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Perhaps Not Gophers respond rather quickly 27-24 Wisco 7:32 4th

UND 21 UTPA 13 6:39 1st

Badgers might have just gotten the dagger. 27-17 Wisco 10:57 4th

Badgers take lead middle of 3rd 20-17 Wisco

Badgers trim the deficit to 4 at the half 17-13 Gophers at the half, but Badgers have all the momentum right now

Badgers get an important TD to get back in the game 17-10 Gophers

Gopher FG makes it 17-3

what hurt hammy? Cobb with a 40 yard run 14-3 Gophs

Badgers held to a FG 7-3 Gophers

Wisco fumbles punt, recovered by Gophs Gophers run one in for a TD.

JT Barrett got bent backwards and is down 28-21 OSU early in the 4th

Day 2 was about as rough at it could be for UND, as Utah overwhelmed UND in the 2nd half. UND can finish 2nd in the Utah tourney with a win against old Great West Conference opponent UPTA. MVP from Utah: Lenny Antwi (10 points, 3 assists, 0 turnovers) Could have gone with De Rouen, but felt Antwi was more efficient. Back to back nice games for Lenny, hope that this can be the start of something Total MVPs Nash (3 times) De Rouen (1 time) Antwi (1 time) About UTPA Broncos (3-2) UTPA has some major struggles competing in the WAC last year, finishing tied for last with UMKC last year. UTPA is still in a rebuild mode, but they have some decent pieces that came back, plus with the addition of some transfers, the Broncos are looking to move up the standings in the wacky, wacky WAC. So far this year they are off to a nice start, however 2 of their 3 wins are against lower competition and the other was a 1 point squeaker over UTSA. In the Utah Tournament, they were blasted by Utah and fell 91-79 to Alabama State. Key Players: Janari Joesarr (20.6 ppg, 10.8 rpg) 6'6 F SO The big Estonian transfer from Ole Miss has been a bright spot for the Broncs this year. Stretches the floor and can knock down the 3 point shot. Had a big night last night against the Hornets dropping 28 points and snagging 11 boards. Also had a 17-18-4-6 night against UTSA with that 6 being blocks. He is very solid from the free throw line and finds the open man, but if there is a weakness he can cough up the ball. Has another 2 full seasons plus this one left and will be a great building block for the Broncs. Shaquille Boga (15.0 ppg, 3.8 apg) 5'11 G SR Point guard that can stuff the stat sheet in a number of different ways. Typically can hang his hat on taking care of the ball, but has struggled in that department this year so far. Has improved on his scoring from last year and is an excellent free throw shooter. Hooker and De Rouen are going to need to play solid defense on this kid and needs to attack, attack, attack. Keys to the game: 1) Offensive Efficiency: UND has had its struggles shooting in the last two nights. Last night could have been due to the pure length and athleticism of the Utes, but with a slightly smaller team in UTPA, I can see UND having a better night. Also just to make sure to keep finding that open man in the offense. Had 14 assists against the Hornets, but only 8 against the Utes 2) Who will step up as our #2 consistent scorer: We know who usually will be our top guy when it comes to scoring. It will usually be Nash. But who will step up and be that one consistent guy. Is it Hooker? De Rouen? Tyler? Antwi? Calc? Someone needs to fill that role with more consistency as we get closer to conference play. Question of the Day: UND at full strength, what will the lineup consist of now? With Salmonson returning last night, UND is finally back at full strength for the 1st time this year, so now the question is what will the lineup consist of. With Salmonson back do they go with him starting again or do they run with Calc? Will Tyler take over either Hooker or De Rouen spot eventually? With Salmonson back, what will that do with Cashman's minutes and wonder why Shields shirt was lifted? However, its at least good to have some depth now then it was a few days ago. The Call: UND is a 6 point favorite in this game, and they should be favored to win this one. UND needs to get back to what they were doing against Alabama State and still look to get that first complete game of the year. UND moves closer to getting that complete game with a solid showing on both the offensive and defensive end. UND moves back to .500 and matches their non-conferences wins from last year. UND 76 UTPA 66

Wasn't Alvarez the one who was complaining when Wisco was in the WCHA that he didn't like playing BSU, Mankato, etc because they were D-2 teams in other sports? I thought I heard/read that somewhere and didn't he also said that he was excited for the Big 10 hockey conference?

UND took care of business in Day 1, riding another dominating 1st half performance and weathering a Hornets storm to close out a 75-68 win. The task gets difficult today, as they take on the host team the Utah Utes, who look to be one of the favorites in the Pac-12. MVP from Alabama State: Jaron Nash (22 points, 10 rebounds) Hard to pick against Nash in this case, who is playing at a 1st team Big Sky level right now. Efficient night from the field, rebounding, and from the line gives him the honors once again. MVP tracker Nash (4 times) De Rouen (1 time) Utah Synopsis The Utes have reason for optimism this year, as they potentially have their best team since the late great Rick Majerus took a scrappy Utes team all the way to the title game in 1998. Coach Krystkowiak is in his 4th year at Utah, but has build the program from scratch since its inclusion into the Pac-12. They have gone from 6 wins in 2011, to 15 in 2012, and 21 last year. They also have improved in conference play in each year (from 11th, to 10th, to t-8th). Krystkowiak is not a stranger to Big Sky teams, he was the former Montana coach for 2 season (2004-2006) and lead the Griz to back to back NCAA appearances, including a NCAA win. He also spent some time in the NBA, coaching the Bucks from 2006-2008. The reason for the optimism was the return of a great core of players, led by Delon Wright, an all Pac-12 1st team selection and a potential 1st round pick in the NBA. But what has been apparent to the start of this year is the impact of the freshman class. With a 7 footer from Austria and a 6'9 Forward that can stretch the floor, the Utes can add some solid depth to their lineup, which can not only challenge Arizona for Pac-12 rights, but could be setting themselves up for a nice run in March. Players to Watch: Delon Wright (11.5 ppg, 6.8rpg, 5.3apg) 6'5 Guard (SR) One of the best guards we will play all year. Can do it all and has the prototypical NBA guard body. Hangs his hat on his defense, which he was an 1st team all defensive player. Hasn't done much on the scoring end so far, but that is more on the depth of Utah than his play, he can go off at any time. Kyle Kuzma 6'9 Forward (FR) One of the freshman that has been stepping it up as of late. Kid can stretch the floor and hit from beyond the arc. He has had some nice moments the last two games, so he will be a tough matchup for our defense. Keys to our game: 1) Hooker: The game notes say he is expected to play. How effective he will be is the question. Its going to be a tough game regardless he plays or not, it is going to be more difficult if he isn't effective or is out. Wonder if he comes off the bench tonight because of the injury. 2) 40 minutes UND has gotten off to great starts in their d-1 games, but have yet to put together a full 40. UND getting that effort will give them a great chance to win. Keeping turnovers down, shooting around 50%, 50% from beyond the arc, around 75% free throw shoot minimum, while keep Utah chances to a minimum are the recipe for a potential upset. My question: Is Calcaterra's play a blip or a trend? Hard to question that Calc's play the last 3 games has been decent to good. Averaing 10.3 ppg and a shade under 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. He already has the amount of double digit games in points as he did last year. Hope he can increase his rebound stats a little bit and keep the offense going. It helps when he can get the ball in good situations and the offense looks to get the posts involved. This will be a big test for Calc against this tall Utah team. I felt this Utah tourney would be a good indication of what he could do. He passed the first test last night, lets see how he does against a tougher task. The Call: Utah has been a ranked team and should be a top team in the Pac-12. Its going to be a hard sledding for UND to pull the upset. That being said, its not impossible for UND to do it if everything breaks correctly. My gut says that UND will again start strong, but Utah will be too much. Still, if they preform well, there is no reason they can't get by UTPA tomorrow. I see Nash pulling another double-double as well Utah 75 UND 61

Ray Rice wins his appeal and can sign immediate with a team. Not shocked with that one

Wow, special team blunders for Nebraska. First a blocked punt that gets returned for 6. Then Nebraska drives to the Iowa 10 and gets a FG blocked but the ball didn't travel past the 10 and was picked up by the Nebraska player and he didn't move!!!!!

If Iowa could learn to hold on to the ball, this game would be well out of hand Instead its a 10-7 lead over Nebraska.

Fri- Parks Sat- Mark Mac

Good news, according to the Utah game notes, Hooker expect to be back tomorrow night.

Cheating and Looking on 2-deep from UNC Defense: 3 starters Cummings (DL) Tillman (DB) Carr (DB) Important 2 deep depth losses: Reineke(OLB) Peters(ILB) Offense: 4 Barton (LT) Henson (RG) Pecosky(FB) Garman(RB) Importnant 2 deep depth losses: Shaugs (RB) Ivery(WR) McGill(WR) The biggest need right away on the D is in the secondary to get impact starters and depth. Offense needs a little bit of everything, but especially hogs and weapons.

Gophers beating Wisco on Saturday wouldn't hurt their cause either.

Heretic! Everyone knows it rises in the west, and the world is flat and everything evolves around the Earth and Elvis just went home But in all seriousness, I hope we can get some weapons on offense and some ball hawks and hard hitters in the secondary. And lots and lots of hogs on the line

Lenny had a nice night it looks like with 14 points and going 4-8 from deep. Stepped up in the 2nd half to hit 3 3's. Also nice to get some production from the post. Calc averaging 10.3 ppg in last 3. Already matched what we did in D-1 non-conference wins last year, with a few more winnable games on the docket. Hopefully Hooker can be able to come back sooner rather than later. Take and learn, when the team can bring it for 40... we will be tough to beat.

Did somebody say game thread? UND looks to bounce back after losing a 17 point lead down in Frost. Its the first of 3 games in the Utah Tournament for UND. First up is Alabama State from the SWAC. The Hornets are a preseason favorite in the SWAC this year. This team want to go fast, play fast, press hard and make this game into a track meet. Our guards will be challenged in this one, they run deep in their frontcourt. For UND to win, they need to play a full 40 minutes and the guards need to be able to handle whatever pressure the Hornets give. Meanwhile, try and make them play a half court game and make sure to not give them any 2nd looks. Throw pressure back at them and force turnovers. If they are weak its in their post position, so Nash and Calcaterra need to play well tonight. Players to watch: Alabama State Demarcus Robinson (22.0 ppg) High scoring guard, lights out shooter. In 2 games, has shot 65% from the field and 66% from beyond the arc (10-15). Only 5-10 and 165, so think like a slightly better version of Aaron Anderson. Bobby Brown (14.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg) Best all around player, can stretch the floor and rebound very well at the guard position. 6'6 185 so will be a tough matchup UND Estan Tyler His UND debut was a good one, going 6-10 from the field and scoring 17 points. Brings another powerful scoring punch to the UND offense. Solid D as well. The question now is when, not if, he gets inserted into the starting lineup Jaron Nash (15.0 ppg, 8.3 rpg) Has been solid the last 2 games, averaging 17 and 10 and shooting effectively from the field during that time (14-23). Unfortunately, he picked the wrong game to revert back to this old free throw habits (3-9 at SDSU). I think Nash is going to give Alabama State some problems with his height, speed, and athleticism. The call: UND should have gotten their 2nd win and their 1st road non-conference win in a while. The schedule is favorable to start getting a few wins. So far this team has performed well but hasn't been rewarded yet with a win. This changes tonight. UND 73 Alabama State 69

We sweep our "rival" at home this week. a pair of 4-2 games to finish November 7-2.