Gophers use strong 2nd half to pull away from Northwestern

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota put together a dominant second half, pulling away from Northwestern 74-57 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

It will likely be the final time the Golden Gophers will play in front of a substantial crowd after conference officials announced most fans would not be allowed inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse the rest of this week.

The Gophers were led by Daniel Oturu with 24 points and Marcus Carr with 14. Northwestern got 15 points from Pete Nance but never recovered from Minnesota’s 25-7 spurt that gave the Gophers a 61-43 lead midway through the second half.

ap