With the exception of a strange two-minute lapse early in the second half, the Gophers made their way past LIU-Brooklyn en route to their fifth straight win, a 76-66 adventure that was closer than the score really indicates.
Without the services of Amir Coffey, who was on the bench with a minor foot injury, Minnesota started Akeem Springs and did a little bit of roster shuffling. And when Reggie Lynch picked up his second foul early in the first half, the Gophers had to go with some lineups we don’t ordinarily see.
But Nate Mason and Dupree McBrayer stepped up with some hot shooting and shifty moves to pick up the slack and do major damage against the Blackbirds.