Head coach Richard Pitino paid his respects to seniors Austin Hollins, Maverick Ahanmisi, Malik Smith, and honorary senior Oto Osenieks during the final minute of their 81-63 home win against Penn State on Sunday.
Pitino made individual substitutions for each of players, making sure the capacity Williams Arena crowd could salute them one final time. Thankfully, the crowd was able to send the seniors off on a positive note.
The Gophers never trailed in the game, thanks to a strong final home performance from Austin Hollins, who had 14 points and three steals. Juniors DeAndre Mathieu and Maurice Walker added 16 points each to help the Gophers solidify a 8-10 regular season record in the Big Ten, and also locked up the seventh seed in the conference's year-end tournament beginning on Thursday.
A win by the Gophers on Sunday also meant that they would meet Penn State once again in the opening round of the conference tournament. The two teams play Thursday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Ticket package information and pricing for the tournament can be found here.