| |
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers won the game but lost their leader.
"It's tough to have a big win like this and see your best
friend and team leader go down," Shane Schilling said after
helping Minnesota stun Indiana (No. 9 ESPN/USA Today No. 10 AP) 77-75 after teammate John-Blair Bickerstaff broke his right knee cap.
|  | | Joel Przybilla, whose game-winning layup capped a 33-point, 14-rebound night, celebrates Minnesota's upset of Indiana. |
The cheer of first-year coach Dan Monson's biggest victory soon
turned to sorrow when he gathered his team in the locker room to
tell them that Bickerstaff, a junior forward and the son of former
NBA coach Bernie Bickerstaff needs a season-ending operation.
"Every party has a pooper and that's me tonight," Monson said.
Several Gophers stepped up after Bickerstaff was taken off on a
stretcher following a hard foul by A.J. Guyton six minutes before
halftime.
Schilling, a freshman who got some of Bickerstaff's minutes, had
a career-best 13 points, including two crucial 3-pointers when the
Hoosiers had taken control with eight-point leads and less than
four minutes remaining.
But sophomore center Joel Przybilla stepped up the most, scoring
a career-best 33 points, including the game-winner with 3.9 seconds
left.
"We're a real close team, and we really wanted to win for JB,"
Przybilla said. "It showed that we stepped up when he went to the
hospital."
The Hoosiers had one last shot at victory, but Guyton, who
scored 27 points despite a 17½-minute drought, was way short on a
3-pointer at the buzzer, sending the Golden Gophers (12-9, 4-7 Big
Ten) and the standing room-only crowd at Williams Arena into a
frenzy.
Kirk Haston scored 24 points for the Hoosiers (17-4, 7-3). His
two free throws with 1:08 left gave Indiana a seemingly safe 75-70
lead.
But Kevin Burleson hit a 3-pointer with a minute left and
Przybilla made it 75-73 with an inside basket and 39 seconds
remaining.
Przybilla, who hit all 11 of his second-half shots, blocked a
shot by Haston with 10 seconds left, sped upcourt and took a dish
from Terrance Simmons for the winning basket.
"It's just one of those moments where you're just feeling like
you're unstoppable," said Przybilla, whose team lost on a
last-second shot to Wisconsin on Saturday night.
Hoosiers coach Bobby Knight refused to go to the media room or
take questions from reporters afterward. He did stop outside his
locker room to make a few brief remarks.
"It's a really nice win for them and it's a very, very tough
loss for us," said Knight, who has lost the last four times he's
brought a ranked team into Williams Arena.
The Gophers know this bittersweet victory is something to
relish. Because of the massive academic fraud scandal that forced
out Clem Haskins, they are banned from the postseason this year and
face an uncertain future.
"No, I've never been more excited," Przybilla said. "Deep
down, we wanted that game because we were still thinking about
JB."
| |
ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Indiana Clubhouse
Minnesota Clubhouse
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Minnesota's Joel Przybilla scores the game-winning layup.
avi: 1095 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Przybilla controls the lane for the Gophers.
avi: 999 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
A.J. Guyton misses the game-winning jumper for Indiana.
avi: 1022 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
|
