Read my full story on Minnesota's 81-68 loss to Texas Tech here.

Three observations before I head out for my final late dinner in San Juan:

Revenge win for Smith, but it will be overblown. Yes, it's a bit embarrassing for Minnesota coach Richard Pitino to lose to former Gophers coach Tubby Smith, the coach he was hired to replace two and a half years ago. But although this one will be a talker for a while, this game is not the point. Minnesota was always going to struggle this season, even against middle-of-the-pack Power Five teams. The Gophers are young and inexperienced and while the future may be bright, the present is tenuous, at best. I'm guessing the Gophers would have lost against this roster no matter who is coaching. And of course it's impossible to say whether they would have fared any better if the coaches had switched sides. But this game won't define Minnesota's season because the Gophers will likely have a lot more like it.

Time to start using youth as an excuse. The Gophers motto this year is "We won't use youth as an excuse." And that's admirable in a way, but it's also a not-so-subtle and constant reminder that Minnesota is, in fact, young. On the court, that's obvious, with players not playing smart defense and picking up fouls, then as Pitino alluded to, being scared to play defense at all. This team has to find the right balance, and it's going to be a process. In the meantime, the Gophers will likely continue to be inconsistent offensively, occasionally one-dimensional (unable to score if they can't hit threes), streaky and occasionally emotional. I do believe that many of the players have great potential, but the final product is going to take some time to come together. That's just the reality.

Did I mention rebounding? At the beginning of the year, I thought it would be Minnesota's downfall. And these days, while it's obvious the Gophers have other flaws, their performance on the board is plenty foreshadowing. Minnesota has lost the rebound battle to every team its played, including several that aren't especially good at it. That's going to be an even greater problem as the season rolls on if the Gophers can't start boxing out and better fighting for positioning. The good news? Minnesota goes back to Minneapolis for the next four games (although Clemson is in that mix), with some time to get some basics in order.