Golden Gophers vs. Norther Illinois Huskies
7:00 pm (CST) at Williams Arena (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Radio: WCCO 830 AM
TV: Big Ten Network
Tickets: Best available- Row 10 upper deck, free throw line
Liveblog: We’ll have a chatroom up
When the final horn sounds tonight making official what will inevitably be a blowout win over the Northern Illinois Huskies, there will [...]

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