Frank Mitchell’s impact and three other things learned from the Gophers' victory at Iowa

IOWA CITY – Frank Mitchell was one of many Gophers players with issues hitting free throws this season, but he was confident going to the foul line with 10 seconds left Tuesday night at Iowa.

Mitchell had shot 42% on free throws in his college career and was only 4-for-11 with the Gophers, but he calmly drilled two shots from the line to stop a late surge by the Hawkeyes in a 72-67 win.

“It meant a lot for me,” Mitchell said. “[Coaches and teammates] work out with me in the morning and work on those free throws. I stepped to the line with confidence and knocked them down.”

The 6-8, 260-pound Toronto native previously compared himself to another Canadian big man who played for the Gophers. Mitchell lost 25 pounds to prepare himself to play in the Big Ten. Former U center Mo Walker, an Ontario native, also lost weight to play well at the end of his career a decade ago.

Two Canadians helping the Gophers beat the Hawkeyes on the road in similar fashion? Sounds like fate. Walker drilled two free throws with 11 seconds left in a 64-59 victory at Iowa on Feb. 12, 2015.

“It feels good,” said Mitchell, who finished with eight points, six rebounds, two assists and a block in 18 minutes Tuesday night. “Big Mo!”

Here are four things learned about the Gophers in the win at Iowa:

The Gophers held the Hawkeyes to their lowest-scoring game of the season Tuesday, but they set the one defensively in the first half.

Entering the night, Johnson’s team ranked 17th in conference games in scoring defense at 82.9 points allowed per game. Opponents were shooting 48.3% from the field and 39.7% from three-point range. That put Minnesota’s field-goal defense and three-point defense at 16th in the league in both categories.

The lack of defensive identity might have been the biggest factor when the Gophers started 0-6 in Big Ten play before knocking off Michigan on Jan. 16. But the Gophers put that past behind them vs. Iowa. A Hawkeyes offense that ranks second in the Big Ten (84 points per game) could only generate 28 points by halftime.

The most impressive stat was the Hawkeyes shooting only 3-for-21 from three-point range after entering the game ranked as the Big Ten’s top shooting team from beyond the arc at 41%. Josh Dix was the conference’s No. 1 three-point shooter as well at 56.8%, but the Gophers kept him from getting good looks all night. Dix finished with only three points and went 0-for-1 shooting from deep in 38 minutes.

What would happen if the Gophers missed 15 free throws in Tuesday’s game? Obviously they would’ve gone home without snapping a six-game losing streak in Iowa City.

Nothing hurt the Gophers more than going 12-for-27 from the line in a double-overtime loss Jan. 6 vs. Ohio State.

No major-conference team shot worse than the Gophers' 64% at the line through Monday, which ranked 350th nationally. You wouldn’t know that from watching Minnesota’s players go 17-for-24 on foul shots against the Hawkeyes.

The aforementioned Mitchell made the biggest free throws of his Gophers career to finish the game. That was after shooting 2-for-9 in Big Ten play at the foul line.

But the biggest surprise lately has been Parker Fox, who was shooting 51% on free throws this season. Fox went 4-for-5 on Tuesday. He’s shooting 16-for-21 on free throws in the past nine games.

There’s no player in the Big Ten with more 20-point games than Dawson Garcia, who had his 12th game reaching that mark Tuesday.

Garcia scored 11 of his 20 points against the Hawkeyes in the second half and shot 7-for-15 from the field. It wasn’t nearly as efficient and spectacular as his performance with a 27-point, 12-rebound game topped with a buzzer-beating logo shot last week in overtime vs. Michigan. But is there a player more important to his team in the Big Ten?

Three more 20-point games would put him at 15 this season, which only Daniel Oturu (2019-20) and Kris Humphries (2003-04) have surpassed in the past 21 years.

Turning 24 years old on Tuesday, Femi Odukale was hoping to get a road victory at Iowa as a birthday gift. And the Gophers delivered.

But that wouldn’t have been possible if not for Odukale’s best offensive game as a Gopher. The 6-6 senior was as aggressive as ever attacking the rim, the offensive glass and shooting with confidence. He had 14 of his season-high 18 points in the second half. He shot 5-for-8 from the field but also 7-for-11 at the foul line.

As Odukale has done all season, he was a stat stuffer as well. Not only was he putting pressure on Iowa’s guards with his size and length, but he also had eight rebounds and four assists. No doubt he was the team’s MVP.