Slide continues for Gophers basketball with 72-67 loss at Indiana

BLOOMINGTON, IND. – With the way the regular season is nearing a disappointing end for the Gophers basketball team, Richard Pitino only hopes his younger players eventually learn from their experiences — good and bad.

Pitino doesn't have a veteran team that knows how to finish games. Maybe he will next year.

The Gophers led by two points at halftime Wednesday night at Indiana, but they had trouble closing out another game in a 72-67 loss against the Hoosiers in front of 17,222 at Assembly Hall.

Daniel Oturu had 24 points and 16 rebounds, but the Gophers (13-16, 7-12 Big Ten) lost for the sixth time in the past seven games. They are locked in as the 12th seed playing Wednesday to open the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis.

"Difficult is not the word," Pitino said to describe the slide in his team's league play this year. "We're keeping a good attitude. This is a fun group to be around. Nobody likes to hear it, [but] they're young, they're inexperienced."

Oturu, who wasn't made available after the game, had his 16th game scoring 20 or more points, but he shot 11-for-27 from the field. Gabe Kalscheur was the only other Gophers player in double figures with 14 points, but he shot 1-for-6 on three-pointers. Marcus Carr had only six points on 2-for-8 shooting, but he broke the program's Big Ten single-season assist record.

Pitino starts sophomores Oturu, Kalscheur and Carr. His main reserves Wednesday were freshmen Tre' Williams and Isaiah Ihnen, who had nine points on three three-pointers in the first half.

That's a pretty good nucleus for a team that could be better next season after experiencing growing pains now. But Pitino feels more certain about his return than Oturu's beyond this year.

"Obviously the elephant in the room is Daniel," said Pitino about his 6-10 center, who has the potential to be picked in this summer's NBA draft. "If you were to tell me playing a lot of freshmen and sophomores, with two seniors and only one junior, I would be really excited. But I also know I care about Daniel — and we're not going to hold guys back, either."

Oturu and Trayce Jackson-Davis were trying to keep their teams on the NCAA tournament bubble when Indiana won 68-56 at Minnesota on Feb. 19. A few weeks later, only the Hoosiers (19-11, 9-10) are left standing with a realistic shot at being among the 10 projected Big Ten teams in the NCAA tournament.

Jackson-Davis wasn't as dominant as the 27-point, 16-rebound performance in the first meeting, but he led five Hoosiers players in double figures Wednesday with 18 points.

After letting their 34-32 halftime lead turn into an eight-point deficit to open the second half, the Gophers battled back. They went ahead by a point on a steal and slam from Oturu, and Carr's layup made it 53-52 with nine minutes left.

This was the moment when so many games were lost. Opponents have routinely outplayed the Gophers down the stretch — and it happened again.

Indiana's Joey Brunk scored on back-to-back post ups to start the rally. Jackson-Davis' dunk was followed by a three-point play by Ali Durham to ignite the crowd. Suddenly, the Gophers were facing a 63-55 deficit.

The Gophers wouldn't get closer than four points the rest of the way. They had trouble finishing around the basket against a physical Indiana defense.

The struggles from the free-throw line also continued with Minnesota shooting 8-for-14, including 6-for-11 in the second half. The Hoosiers shot 9-for-17 on free throws, but they were 53 percent from the field in the second half.

Minnesota has lost eight games this season by single digits, including six by six points or fewer. Pitino hopes those tough moments will make his players better in the long run.

"Right now, I'm not thinking about next year," Kalscheur said. "I'm still thinking about right now. We all are. We're playing more games coming up ahead of us. Yeah, this experience will help us down the road, but we're thinking about what's coming up next, Nebraska [on Sunday]."