MINNEAPOLIS — It didn’t matter that the Minnesota offense wasn’t clicking Thursday night. Not with the way the Gophers played defense in a 58-53 overtime victory over No. 20 Wisconsin. The Gophers held the Badgers without a field goal during the final six minutes of regulation and the first 4:49 of overtime. Wisconsin missed 12 shots in a row and was 1-for-14 with four turnovers in that 11-minute stretch. That allowed Minnesota to close the game on a 15-6 run and secure an important victory. That down-the-stretch defense had been missing from the Gophers (18-7, 6-6 Big Ten) as they lost six of eight games and went from being ranked in the nation’s top 10 to being unranked. That ability to win a game with defense was part of the reason the Gophers were so pleased after the game. “It was very satisfying,” Austin Hollins said. “We sat down, we switched when we need to, we contested shots, we played good post defense.” Said Minnesota coach Tubby Smith: “We had gotten …
Continue Reading: Minnesota defense clamps down on Wisconsin in OT (The SportsXchange)
