Dawson Garcia scored 23 points and Brennan Rigsby added 14, helping Minnesota (6-3) build a 28-point second-half lead on its way to a 79-62 win over Bethune-Cookman (2-6) at Williams Arena. Garcia made 8-of-15 field goals, including a pair of three-pointers, and was 5-of-5 at the free throw line to reach 20 or more points for the sixth time this season. He added five rebounds, four assists, two blocked shots and a steal in just 28 minutes. Rigsby was 4-of-8 from behind the three-point arc, while adding four rebounds and two assists. Trey Edmonds had nine points and six rebounds, Femi Odukale finished with seven points, a team-best seven boards, five assists, and four steals, Isaac Asuma had six points, a team-high six assists, and six rebounds, and Lu’Cye Patterson had seven points
and five assists.
As a team, Minnesota was credited with a season-high 25 assists on 29 made field goals. The Gophers were 29-of-61 (.475) from the field, including 11-of-23 (.478) from three-point range, and 10-of-12 (.833) at the line, while ending the game with a 39-24 rebounding advantage. Brayon Freeman led the Wildcats with 21 points, while Trey Thomas added 18 points, and Reggie Ward Jr. recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards.
Minnesota jumped ahead 6-3, as Garcia and Rigsby connected on the first two three-point attempts of the afternoon, and Garcia added a short floater along the baseline for an 8-5 lead with 16:09 remaining in the half. The Wildcats took a brief 9-8 lead with a 4-0 run, but Asuma knocked down a three and Garcia added a three-point play with 12:45 left to put the Gophers up, 14-9. Minnesota forced five B-CU turnovers in the first eight minutes, which led to an early 8-2 advantage in points off turnovers. Edmonds scored five points as the Gophers’ run reached 13-2, forcing Wildcats head coach Reggie Theus to call a timeout with his team trailing 21-11 with 8:22 left in the half.
Edmonds added four more points, Rigsby hit a jumper in the lane, and Odukale made a three from the right corner to give Minnesota a 30-13 lead. The Wildcats hit a pair of treys to cut it to 30-19, but a Garcia layup and buckets from Frank Mitchell and Odukale kept the Gophers in front by 13. Patterson joined the scoring with a layup to put Minnesota up 38-23 with just under a minute remaining, and the Gophers led 38-26 at the half.
Garcia led Minnesota with 10 first-half points and four assists, while Edmonds had nine points and four rebounds in just six minutes. Odukale added five points and four boards, Rigsby had five points, and Asuma had three points, four assists, and three rebounds. The Gophers made 16-of-35 (.457) field goals, including 4-of-12 three-point attempts, and were 2-of-3 at the line. Minnesota had a 22-14 rebounding edge, and was credited for 14 assists on its 16 field goals. Freeman
led B-CU with 12 points at the break.
Bethune-Cookman opened the second half with an 8-0 run, extending its run from the end of the first half to 11-0 and cutting Minnesota’s lead to 38-34, forcing a Gophers timeout. Garcia snapped the run with a three-pointer and then added a layup to stretch the lead back to 43-34. Parker Fox’s dunk, his team-leading 11th of the season, and a three by Rigsby made it a 10-0 run. A jumper by Garcia and a pair of free throws from Fox put the Gophers up 52-36. The Wildcats
cut into the lead with a 5-0 run, but Patterson’s three from in front of the Gophers bench kept Minnesota up by 14 with 12:04 left.
Minnesota continued to build its lead, getting a three-pointer from Asuma, a three-point play by Kadyn Betts, and a layup from Odukale to take a 22-point lead at 63-41 at the 9:48 mark. Garcia scored in the lane, Rigsby drained a three, and Garcia added two more free throws to reach 20 points, and the Gophers’ lead reached 70-43 with 5:33 left.
The Gophers open Big Ten play on Wednesday, Dec. 4, when they play host to Michigan State for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff
(info and photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
