Ralph Sampson III News

Minnesota's Ralph Sampson III looks to pass around Minnesota-Duluth center Ivan Franklin at Williams Arena in Minneapolis on Thursday November 5, 2009.

Last update: November 26, 2009 - 5:32 PM Anaheim, Calif. - Both the No. 22 Gophers and No.

Due to Tubby Smith's policy that bans freshmen from talking to the media until the Big Ten Conference season, Rodney Williams won't be quoted in this story.

Gophers coach Tubby Smith on Thursday night found out what his team looked like without leading scorer Lawrence Westbrook, who was out with the flu during Minnesota's 76-51 victory over Utah Valley at Williams Arena.

Besides the Louisville game last season, Minnesota coach Tubby Smith's team mostly tested itself against lesser competition in nonconference play.

Lawrence Westbrook and Devoe Joseph each scored 15 points, as the 24th-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers used a big second half to take down Stephen F. Austin, 82-42, at Williams Arena.

The high-flying debut of Rodney Williams Jr. The visible improvements of Ralph Sampson III.

Lawrence Westbrook scored 22 points and No. 5 Minnesota won its season opener 87-50 over Tennessee Tech on Friday night.

Around the middle of last season, after turnover-plagued losses to Northwestern and Purdue, Minnesota coach Tubby Smith had seen enough.

Al Nolen doesn't have to shoot to impact the game. But the Gophers would be a much more dangerous team if they had a scoring threat at point guard.

During the most turbulent week in coach Tubby Smith's tenure at Minnesota, the Gophers finally got a chance to focus on basketball Thursday night.

Trevor Mbakwe acknowledges the crowd after dunking again during scrimmage at Golden Gopher Basketball's 'Tubby's Tipoff' on Friday, October 16, 2009, at Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minn.

Trevor Mbakwe's status clouds the Gophers men's basketball team as it begins practice.

Coach: Tubby Smith . Last season's record: 22-11 overall, 9-9 in Big Ten . Postseason: Lost in first round of NCAA tournament to Texas.

Germantown High School standout, and son of Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, said this week he is committed to play for the University of Minnesota next basketball season.

Elliott Eliason, a 6-foot-11, 235-pound center at Chadron High School, Neb. University of Minnesota basketball coach Tubby Smith picked up his first oral commitment in the 2010 recruiting class today from the top player in the state of Nebraska: Big man Elliott Eliason.

Each is a rising sophomore and the son of a former No. 1 overall draft pick. But Klay Thompson and Ralph Sampson III don't have comparable burdens.

Klay Thompson made shots at the Colorado Springs, Colo., tryouts and subsequently made the Under-19 U.S. team that eventually won gold in New Zealand this summer.

THE GOOD NEWS: Minnesota returns all but two players from last year's team and adds one of the best recruiting classes in the nation.

The Howard Pulley pro-am summer league began another season Monday evening at the Salvation Army gym in St.