A banged-up Gophers basketball squad went toe-to-toe with the Indiana Hoosiers but lost their footing near the end. The 61-57 loss marks Minnesota’s fourth consecutive loss and their twelfth of the season.
The Gophers found themselves down two players before the game started. Forwards Dawson Garcia and Pharrel Payne sat out of Wednesday’s contest due to injuries, according to reporting from the Pioneer Press. Before the game, Garcia led all Gophers in points, averaging 14.9 per game, while both he and Payne held the top two spots in team rebounds (6.3 pg and 4.7 pg, respectively).
The Hoosiers won the tip to start and found Trayce Jackson-Davis swiftly cutting to the basket. Jamison Battle, however, was riding his coattails and reached him in time for a chase-down block.
After a few minutes and a media timeout, Minnesota had time to cool down and focus on keeping the score close. Freshman Jaden Henley, scoping offensive reads at the top of the key, saw his teammate Will Ramberg cut to the basket. Henley passed it and Ramberg got a foul call on a reverse layup, giving the Gophers a 13-12 lead.
Halfway through the first half, the Hoosiers were down by 5 points. Looking for a spark, they went to their star player, Jackson-Davis. He caught a pass in the post, spun and dribbled along the baseline. He contorted his body to put down a reverse dunk, but Treyton Thompson was there to reject it.
“He comes into practice every day, head held high, working his tail off,” Battle said in the post-game press conference. “It’s just a testament to what he’s done to prepare himself for this moment. I’m excited for him.”
Minnesota lost its lead after Thompson’s block and was down 4 points with a minute and 24 seconds to go in the first half. In a hurry, Battle drove into the paint only for Jackson-Davis to deny his layup. The ball went loose and Ramberg, who was behind the two, wrapped his arms around Battle to reach for the offensive rebound. He got two hands on the ball and threw up a circus shot. It miraculously went in and Minnesota was back within one possession at halftime.
Battle’s “attack first” mentality appeared at the start of the second half, this time coming from the defensive side. His steal set up Ta’Lon Cooper to create separation from his defender at the top of the key and drive past for the easy lay-in.
Indiana still held the lead and was not deterred. Jackson-Davis followed Cooper’s bucket with two of his own in 40 seconds. It increased their lead to 7, which prompted Minnesota head coach Ben Johnson to call a timeout.
At this point in the game, Jackson-Davis had 19 points and 15 rebounds. In his previous four games played, he led the Hoosiers in points, rebounds and assists. Two of those games included 30-plus point performances. The junior forward would go on to finish the night with 25 points, 21 rebounds and two assists.
“We weren’t nervous,” Jackson-Davis said when asked about the absence of Indiana head coach Mike Woodson due to a positive COVID-19 test. “We have a great staff. Everyone was locked in and engaged.”
Minnesota freshman Joshua Ola-Joseph’s calf began to cramp about six minutes into the second half. His calf cramped earlier in the first half, but after stretching on the sideline and resting at halftime, he was in to open the second half. However, Johnson decided to pull him from the game, meaning the Gophers were left with six players to compete.
The setback did not affect Battle whatsoever. He swished a trifecta of deep threes to keep Minnesota in contention. On his second make, Williams Arena was overflowing with cheers. So many, in fact, that the Hoosiers called a timeout before attempting their next possession amid vociferous chaos.
Battle’s third three-pointer, possibly his deepest three of the night, came in with just about six minutes left in the game and gave Minnesota a 55-54 lead. Three minutes later, Taurus Samuels hit both of his free throws off an Indiana turnover to increase the lead to 3 points.
It was the last time the Gophers scored for the remainder of the game. Minnesota missed their final 11 shots, while Indiana went on a 7-0 run to close out the game.
Battle led Minnesota in points with 20, the third time he reached that mark this season, along with five rebounds and a pair of blocks and steals. Thompson was the team’s second-leading scorer with eight points and matched that number in rebounds.
“I thought we battled,” Johnson said post-game. “I thought the guys followed the game plan to a tee … I’m really proud of their effort.”
The Gophers’ next matchup will be against the Northwestern Wildcats on Saturday. Northwestern currently sits in third place in the Big Ten with an in-conference record of 5-3 and an overall record of 14-5.
