U big men play big after lead vanishes

Thursday night, the Gophers partied at the Barn, after beating eighth-ranked Purdue and delivering the program's first home victory over a top-10 opponent in more than a decade.

Sunday night, the Gophers worried at the Barn, as last-place Iowa rallied in the second half before the home team took control in a 69-59 victory -- another sign of the parity in the Big Ten.

The Gophers (14-4, 3-3 Big Ten) outscored the Hawkeyes (7-10, 0-5) 27-17 in the last 14 minutes of the game. Then, they wiped their brows.

Trevor Mbakwe had 16 points and 12 rebounds in recording the 11th double-double of his career, this despite coming off the bench for the second game in a row. Ralph Sampson III added 11 points and tied a career high with seven blocks.

The duo helped the Gophers seal off Iowa's Melsahn Basabe, who finished with a game-high 20 points was held to four in the last nine minutes.

"It's human nature to have a little letdown after a big ballgame," Gophers coach Tubby Smith said. "That's why we try to instruct, coach and teach the same way and hope that they will pick up on that this game is just as big as any other game. ... It's going to be like this all year long."

Three days earlier, the Gophers celebrated with enthused fans after their victory over the Boilermakers. But the announced sellout crowd of 14,625 squirmed Sunday when the Hawkeyes -- who had lost their previous four games by an average of 14 points -- went on 13-2 run to start the second half and squeezed a 30-19 halftime deficit into a 32-32 tie four minutes after the break.

They helped the Gophers create a 42-32 rebounding margin. The Gophers scored 24 points off 15 offensive boards, and they used their bulk to wear down the Hawkeyes' post players.

"These guys are big and strong. They lean on you," said first-year Iowa coach Fran McCaffery, who drew a technical foul in the first half for "complaining."

Smith said he wants his bigs to lead the way they did Sunday. "We think our strength is in our frontcourt," he said.

On paper, the Gophers' next five-game stretch, starting with Sunday's game, poses fewer obstacles than their first five games did. They started the Big Ten season with a slate that featured Wisconsin, Michigan State, Indiana, Ohio State and Purdue. After Iowa, they get Michigan, Northwestern, Purdue and Indiana.

However, they understand the potential perils of their "easier" stretch.

And against the Buckeyes on Jan. 4, Iowa was down 13 with nine minutes to play but cut the deficit to three with 24 seconds left.

The Hawkeyes rallied again Sunday, even pulling ahead 40-37. The Gophers took off from there, using a 23-6 run to regain their double-digit advantage. Even then, they couldn't quite put Iowa away; the Gophers led 60-46 with 3:46 to go, but Iowa pulled within six twice in the final two minutes.