Gophers men's hoops vs. Western Kentucky gameday preview

GOPHERS GAMEDAY

5:30 p.m. vs. Western Kentucky • Cherokee Center in Asheville, N.C. • ESPNU, 100.3 FM

Preview: The Gophers (1-0) doused Ben Johnson with water in a locker room celebration after a 71-56 win against Missouri Kansas City in Johnson's head coaching debut. Minnesota got a much needed confidence boost going into the inaugural Asheville Championship on Friday against Western Kentucky (1-0) in North Carolina. Friday's other game is South Carolina vs. Princeton. The winners and losers will match up Sunday. The Hilltoppers, the Conference USA East Division champions last season, are predicted to finish third in the league behind all-preseason selection Josh Anderson. Western Kentucky coach Rick Stansbury has never faced the Gophers, but Western Kentucky is 0-2 in the all-time series. The two teams last squared off with Minnesota winning 76-54 in the NIT Tip-Off in 2014.

Players to watch: Sophomore Jamison Battle led the Gophers with 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting in the opening win. Battle's sister, Amaya, signed Wednesday with Gophers women's coach Lindsay Whalen to begin the national early signing period. Western Kentucky sophomore guard Dayvion McKnight had 19 points in a 79-74 opening win against Alabama State. The Hilltoppers trailed by as many as 14 points and 63-61 down the stretch, but McKnight scored five points during a decisive 9-0 run to escape the upset.

Numbers: The Gophers used a seven-man rotation and had four starters play at least 32 minutes Tuesday against UMKC, including Luke Loewe and Battle logging over 35 minutes.