The Illini had just thrown the ball away. There were 18 seconds left in Tuesday's Big Ten opener. The Gophers knew a foul was coming and so they put the ball in Julian Welch's hands.

And why not? Welch has been stellar most of the year. From Nov. 25 against Indiana State through the first half of the Dec. 10 game against St. Peter's, Welch was 25-for-25 from the line.

But on Tuesday, when the Gophers were two free throws away from all but icing the game against Illinois, the front end of Welch's one-and-one rimmed out.

Of course, no one remembers the ones you make in the middle of the game and in fact, it was a Welch free throw (albeit one of two) that gave the Gophers their first lead of the game.

But his 5-of-7 effort from the line – certainly not terrible, but no longer a certain thing – begs the question: If the same opportunity presents itself on Sunday at Michigan, who gets the ball? Is Welch still the guy?

Since the streak ended, Welch has not quite been the same. He didn't get to the line at all against NDSU and while he was perfect against Central Michigan, he missed three of six against St. Peter's.

"I just need him to be a little more – just like I told him – be a little more patient," coach Tubby Smith said. "We can get some good shots. But he had that layup there and he had a chance in another [free throw] that probably could have put us up four – it was a two-point game."

Meanwhile, Ralph Sampson III is 13-for-14 from the free-throw line in his last two games. He hasn't gotten to the line a lot this year until recently, but when he has, he's been solid.