
GOPHERS MEN'S HOOPS VS. CLEVELAND STATE
THREE THINGS TO WATCH:
Transfers of power – Seven newcomers for the Gophers are the most for the program since the 2004-05 season, but transfers Marcus Carr, Payton Willis and Alihan Demir will be asked to replace Amir Coffey, Dupree McBrayer and Jordan Murphy. Coffey, Murphy and McBrayer combined for 39.9 points, 15.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists for a 22-14 NCAA tournament team last season. Carr and Willis combined for 26 points and 12 assists in last week's 73-48 exhibition win vs. Southwest Minnesota State. Demir had just three points on 1-for-7 shooting from the field in last week's exhibition win.
Super sophomores – Sophomores Gabe Kalscheur and Daniel Oturu are the only returning starters for the Gophers from last season. Kalscheur, a guard from DeLaSalle, led all Big Ten freshmen and set a school freshman record with 77 three-pointers on 41 percent shooting last season. Oturu, a 6-10 center, led all Big Ten freshmen in rebounds per game (7.0), blocks (46) and field goal percentage (55.1). Carr is team's starting point guard and co-captain with senior forward Michael Hurt. There won't be another team in the Big Ten relying this much on their sophomore class to make an impact this season.
New three-point line – College basketball's new three-point line is 22 feet and 1 3/4 inches, which is the international three-point distance. How much will that hurt teams from improving their shooting? The Gophers ranked 344th nationally in three-pointers per game (5.3) and 300th in three-point percentage (31.7) last season. And that was with Kalscheur scorching the net from long distance. Willis is the best shooter of the newcomers. But freshman Bryan Greenlee shot 54.5 percent in five exhibition games this summer and fall. Minnesota shot 8-for-21 from beyond the arc in last week's exhibition game victory, including Greenlee and Willis combining for 5-for-10 shooting.
GAME INFO
Time: 7 p.m. CT, Tuesday. Where: Williams Arena. Line: plus-20.5. Series: Minnesota and Cleveland State first meeting. TV: None. Online/Live video: BTNPlus Radio: 103.5.
PROJECTED STARTERS