Hoosiers Down Gophers

February 12, 2005

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Indiana men's basketball team began the second half on a 10-0 run and never looked back as the Hoosiers downed the Minnesota Golden Gophers, 71-56, in a pivotal Big Ten match-up on Saturday afternoon at Assembly Hall. The win was Indiana's seventh straight at home and moved them to 11-10, 6-4 in the conference, while Minnesota dropped to 16-8, 6-5 in Big Ten play.

The Hoosiers defense held Minnesota to just 32 percent shooting (17-of-53) and 14 percent on 3-point attempts (3-for-14), as well as forced15 Gopher turnovers. Offensively, Indiana shot 50 percent for the game (22-of-44), including 62 percent from outside the arc (8-of-13).

Ahead 29-27 entering the second half, IU's defense clamped down on Minnesota forcing the Gophers into four turnovers and an 0-for-4 effort from the field in the first five minutes of the half. Freshman A.J. Ratliff contributed five points in the run, while senior Marshall Strickland hit a three, and freshman Robert Vaden chipped in with a jumper.

Minnesota would cut the lead to eight, 39-31, but Indiana answered with a 7-2 spurt to up its lead to 13, 46-33, with 11:36 left in the game.

After Minnesota briefly cut the lead to single digits at 46-37, Indiana scored the next five points and would never relinquish a double-digit advantage.

Sophomore Roderick Wilmont pulled down a long defensive rebound and started a fast break, which he ended with a layup to put IU up by 14, 51-37, with 8:26 left.

Sophomore Patrick Ewing Jr., who netted a career-high 15 points, brought the near capacity crowd on their feet, nailing his third-career 3-pointer at 6:45, giving Indiana a 15-point cushion, 56-41.

Ewing would again bring the crowd to its feet with an acrobatic layup to build the Hoosiers largest lead 17 points, 63-46, with 4:19 left in the game.

Freshman D.J. White's jumper with 2:57 left once again gave IU a 17-point advantage, 65-48 as the Hoosiers would ride out the clock for the home victory.

Indiana, who went with four freshmen in the starting lineup for the second straight game, began the contest hitting its first two shots for a quick 4-0 lead. IU would later increase its lead to six, 11-5, with 16:23 left in the first half.

Minnesota would cut the lead to four on two occasions, the latest at 13:53, as Vincent Grier's jumper put the score at 13-9.

Indiana stormed back with a 7-0 spurt to open its largest lead of the first half, 20-9, with 12:09 left. The run was fueled with layup's by Ewing and White, combined with a 3-pointer by Wilmont.

A 10-2 run by Minnesota over the next six minutes cut the Cream and Crimson advantage to just three, 22-19.

IU would build its lead back up to eight, 29-21, but the Hoosiers would go scoreless in the final three and a half minutes in the first stanza, allowing the Gophers to end the half on a 6-0 run.

Ewing added six rebounds, four offensive, two assists and a block to his career-high 15 points. Ratliff also netted 15 points, one away from his career-high, along with four rebounds, three steals and two assists, while Vaden chipped in 14 points. Indiana's bench outscored Minnesota 27-5, including a 15-2 edge in the second half.

Minnesota was led by Grier who scored a game-high 21 points, while Jeff Hagan notched his second double-double of the season with 20 points and 15 rebounds.

The Cream and Crimson return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 15, as the Hoosiers travel to Columbus, Ohio, for a road conference game at Ohio State. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., and can be seen on ESPN and can also be heard live on the IU Radio Network.

Notes: The last time Indiana started four-freshman in back-to-back games was on Dec. 5 and 8 in 1989. Against Notre Dame, freshman Lawrence Funderburke, Calbert Chaney, Greg Graham and Chris Reynolds started alongside sophomore Eric Anderson. Against South Alabama, redshirt freshman Matt Nover and true freshman Chaney, Graham and Reynolds, started with Anderson...The last time IU won seven straight at home was during the 2002-03 season when the Hoosiers won their first eight games in Assembly Hall...Ewing's 3-pointer was his second this year and the third of his career...D.J. White played only 18 minutes due to foul trouble, but contributed nine points, three rebounds and three blocks...IU never trailed in the contest.

Indiana University Athletics

February 12, 2005

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Players Mentioned

A.J. Ratliff

A.J. Ratliff

Marshall Strickland

Marshall Strickland

Marshall Strickland

Marshall Strickland

Robert Vaden

Robert Vaden

D.J. White

Roderick Wilmont

Roderick Wilmont

Roderick Wilmont

Roderick Wilmont

Roderick Wilmont

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