At halftime of the opening game of the Big Ten Tournament Northwestern holds a slim 32-30 over Minnesota thanks to some timely three-point shooting and defense. Trevor Mbakwe started the game off with an easy dunk within the first five seconds of the game, but that was the only thing that has come easy for the Golden Gophers. Northwestern has connected on 5 of 18 from long range to lead by two at the break, with Michael Thompson Scoring 13 points.
Ralph Sampson III has scored 10 for Minnesota, but the Golden Gophers have hit on only 11 of 28 shots from the field. Both teams are getting to the free throw line with regularity, as Northwestern is 5 of 6 from the line and Minnesota is 6 of 8. Minnesota has 21 rebounds, using its size to gain an advantage over the smaller Wildcats. Northwestern has only 16 rebounds at the break.