Road Warriors

MINNEAPOLIS -- For most of Saturday's first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers, the Hoosiers looked unstoppable. But then Minnesota coach Dan Monson inserted a zone press and defense that shook up the Hoosier offense, and the Gophers were able to close the half on a 10-0 run to cut the IU lead to eight.\nMinnesota (8-9, 0-5 Big Ten) continued the zone and the press in the second half as the Gophers battled back to take a four-point lead late in the game.\n"It really screwed us up at the end of the first half," sophomore forward Sean Kline said. "They got some turnovers off of it. It's a tough zone, and they're really big, lanky and quick. But I thought in the second half we did a great job of limiting our turnovers and looking to the middle and the gaps to make plays."\nMonson took off the press with the Gophers leading by four with less than four minutes to play. IU coach Mike Davis said removing the press was a good idea by Monson.\n"I thought he made smart move because he doesn't want to press and give (IU sophomore) Bracey (Wright) a three" Davis said. "Bracey missed two open shots against the press. You don't want to be in a situation where you press, press, press and then give the wide-open three. You want to make sure your guys come down and play good solid defense."\nThe Hoosiers (10-6, 4-1) struggled in the early part of the second half, as the Gophers continued to press and zone. Wright said patience was the key for IU. The Hoosiers' inside players reaped the benefits.\n"I think they tried to extend out," Wright said. "They ran that press pretty well. They wanted us to work the shot clock down and rush in their zone, and they're so big it would be tough for us to get a shot off, and we have to get a quick shot. But we were patient enough to find the open shot, and they left that middle wide open for (IU senior guard) A.J. (Moye), and he made them pay."\nMoye scored 20 points in the game, mainly from jump shots in the lane. Kline also benefited from the zone in the second half, as he scored all of his 13 points in that half. Kline and Moye shot a combined 14-21 from the field.\n"Our guards are great shooters so they have to respect them, and they open up big seams and big lanes for you to cut into," Kline said. "When you have the opportunity to step up and make a play, you have to be a man and do it."\nDavis said he watched the tape from last year's game to help the Hoosiers face the press.\n"I was afraid of it because we turned the basketball over the last couple of games, just unforced errors," Davis said. "I think we did a great job today."\nWright once again led the Hoosiers with 22 points. He didn't think the zone was too much trouble. Wright added that Minnesota sophomore forward Stan Gaines did a nice job of face guarding him.\n"In the zone, they did a really good job when I was running the baseline of sending those 6'10" guys out there to contest my shots," Wright said. "I think I was able to get to the top of the key and get in the gaps and hit guys for open shots. We shot the ball well tonight, which was a big plus for me, knowing that if I was going to be taken away in the zone, I could pass the ball out and we could knock a shot down."\n-- Contact staff writer Tyler V. Hoeppner at thoeppne@indiana.edu.