The Gophers fell in the semifinal round of the NIT Season Tip-Off Wednesday losing to St. John’s 70-61 at Madison Square Garden.
It was a tale of two halves as the Gophers built a nine point first-half lead and led the majority of the way, but became ice cold late and couldn’t stop the building storm.
Minnesota was 0-of-7 from behind the arc in the second half after knocking down six three-pointers in the first half. The Gophers also missed 17 of 19 shots to end the game, which allowed the Red Storm to go on a crucial 16-2 run to finish the game.
Another problem: the 21 Gopher turnovers.
Minnesota built a nine-point first-half lead thanks largely to the shooting of Nate Mason. He scored 15 points and was a perfect 2-of-2 from behind the arc. Mason was one of two only two Gophers to score in double figures.
But Mason didn’t see much time in the second half when things started going south for the Gophers.
Pitino learned quickly from mistakes last year — fouling when up 3 in the NIT. Hope he figures out his Mason mistake quickly too. #gophers
— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) November 27, 2014
While he was on the bench the Red Storm got their offense going. D’Angelo Harrison led St. John’s with 19, while Rysheed Jordan chipped in 18.
The Gophers (3-2) will play Friday afternoon against the loser of the Gonzaga/Georgia game in the NIT Season Tip-Off consolation game.
