When he's got it, he's got it.
The Gophers didn't need every point of Andre Hollins' explosion Tuesday night like they did in his last star showing, when he made three free throws in the final second of a three-point victory against Stanford in the Bahamas. But the sophomore's stellar first-half performance helped set the tone early in the No. 14 Gophers' 88-64 rout of South Dakota State at Williams Arena.
It was apparent quickly that the guard was feeling it. Hollins hit his first five shots from the field, the first four of which were three-pointers, and with the Gophers hitting a groove, the sophomore hit three more in a 2 minute, 31-second span.
Hollins' six three-pointers and one layup gave him 20 points with 1:19 remaining in the first half, when he left, grinning, to emphatic applause from the announced crowd of 10,213.
With South Dakota State playing without injured point guard Nate Wolters (ankle), the Gophers dictated their up-tempo pace midway through the first half and held the Jackrabbits to 38.6 percent shooting on the other end.
While Rodney Williams was all but absent offensively for the first time this season, the Gophers got big games from Austin Hollins (17 points, five assists) and Joe Coleman (15 points, seven rebounds) in addition to Andre Hollins.
After struggling to create separation early and leading only 15-10 after eight minutes, the Gophers' inside play started to pick up, getting baskets from Andre Ingram and Trevor Mbakwe. As the Gophers padded a small lead, SDSU's discipline started to break down and the Gophers snatched every miss for a fast break and built a 48-24 halftime advantage.
After the break, Hollins -- more tightly guarded -- cooled off substantially and finished with 22 points. But perhaps just as notable was that while the sophomore had only two assists, he also had no turnovers, an area that has given him problems in the past.
