Positive Numbers: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: -1). Well, now I don't feel so bad about this team losing in Michigan! In front of a sold-out Sports Pavilion Sunday afternoon, the U. grapplers defeated the top-ranked team in the country and the sport's current powerhouse, Penn St., 18-17. It was the first time the Gophers beat the Nittany Lions in ... well, I don't know, the U.'s press release didn't say, nor did it say the last time the U. beat the #1 team in the country. I think noting those records would be in order.
This was a back-and-forth affair, where the teams split the ten matches five apiece. Minnesota's Dylan Ness, ranked 8th at 157, was named Big Ten Wrestler Of The Week with an emphatic pin of #4 (and undefeated) Dylan Alton, giving the Gophers six points and (at the time) a 12-7 lead. They would need every single one of those points, although you can't overlook the upset win by #6 Logan Storley over #3 Matt Brown at 174 and, of course, #5 Tony Nelson's Heavyweight win over unranked Jon Gingrich that pulled Minnesota ahead at the end from a 17-15 deficit. That gives Minnesota a share of the conference championship.
This weekend is the NWCA National Duals in Columbus, Ohio.
#0: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -2). Do the U. vagina ballers deserve a 0? No, not really. But the Gopher wrestlers really deserve Positive Numbers for their historic upset win over Penn St., and I can't have a Positive Numbers without a 0. And the news is the most good for this program, even if there isn't much of it.
They only had one game, their annual "Pink Cancer" game, Sunday afternoon and they outlasted Illinois at the Barn 66-61. In the first half of that game, Amanda Zahui B. set the Minnesota record for most blocks in a season, eclipsing the 65 set by Janel McCarville. That is surprising because I've seen Zahui play in-person, and I swear she's, like, 5'8" when McCarville's, like, 6'5" or something. She also leads the league in double-doubles with 11 after tallying 23 points and 12 rebounds in the win over the Fighting Illini. For those reasons, she was named conference Freshman Of The Week for the fifth time this season.
Partly because of that, shockingly, ESPN's women's college bracketologist Charlie Creme has Minnesota as one of their last four out of the NCAA tournament (termed according to him "First Four Out" -- all bracketologists seem to call the four best teams to miss the bracket the "First Four Out" when they should be referred to as the "Last Four Out," and it's pissing me off) -- all despite having a record of 15-9 overall and 4-6 in the B1G. Creme does write that the bubble is messier at this point in the year than usual, and while it will inevitably untangle itself, it's so tangled right now that a team sporting a resume as unimpressive as the Gophers still have better than a fighting chance of making the Big Dance.
Assuming he's right (and I'm not a big enough fan of women's college basketball to keep track of his accuracy come Selection Monday), the team has plenty of chances to put themselves on the good side of the bubble. Opportunities best come, however, during times of crisis, and this screening week presents the worst of them: A pair of road games against Wisconsin and Northwestern. I can't believe they'd be able to win one of these games, let alone two, but if they somehow sweep, they plant a sure foot in the tourney.
#-1: Wild (Last Week: -4). I guess the team (sans of course the five players who will be playing for flag instead of money in Sochi) needed the break. Then again, I've seen the Mild play a lot worse, so while they begin the Olympic Break with a 3-2 overtime over Nashville, things could get even better with most of their team staying away from the ice for a while and healing up. The goaltender situation in particular needs every day of the three weeks of rest. If Nicklas Backstrom can get his head on straight and Josh Harding finally finds the right equation for his MS meds, this team, although it has righted itself to the point of having a relatively comfortable five-point cushion against the teams clutching the last spot in the Western Conference with their fingertips, the Bastard Winnipeg Jets and the Bastard North Stars.
Meanwhile, I could use a break from writing so much for the WMNSS. Wild, I'll see you guys in three weeks.
#-2: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -6). I listened to the end of Wednesday night's game in Purdue, an end that was a false end ... which gave away to another false end ... which gave away to yet another false end. And speaking of giving away, as one OT became two and then three, it was embarrassing and, frankly, pathetic to see not just the Goofers but the Boilermakers being unable and unwilling to grab this game by the lapels. And finally they just gave out and lost a game they should have won, 77-74 in triple overtime.
They bounced back and finally ended their losing streak at three with a 66-60 win at Williams Arena over Indiana. However, their recent slide has put them in contact with the oily dermis of the bubble: Bracketologist Joe Lunardi (aka "Joey Brackets," which is the best nickname you can have, Mafia-sounding-yet-non-threatening division) had them around the 10-line, but now the U. has one of the "Last Four Byes." In other words, they would be the "Last Four In" the real NCAA Tournament.
In a scheduling quirk, the men play the same pair of games as the women: At Wisconsin, then at Northwestern. Unlike the women, however, the men have so much more to lose.
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The next three teams went winless this week, therefore they really are indistinguishable from each other. How to rank these three losers?
#-3: Timberwolves (Last Week: -5). The loss to OKC came early enough for it to count in last week's survey, so technically the Woofie Dogs went 0-3 this week, extended their losing streak to four. They are now well outside of the playoff picture, and a personal issue forced Head Coach Rick Adelman to leave the team Monday as they lost to Houston at home by 18.
I caught a small bit of Dan Barreiro on KFAN on my way to Barnes & Noble after work. He noticed that not only has this organization had a shitty track record when it comes to draft choices, he also chides Owner Glen Taylor for trading players and draft picks for cash, specifically to get under the salary cap and to pay off the contract of ex-Head Coach Kurt Rambis. He has a point as this franchise slouches towards yet another season of meaninglessness. At least they're winning right now at home against Denver, the last game before this weekend's All-Star Break.
#-4: Swarm (Last Week: -7). Why is the Smarm below the Woofie Dogs even though they lost two fewer games? That loss, at home to Calgary on Saturday, pushes their losing streak to three and puts them at 1-5 for the season. That's a worse record than the Wolves. Worse over, the Timberpups aren't in danger of folding. At this rate, the Swarm being put down would be an act of mercy. This Saturday they face Edmonton at the Xcel Energy Center as part of their annual Swarm/Minnesota Roller Girls doubleheader. I might go there ... or I might go to an art show opening. I don't know.
#-5: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -3). They peaked too early. I am really afraid that they peaked too early. Last weekend they suffered their first outright losses (to go with two shootout losses) and the first sweep in Big Ten play at Wisconsin by a pair of 2-1 scores. What scares me is that the Badgers are a team on the come. They played mediocre, if not bad, early in the season, but they have worked those kinks out (if their sweep at home against the top-ranked team in the country is any indication) and are coming together at the right time. Meanwhile, possibly for the first time all season, the Goofs are not the #1 team in the country, replaced by Boston College, which won the Beanpot and are gathering momentum as well. So why is this program beneath the Woofs in the WMNSS, and also the worst team this week? Their aura of invincibility has been punctured, possibly for good.
They host a pair against Michigan. I'm hoping to see Friday's game. I'm also hoping to see them bounce back from these defeats.
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