Notebook: Gophers could be without Eliason in key Big Ten game at Iowa
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MINNEAPOLIS -- The Gophers men's basketball team may be without one of their key bench players in Wednesday's game at Iowa.
Coach Tubby Smith announced Tuesday that Elliott Eliason sprained his ankle in practice Monday and is questionable for the game at the Carver-Hawkeye Center.
"We hope he is OK," Smith said. "I haven't had a chance to see him (Tuesday) but he was held out most of practice."
Eliason is one of the key cogs off the bench for the "U," bringing a sense of physicality to the game that starter Ralph Sampson III has not.. In 13.5 minutes per game, the redshirt freshman is averaging just 2.4 points and 3.6 rebounds, but he brings the intangibles to the court that coaches love and fans often don't notice.
If Eliason cannot go against the Hawkeyes -- a game in which the Gophers have a chance to reach a .500 Big Ten record -- Smith said he will just have to look further down the bench to fill the void.
"We will probably play Oto (Osenieks) a lot more at and go small a lot," he said. "We hope (Eliason) goes though. We need him. Iowa is pretty physical."
Osenieks has gotten the majority of his playing time in relief of Rodney Williams at power forward. Further, at 6-foot-8, Osenieks is three inches shorter than the 6-foot-11 Eliason.
Smith had high praise for the Osenieks when asked about the possibility of his role increasing on Wednesday night.
"He is a tough, hard-nosed kid and when he is making shots he moves well with out the ball," Smith said. "He passes. He looks to pass. He can put the ball on the floor under control and jump-stop and pass it.
"He is a guy that isn't going to get outside of his game. Sometimes he may took an ill advised shot but we allow him to do that because he is one of our better three-point shooters."
Bench boost
Smith hailed his bench for their 39-point performance in the win against Illinois last Saturday. He said he will continue playing whoever is playing well in the moment and doesn't put much stock in who is a start and who is a reserve.
"That's kind of the way I coach," Smith said. "I always have. I don't ever worry about minutes, who is getting what. I leave that to mom and dad, the media and themselves."
Eliason (25), Andre Hollins (24) and Chip Armelin (24) all played as many, if not more minutes than starters Julian Welch (20), Ralph Sampson III (20) and Austin Hollins (24).
"I am going to play who is playing well, it doesn't matter who it is," Smith said. "I don't have anybody getting 20 points and 10 rebounds out there, if I had Kevin Love, I would worry about (getting him a lot of minutes."
"(The starters) need to play better," he said. "And they know that. I let them know that. I expect them to play better. If they don't, that's where Elliot, Oto, and everybody else comes in. That's why they are on scholarship."
Rebounding issues
Even with Eliason in the lineup, the Gophers have been getting hurt on the boards lately -- especially offensively.
The "U" allowed Illinois to grab a season-high 17 offensive boards in Saturday's 77-72 overtime victory at Williams Arena. This came just two days after Michigan State beat them on the boards 40-32 in a 68-52 loss.
"That is an alarming trend," Smith said. "Because Iowa is a team...that beat us up pretty good on the offensive boards. They were pretty physical and that is a concern so we have been working hard to try to get better in that area."
Quick hits
Smith said that Welch played through a stomach ache in the win over Illinois but neglected to tell the him or the trainers. "I said, 'Son, you have to tell us these things."
Andre Ingram also didn't practice Tuesday while he continues to deal with hip tendonitis. Ingram is averaging only 7.1 mpg and his absence would be easier to cope with in Iowa than Eliason's.
