Maurice Walker

Gopher basketball center Maurice Walker is the Big Ten's player of the week. He received the honor Monday after averaging 16.5 points and 6.5 rebounds a game in a pair of Gopher wins over North Dakota and Southern last week.

The Gopher men's basketball team defeated Minnesota State-Mankato 81-56 Thursday night in an exhibition game. Joe Coleman was the lone Gopher in double figures with 21 points while Austin Hollins added 9 points and both Maurice Walker and Rodney Williams added 8 points. Trevor Mbakwe added 4 points in 11 minutes for Minnesota.