Iowa exposes Gophers' needs: better defense and much better shooting

Dawson Garcia carried the Gophers men's basketball team on a second-half run Monday, but that hasn't been the formula to victory in the Big Ten so far this season.

As unstoppable as the 6-11 junior forward looked at times, with 19 of his 30 points in the second half, the Gophers played one of their worst halves defensively in Monday's 86-77 home loss against Iowa.

Garcia pointed to the Gophers (12-5, 3-3 Big Ten) jumping ahead 14-3 as a sign of how well they could play. Six points early from Garcia was a sign it might be his night, but that was about as well as Minnesota's players defended compared to the rest of the game.

"We had them down early," Garcia said. "We have to keep our foot on the gas, stay connected and be tough. We just have to want it more than the other team."

Garcia rolling plus solid team defense equals better results. That didn't happen consistently enough Monday. Here are four things learned from the loss to the Hawkeyes:

Defensive issues

Iowa freshman guard Brock Harding had one field goal Monday night, but it happened in spectacular fashion to stretch the U's deficit to 12 points in the second half.

Driving in transition, Harding used a spin move that sent Elijah Hawkins to the ground before finishing with a layup that sent teammates leaping off the bench. Four other Gophers were near Hawkins. None of them tried to stop Harding or contest the shot.

That sums up how the Gophers failed defensively Monday, allowing Iowa to shoot 60% from the field in the second half.

Garcia's basket and foul with under nine minutes left cut it to 59-54, but the Gophers couldn't follow that up with a stop. Their zone defense was exploited with back-to-back three-pointers from Josh Dix. The sophomore scored eight straight points and had 14 of his 21 points in the second half.

The Gophers again missed on key defensive possessions after making it a five-point game around the five-minute mark. This time Tony Perkins did damage with several layups, including two backdoor cuts on Hawkins.

Outside shooting woes

It will be a long Big Ten season for Ben Johnson's team offensively if his guards continue to shoot poorly from the outside.

Since hitting 21 three-pointers combined on 44% shooting in wins against Maine and Michigan, the Gophers have combined to shoot just 14-for-72 in the last three games. That's 19% from beyond the arc, which is difficult to overcome.

The Gophers pulled out the 66-62 win Jan. 7 against Maryland at home with only six threes, but five of those shots from deep came in the second half. Hawkins, Cam Christie, and Braeden Carrington each two threes vs. the Terrapins.

Christie has two threes in three straight games, but his fellow starting guards have gone ice cold recently.

There was no Big Ten guard hotter than Mike Mitchell Jr. last month when he averaged nearly 17 points on 49% shooting from three (20-for-41) in six games. In his last three games, Mitchell has nine points combined on 1-for-10 shooting from three.

Hawkins typically isn't looking for his own shot that often, but his shooting plummeted in the last two games. He's got six points combined on 2-for-16 shooting, including 1-for-12 from three.

"The hardest part is you just have to see one go in," Johnson said. "Those guys put in so much time shooting. … Hard work doesn't guarantee success. It just puts you in a position to be successful. I keep telling those guys, 'You can't stop your preparation.'"

Getting Mitchell and Hawkins back on track could be the difference for the Gophers making it interesting Thursday at Michigan State. The Spartans have the deepest backcourt in the Big Ten.

Figuring out frontcourt

The Gophers might be one of the only Big Ten teams that doesn't start their top low-post presence, but that's what Johnson believes gives his team the best chance to win.

Coming off the bench hadn't kept Pharrel Payne from making an impact until he was limited to just three points in 14 minutes Monday. The 6-9 sophomore had just two shot attempts after a 17-point, 10-rebound, five-block performance in last week's 74-62 loss at Indiana.

In the second half, Garcia and Payne played together on the floor for about 3½ minutes late in the game. The Gophers got within 67-62 with Payne's only field goal at 4:49 to go, but he went to the bench for good a minute later.

Payne has dealt with different nagging injuries all season, so Johnson said that played a part in less action Monday night. Getting the most out of the Payne and Garcia frontcourt duo for an entire game is something that has eluded the Gophers so far in conference play.

Turnover margin

There are bound to be some turnovers that come along with having the top assist man in college hoops.

Hawkins took over the NCAA lead in assists per game (7.8) after his nine assists and only two turnovers Monday against Iowa. He continues to take care of the ball better than he had earlier this season. The Gophers need to do better as a team.

Eight of the Gophers' 12 turnovers Monday came in the first half. That contributed to an 11-point lead vanishing and them being outscored 25-6. The Hawkeyes had 12 points off turnovers in the first half.

In the last two games, the Gophers have been behind in turnover margin, including after committing 14 turnovers at Indiana. In their three Big Ten losses, Johnson's squad is averaging 13 turnovers per game (compared to averaging fewer than 10 turnovers during the recent seven-game win streak).