MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Blake Hoffarber scored 20 points while playing point guard in place of Al Nolen, Trevor Mbakwe rammed his way to 18 points and 14 rebounds, and 16th-ranked Minnesota beat Northwestern 81-70 on Wednesday night.
Mbakwe got his 12th double-double of the season while matching his career high in points and moving back in the starting lineup for the first time in four games, helping the Gophers (16-4, 5-3 Big Ten) win their fourth straight despite the loss of their steady senior leader Nolen, who broke his right foot last weekend.
Colton Iverson added 15 points, Ralph Sampson III had 14 points and the Gophers started a parade to the free throw line for a season-high 46 attempts. They drew 32 fouls on the Wildcats (13-6, 3-6) and wore them out with hustle, muscle and decent passing despite a struggle to shoot from outside the lane and only eight healthy players in the rotation.
