Minnesota has been waiting for almost two weeks to turn the page on a pair of ugly losses.
On Saturday afternoon, Minnesota finally will get the chance to do just that. The Golden Gophers (6-5) will return to the court to host Fairleigh Dickinson (4-9) in Minneapolis.
Minnesota will try to avoid its first three-game losing streak of the season. The Golden Gophers are coming off a 90-72 loss at home to Michigan State on Dec. 4, followed by an 82-67 loss at Indiana on Dec. 9.
Golden Gophers big man Parker Fox said he and his teammates were eager to get a sour taste out of their mouths from their recent performances.
“These last 10 days have been tough,” Fox said. “But we’ve been learning a lot about how hard it is to win.”
Minnesota coach Ben Johnson said he is looking for a complete effort.
“I think we play hard in glimpses, but we don’t play hard long enough,” Johnson said. “We pointed it out over and over that when we do play hard, and we stick to our scheme on offense and defense, good things happen. When we don’t, there’s a big gap between our success and failure.”
FDU also is looking for a spark, although it has had far less time to dwell on recent struggles. The Knights are coming off a 77-72 loss at La Salle on Wednesday, which marked their fifth defeat in six games.
Saturday’s game will mark a homecoming for FDU guard Terrence Brown, who is averaging 22.1 points per game for the Knights, a figure that ranks eighth in Division I. Brown is from Minneapolis and was a high school star at Columbia Heights.
“As a team, we’re just coming in to show we belong and we’re fearless,” Brown said. “Means everything to me to play in front of everybody I know and put the FDU jersey on back in my home state.”
Dylan Jones is second in scoring for Fairleigh Dickinson with 12 points per game. He makes 43.2 percent of his 3-pointers. Jo’el Emanuel rounds out the top three with 11 points per game.
Minnesota is led by Dawson Garcia, who is averaging 19.3 points and 7.1 rebounds. Lu’Cye Patterson and Mike Mitchell Jr. also are scoring in double digits with 10 points per game apiece.
–Field Level Media
