Gophers center Liam Robbins scored 27 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and had 5 blocks in Minnesota's 77-60 win over Ohio State Sunday night at Williams Arena. ((credit: University of Minnesota Athletics))
MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota men’s basketball team bounced back in a big way from a New Year’s Eve loss at Wisconsin with a dominating 77-60 win over No. 25-ranked Ohio State Sunday night at Williams Arena.
The No. 21-ranked Gophers had five players score in double figures, led by Liam Robbins. The center and Drake transfer finished with 27 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks in 36 minutes. Robbins shot 7-of-13 from the field, 1-of-4 from the perimeter and 12-of-17 at the free-throw line.
Marcus Carr added 15 points, six rebounds and three assists, Gabe Kalscheur scored 13 points and Both Gach and Jamal Mashburn Jr. added 10 each. It was Kalscheur’s best offensive game of the season, as he shot 5-of-9 from the field, including 3-of-6 from the perimeter. As a team, the Gophers shot 9-of-22 (40.9 percent) from three-point range.
The Gophers improved to 10-2 on the season and 3-2 in Big Ten play with the win. They led 43-37 at the half and led most of the last 10 minutes by double digits, leading by as much as 17 in the second half.
They limited the Buckeyes to 31.1 percent shooting for the game, including 26 percent from the perimeter.
Minnesota travels to Michigan Wednesday night, and the Gophers should move up into the top 20 when the latest national rankings come out Monday. Last week, they debuted at No. 21 for the first time in three years after beating Iowa. The Gophers then beat Michigan State 81-56, lost at Wisconsin and earned Sunday’s win.