Minnesota’s Nate Mason, right, loses control of the ball while driving to the basket against Ohio State’s Trevor Thompson during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete) COLUMBUS, Ohio — Trailing by 15 points midway through the first half of Wednesday’s Big Ten opener at Ohio State, the Gophers could have curled into the fetal position. After all, it was the first conference game for four Minnesota freshmen and the first time playing in Columbus for all but two players on the roster. The Gophers lost 78-63 to the Buckeyes at Value City Arena, but that final score didn’t show how hard Richard Pitino’s team fought to get back into a game that seemed one-sided from the start. “I was proud of the way they fought back,” Pitino said. “I thought it was anybody’s game until (Jordan) Murphy got his fourth foul.” Carlos Morris, who had a team-high 18 points, opened the second half with a three-pointer. Murphy’s two free throws followed to give Minnesota (6-7) a 39-37 lead with less than two minutes gone in the half. The same Ohio State fans who rose to their feet with the Buckeyes up 26-11 in the first half were suddenly bewildered. Minnesota outscored its opponent 28-11 during that run, but that ended up being the best shot the Gophers had. The Buckeyes (9-5) used a 20-3 run in the second half with Murphy in foul trouble to pull away for their fifth straight win. “We didn’t want to start the Big Ten out in that fashion, so we tried to compete as hard as we could,” Morris said. “We should’ve done the same thing in the second half.” Entering the game, Minnesota and Ohio State were wondering how their young teams would handle the grind of Big Ten play. The Gophers’ six nonconference losses were their most since 2006-07. …
Continue Reading: Gophers basketball: Poor start crucial in Big Ten-opening loss to Ohio State
