Gophers up end Wolverines in Ann Arbor

**Admin** Sun Jan 23, 2011 4:41 am

Blake Hoffarber needed to be almost flawless.

The Minnesota senior was up to the challenge.

Hoffarber had 12 points and six assists and didn’t turn the ball over once, and the 15th-ranked Golden Gophers outlasted Michigan 69-64. Minnesota snapped a four-game losing streak in the series and avenged a 28-point loss at Michigan last season.

The Gophers (15-4, 4-3 Big Ten) trailed 41-40 before going on a 12-3 run in the second half. Chip Armelin scored twice in a row on similar drives from the right wing, and Rodney Williams added a 3-pointer to make it 52-44.

After that, Michigan (11-9, 1-6) could pull no closer than six points until a 3-pointer by Tim Hardaway Jr. made it 65-60 with 29.1 seconds left. Hardaway finished with 20 points for the Wolverines, who have lost six straight.

Michigan attempted 19 of its 25 shots from 3-point range in the first half.

After the game, Michigan players had a brief meeting after Beilein left the locker room.

Foul trouble limited Michigan’s Evan Smotrycz to 16 minutes and Jordan Morgan to 23.