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Colton Iverson. Photograph by Brad Person, courtesy of University Athletics

This is a good time to find out. Although pundits are predicting that the conference title will run through Michigan State’s or Purdue’s backyard, the rest of the conference is in a state of flux, as every other team has either lost key players or, like Minnesota, is trying to rebound from years of mediocrity. In a transitional period such as this, when recruits will make the difference for every team, the Golden Gophers are in a position to make this season very interesting. “Provided we stay healthy, we’re going to compete with everyone,” Smith says.  

Minnesota’s fledgling talent, which includes five players, will start games and dramatically improve the bench. “We won’t have a drop-off when we bring guys in off the bench,” Smith says. “In fact, we’ll improve in some areas.” Furthermore, he hopes that these rookies won’t just complement the returning players, but step up and become leaders in their own right. And, they will have to counter the departure of Lawrence McKenzie (B.S. ’08), Dan Coleman (B.S. ’08), and Spencer Tollackson (B.A. ’08), last year’s top three scorers.

New Faces

Colton Iverson. At 6 feet 10 inches and 235 pounds, freshman center Iverson was ranked the 19th best recruit in the country by Scout.com. “Colton is sturdy, physical, and can take a lot of abuse and dish it out as well,” Smith notes. Iverson also brings an intelligence to the game that was developed by his father, Chuck, a standout at the University of South Dakota, an NBA recruit, and a college basketball coach. For such a physically imposing figure, Iverson is agile and has great ball-handling skills. A solid rebounder, his size, agility, and mental acuity on the court should also help him enforce Smith’s complex ball-line defense. Iverson is from Yankton, South Dakota.

Ralph Sampson III. Six-foot 11-inch, 220-pound center Sampson has a basketball pedigree that is unparalleled: He is the son of 7-foot 4-inch Ralph Sampson Jr., three-time NBA All-Star with the Houston Rockets. Sampson III is another top-20 Scout.com recruit who runs well, has great hands, and is an impressive shot-blocker. Some question whether he is athletic enough or possesses the competitive fire to work with Smith’s complicated defense, but Smith contends that Sampson “knows winning basketball” and will be up to the challenge of the Gophers, and Big Ten basketball in general. Sampson is from Duluth, Georgia.

Devoe Joseph. Hailing from Pickering High School in Ajax, Ontario, Joseph was ranked as one of the best recruits, if not the best, in all of Canada. Smith is impressed with Joseph’s basketball acumen and the fact that although he was one of the top scorers on his high school team, he signed with Minnesota because of the Gophers’ emphasis on defense. “Defense wins championships, and that’s

Clockwise from top: Devoe Joseph, Al Nolen, Paul Carter, and Ralph Sampson III. Photograph by Brad Person, courtesy of University Athletics

why I came to play for Coach Smith,” says the 6-foot 3-inch, 170-pound guard. Considering he turned down a basketball scholarship from 2008 NCAA champion Kansas, this is no small statement.

Paul Carter. The 6-foot 8-inch forward from Missouri State University-West Plains still has three years of eligibility. “He’s probably our most versatile player,” Smith says. An early-season exhibition game against Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, bore out this observation. Carter started, put in 21 minutes, scored 17 points and led the team with seven rebounds in the Gophers’ 92-62 drubbing of the Wolves. Smith hopes to see his sophomore forward emerge as a leader immediately.

Devron Bostick. The 6-foot 5-inch junior guard, a transfer from Southwest Illinois Community College and the Junior College Player of the Year last season, was expected to step up right away but has had some growing pains fitting into Smith’s system. However, Smith expects Bostick to reach his potential as time goes on.

Familiar Faces

The Gophers have only two seniors, 6-foot 5-inch guard Jamal Abu-Shamala and 6-foot 9-inch center Jonathan Williams. The two will start periodically and provide depth off the bench, being better defenders than scorers. Six-foot 4-inch junior forward Travis Busch has proved to be a spark plug off the bench, hitting more than 50 percent of his shots in his first three games this year. 

Six-foot junior guard Lawrence Westbrook is the Gophers’ leading returning scorer and one of only two Gophers to start all 34 games last season. He has returned to the starting lineup this season, as has Minneapolis native Al Nolen. The 6-foot 180-pound point guard snagged 64 steals last year, good for a team high and second in the Big Ten. Blake Hoffarber, a 6-foot 4-inch sophomore guard from Hopkins, Minnesota, whose buzzer-beater defeated top-ranked Indiana in the Big Ten tournament last year, will be a frequent starter. Even though he is probably weaker on defense than Smith would like, his ability to score makes up for it.

A broken hand plagued 6-foot 7-inch junior forward Damian Johnson earlier in the season, but he has recovered. He is needed on defense, since he also was one of the top steals leaders in the Big Ten last year. And 6-foot 5-inch junior guard Kevin Payton, a skilled and smooth player, can be counted on for his solid defense.

College basketball always surprises with underdogs who come from nowhere to win conferences and tournaments. For denizens of the Barn, this portends well for the 2008-09 Golden Gophers.

For more on the Gopher men's basketball team and their most recent games and news, visit their page on Gophersports.com here.

Peter Schilling Jr. is a freelance writer and film critic living in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.

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