National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Minnesota 65, Southern Methodist 63
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, April 3, 2014
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Officials: # Jeff Anderson, # Bo Boroski, # Karl Hess
Attendance: 5268

Minnesota 65 Southern Methodist 63: Austin Hollins recorded 19 points and four steals as the Golden Gophers downed the Mustangs to win the NIT title in New York City.

Andre Hollins added 14 points for Minnesota (25-13), which overcame 10-of-17 shooting from the free throw line. DeAndre Mathieu chipped in with 13 points and seven assists while Maurice Walker grabbed a team-high seven rebounds for the top-ranked Golden Gophers.

Nic Moore led the way with 17 points and seven assists while Nick Russell contributed 15 points and six rebounds, but turned the ball over six times for SMU (27-10). Shawn Williams scored 11 points and Markus Kennedy tallied 10 points and secured eight rebounds for the top-seeded Mustangs.

SMU knocked down eight of its first 10 shots but only held a 20-19 lead as Minnesota hit five 3-pointers in the opening 11 minutes and the Golden Gophers went on to take a 30-27 advantage into the break. Moore found Kennedy for a dunk to give SMU its biggest lead 53-46 before Mathieu keyed a quick 7-0 spurt to tie the game with 4:37 remaining.

Austin Hollins' driving layup put Minnesota on top 57-54 before Russell drained a triple to even the score with 1:41 left. Austin Hollins answered with a 3-pointer to put the Golden Gophers ahead 62-59 and Andre Hollins made a pair of free throws with 4.8 seconds to seal the victory.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Minnesota started off 5-of-7 from beyond the arc before finishing 7-of-23. … The Golden Gophers won their first NIT title since 1993. … Southern Methodist held its seventh straight opponent to 70 points or fewer.
Top Game Performances
 
Southern Methodist   Minnesota
Nic Moore 17 Scoring Austin Hollins 19
Nic Moore 7 Assists Deandre Mathieu 7
Markus Kennedy 8 Rebounds Maurice Walker 7
Nic Moore 6 Free Throws Made Andre Hollins 3
Markus Kennedy 2 Steals Austin Hollins 4
Sterling Brown 1 Blocks Maurice Walker 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Southern Methodist 63 48.9 4-12 15-22 14 30 3 7 14
Minnesota 65 49.0 7-23 10-17 13 22 2 8 14