MN Gophers

This week on Ovie and The Franchise, we break out the magnifying glasses to try and figure out what exactly the Timberwolves' plan for the future is.

The Minnesota Wild suffered their first loss of the season 1-0 at Anaheim Monday night. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today. He says new Wild goaltender Cam Talbot looked better in their one loss Monday night as opposed to their 2 wins in overtime against Los Angeles.

The Gopher men's basketball team improved to 11-4 overall and 4-4 in the Big Ten after a 75-57 win over #7 Michigan Saturday. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today. He says the 8 game start to the Big Ten season was gauntlet for the Gophers with 8 ranked opponents in a row.

The Minnesota Wild downed the L.A. Kings in Los Angeles Thursday night to open the season 4-3 in overtime. Rookie Kirill Kaprizov scored the game-winner in overtime for Minnesota. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today. He says Kaprizov was the best player on the ice and may be better sooner than expected.

The Twins haven't made a significant signing yet in the offseason. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today. He says the Twins could be one of the teams interested in the workout of veteran right handed pitcher Corey Kluber. Jim says if his velocity is up and the price is right the Twins may want to sign him.

Alabama beat Ohio State 52-24 to win the College Football playoff National Championship Monday night. Alabama quarterback Mac Jones and Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields could both be taken in the first round of the NFL draft in May. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today.

The Timberwolves ended their 7-game losing streak with a 96-88 win over San Antonio at Target Center Sunday night. Star Tribune Sports Columnist Jim Souhan joined me on WJON today. He says the Wolves know they need to play better defense if they are going to win games and a step toward that was made last night.

There are a number of games on our airwaves Friday, Saturday and Sunday, from college hockey to NFL football. Here's a look at what to listen for this weekend.

The Gopher men's basketball lost their 3rd straight road game of the Big Ten season 82-57 Wednesday night to fall to 3-3 in the Big Ten and 10-3 overall. Jim says the Gophers just haven't played well on the road. Factors could be different rims and environment or the travel but with no fans that can't be the issue.

Minnesota struggled with shooting all night and ended up hitting just 32% of their field goal attempts while allowing Michigan to shoot at a 56% clip.