GOPHERS MEN'S HOOPS at WISCONSIN

THREE THINGS TO WATCH:

Live by the three – If the Gophers are hitting three-pointers, they can obviously not only play with anyone but dominate them – for a stretch. Best example was when they took a 16-point halftime lead against Big Ten-leading Maryland in Wednesday's 74-73 loss. The Gophers hit seven three-pointers coming off a 26-point win at Northwestern when they drilled 14 three-pointers, tied for the second most in school history. Can they sustain that level of shooting is the problem? Minnesota shot 3-for-11 from beyond the arc in the second half Wednesday, but it had no threes in the final 10:21. Star center Daniel Oturu also didn't get many scoring touches and went without a field goal attempt for a six-minute period down the stretch, a disturbing trend in a few close losses. Meanwhile, the Terrapins hit three from long distance in crunch time, including the game-winning shot from Darryl Morsell with 1.9 seconds to play. How much will Richard Pitino's team rely on outside shooting Sunday against the Badgers? The Gophers shot 9-for-22 from three in a 70-52 win Feb. 5 against Wisconsin at the Barn, including junior Payton Willis' career-high 21 points on 5-for-7 shooting from deep. They led the Badgers 45-32 at halftime on that night after shooting 55 percent in the first half, including 5-for-10 from three. The Badgers shot just 24 percent (7 for 29) on threes in that loss at the Barn, but since then they're shooting 43.9 percent (61 for 139) from beyond the arc (also averaging 12.2 threes per game) in five straight wins. They're also holding opponents to just 32.2 percent shooting from three in that span (only 5.6 threes per game).

Willis' impact – Imagine what Pitino would've done if the Gophers didn't have Willis healthy for the last meeting against the Badgers? The 6-foot-5 former Vanderbilt transfer returned from a shoulder injury to have the best performance of his college career. Willis was lights out in the first half, which help Minnesota set the tone in its first Border Battle win at home since 2015. In the three straight home losses, Willis shot just 4-for-16 from three, which included just three points on 1-for-8 shooting in Wednesday's loss to Maryland. His shooting wasn't the biggest concern in the end. Willis strained his calf at the end of the game, which could hinder him Sunday against the Badgers. Marcus Carr had 19 points and seven assists against Maryland, but he also committed five turnovers. Gabe Kalscheur scored just nine points vs. Maryland. Willis combines both of the skills sets that make Carr and Kalscheur special. He isn't just one of the team's top three-point shooters, but he also takes pressure off Carr as a primary ball handler and Kalscheur defensively.

Oturu vs. Reuvers II – Oturu and Nate Reuvers are two Minnesota big men who battled in high school when Cretin-Derham Hall played Lakeville North a few years ago. That rivalry continued in the Border Battle the last two seasons in college. In their last meeting, Oturu had 17 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks in the Gophers' convincing victory. Reuvers had 14 points on 6-for-18 shooting and just three rebounds in the last Wisconsin loss. Clearly, the Badgers have been able to win recently without Reuvers playing near his best basketball. He had a season-low two points on 1-for-2 shooting with four fouls in 18 minutes in Thursday's win at Michigan. Picking up the slack in the frontcourt was Micah Potter and Aleem Ford, who combined for 36 points and 15 rebounds against the Wolverines. Potter had 11 points and a career-high 15 rebounds off the bench at Minnesota last month. The Gophers can't afford for Oturu to struggle Sunday, though. In losses to Iowa and Indiana, Oturu combined to score just 26 points on 11-for-28 shooting. He's returned to his dominant self in the last games with 22 points and 12 rebounds at Northwestern, while putting up 28 points and 11 rebounds against Maryland.

GAME INFO

Time: 5:30 p.m. CT, Sunday. Where: Kohl Center. Line: Minnesota 5.5-point underdog. Series: The Gophers hold the edge 98-97, including a 70-52 win in the last meeting on Feb. 5, 2020 at Williams Arena. TV: Big Ten Network. Online/Live video: BTNPlus. Radio: 100.3

PROJECTED STARTERS

MINNESOTA GOPHERS (13-14, 7-10)

Pos.-Player Ht. Yr. PPG

G – Marcus Carr 6-2 So. 15.5

G – Payton Willis 6-5 Jr. 9.2

G – Gabe Kalscheur 6-4 So. 11.4

F – Alihan Demir 6-9 Sr. 7.0

C – Daniel Oturu 6-10 So. 20.0

Key reserves– Tre' Williams, G, 6-5, Fr., 3.1 ppg; Jarvis Omersa, F, 6-7, So., 2.0 ppg; Michael Hurt, F, 6-7, Sr., 1.4 ppg; Isaiah Ihnen, F, 6-9, Fr., 2.5 ppg.

Coach: Richard Pitino 143-120 (8th season overall)

Notable: Freshman forward Isaiah Ihnen returned from a wrist injury to score a career-best nine points on 3-for-7 shooting from three-point range in Wednesday's loss to the Terrapins. Ihnen missed the previous game at Northwestern after hurting his right wrist in practice. The 6-9 German native came back even stronger with three three-pointers in the first half to help lead the Gophers to a 17-point lead against the Big Ten's top team. Ihnen had combined for 10 points and three blocks in losses to Indiana and Iowa that showed he was progressing ... Carr is nine assists way from breaking the Gophers' single-season Big Ten assists record held by Ray Williams with 118 in 1976-77. The sophomore point guard already set the overall school single-season record for assists by reaching 182 in the Maryland loss.

WISCONSIN BADGERS (18-10, 11-6)

Pos.-Player Ht. Yr. PPG

G – D'Mitrik Trice 6-0 Jr. 10.3

G – Brad Davison 6-4 Jr. 9.5

G – Brevin Pritzl 6-4 Jr. 7.9

F – Aleem Ford 6-8 Jr. 8.4

C – Nate Reuvers 6-11 Jr. 13.3

Key reserves – Micah Potter, F, 6-10, Jr., 9.9 ppg; Tyler Wahl, F, 6-7, Fr., 2.8 ppg; Trevor Anderson, G, 6-2, Jr., 1.7 ppg; Walt McGrory, G, 6-3, Jr., 1.4 ppg.

Coach: Greg Gard 98-57 (5th season)

Notable: The Badgers haven't been swept in the season series against the Gophers since the 2008-09 season. Wisconsin fell 70-52 on Feb. 5 at Williams Arena, but the two teams have gone in different directions since that last meeting. The Badgers have won five straight games to go from 6-6 in the Big Ten to within striking distance for at least a share of the league title. They enter Sunday's game 1 ½ games behind the first place Terrapins.

Fuller's prediction (16-11 with picks): Wisconsin 68, Gophers 64.