The Gophers righted the ship in a Saturday matinee against lowly Rutgers, in what may very well have been a trap game. Coming off a loss to Maryland, Minnesota came out swinging against the Scarlet Knights in a win that was never really in doubt. In fact, the Gophers never trailed and asserted themselves at home in game they absolutely had to have. Oh, they shot better than 39% from the line. So that was a plus.
Wednesday brings another winnable game and another matchup where they come into the game as favorites. Call the schedule what you will, but January is an important month to rack up the wins against teams like Rutgers, Illinois and Penn State before things get markedly harder.