Gophers men's basketball-Illinois gameday preview
January 30, 2019 at 2:48AM
U rediscovers shooting going into Illinois, the sequel
Preview: The Gophers (15-5, 5-4 Big Ten) are coming off arguably their best offensive performance of the season in Sunday's 92-87 victory against No. 19 Iowa. They shot 57 percent from the field and scored their most points in a regulation Big Ten game since a 95-89 win against the Hawkeyes in Richard Pitino's first season (2013-14). A second consecutive home game Wednesday will be a rematch against Illinois (6-14, 2-7), which clobbered Minnesota 95-68 in Champaign on Jan. 16. … The Illini stopped a five-game losing streak and won their first Big Ten game in the last meeting with the Gophers. An even bigger victory for second-year coach Brad Underwood, though, came Saturday against No. 13 Maryland, 78-67 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Players to watch: Gophers senior forward Jordan Murphy, who earned Big Ten co-player of the week honors Monday, moved into second place on the Big Ten's career rebounding list with 1,150 boards, behind Ohio State's Jerry Lucas. Murphy had 23 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high-tying six assists Sunday against Iowa. … Illinois freshman guard Ayo Dosunmu has scored 20 or more points five times in his past eight games. The 6-5 guard averaged 18.5 points during that stretch, which included 23 points on 9-for-13 shooting from the field against the Gophers.
Numbers: Gophers freshman center Daniel Oturu led the team with 17 points and eight rebounds at Illinois, but he's day to day because of a shoulder injury after missing Sunday's victory vs. Iowa.
MARCUS FULLER
about the writer
He improved to 86-2 in his college career in his first action for the Gophers since March 2022.
