It's hard to believe, but at one point this season the Minnesota basketball team had a 16-4 record. The Golden Gophers appeared to be on the top-tier of teams in the Big Ten, and there was no uncertainty as far as making the NCAA tournament went; it looked like the Golden Gophers were a lock. Fast forward to now, however, and Minnesota has already bowed out of the 2011 Big Ten tournament and now has a 17-14 record.
Northwestern eliminated Minnesota by winning 75-65 in the first game on the bracket in this year's Big Ten tournament. The Wildcats were led to victory by Michael Thompson, who scored 35 points, which is a Big Ten tournament record. He went 11-22 from the field and 8-8 from the free throw line en route to his record-setting day.
Drew Crawford added 15 points for Northwestern and Alex Marcotullio had 13 points. The rest of Northwestern's points came from three players: John Shurna (2), Davide Curletti (3) and Nick Fruendt (7).
For Minnesota, three players scored in double figures: Trevor Mbakwe (19), Blake Hoffarber (13) and Ralph Sampson III (12). Starters Rodney Williams and Maverick Ahanmisi had five and two points, respectively. Coming off the bench, Austin Hollins netted eight points and Chip Armelin scored six points.
With the win, Northwestern advances to the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament, where it will play top-seeded Ohio State at noon tomorrow. Here is a look at the updated Big Ten tournament bracket:
No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Northwestern (beat Minnesota, 75-65, in first round)
No. 4 Michigan vs. No. 5 Illinois
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No. 2 Purdue vs. No. 7 Michigan State/No. 10 Iowa
No. 3 Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Penn State/No. 11 Indiana
For more on the 2011 Big Ten tournament, check out SB Nation Detroit's StoryStream.