Men's Basketball

Many people have wondered whether Minnesota's men's basketball team would be able to stay together during this season of bitter disappointment. More than once, the team seemingly has given up at the end of games and players have visibly displayed their frustration with one another.

With Minnesota's men's basketball team coming off a loss to Ohio State, and Penn State reveling in their eye-popping upset over Illinois, the Nittany Lions seemed to have the momentum heading into Wednesday's game.

It wasn't that Minnesota's men's basketball team couldn't defend the three. It was that Ohio State's Je'Kel Foster couldn't miss a three. After missing the first shot of the game " a three-pointer " the senior guard poured in a career-high 25 points, hitting his next seven three-point attempts to lead the Buckeyes to a 67-53 win over the Gophers.

There is no glory in what he does. No awards. No accolades. Just bruises and a knee brace to remind him of the punishment he endured " and dished out " while battling for rebounds game in and game out. That is the role of J'son Stamper, a senior forward on Minnesota's men's basketball team.

Shutting down Indiana seemed improbable with Indiana's offense, and Minnesota's men's basketball's lack of it. Yet a lineup switch that brought junior Zach Puchtel into the starting lineup gave the Gophers uncertainty against Indiana, and the change was one that may have been the key to a big upset over the Hoosiers on Sunday at Williams Arena.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. " Every time Minnesota's men's basketball team would pull close to Illinois in Wednesday night's game, the eighth-ranked Illini countered with a big play to take back the momentum. It became obvious why Illinois (18-2, 4-2 Big Ten) has won 32 consecutive home games " a new school record " after its 77-53 victory over the Gophers.