MINNEAPOLIS -- Richard Pitino warned his Minnesota team that last Saturday's game against Illinois -- and every Big Ten contest, for that matter -- was going to be physical. He also took senior Mo Walker aside at halftime and told the Gophers big man to rebound better.
Walker took both messages to heart. Not only did he finish the game with a career-high 13 rebounds in Minnesota's victory, but he also added another stat total: four stitches above his left eye after getting hit in the second half. It's a hazard that comes with the territory of being a big man in the Big Ten.
"He said it was going to be a war before the game," Walker said of Pitino's message Saturday. "If we're all not putting our bodies on the line and putting ourselves on the line in this one, then we really didn't want it that badly. I ended up getting some stitches. I guess he was right."
That type of physical play is something the Gophers' coaching staff has been trying to coax out of Walker for the last two years. As someone with a naturally laid-back personality, Walker has admitted he's needed to find somewhat of a mean streak on the court this season. Though he's averaging career highs in minutes and points, that tenacity and toughness had sometimes been lacking on the court.
Not Saturday.
It was just the third time in his career that Walker has reached double-digit rebounds in a game, with all three instances happening this season. After his 13-rebound effort against Illinois, Walker is now tied for eighth in the conference in rebounds per game (6.7). But that's a number both he and Pitino feel can improve the rest of his senior season.
"I know my numbers are up rebounding wise," said Walker, who averaged just 4.5 boards per game as a junior last year. "I think I still have a ways to go, but it's definitely improving."
Pitino has lauded the fact that Walker has come a long way since the second-year head coach took over the program last year. In what has been a well-documented tale of significant weight loss, Walker dropped more than 50 pounds in order to not only play in Pitino's system but, as Pitino noted, to simply play in any team's system; he wasn't a serviceable player at his old weight.
The results of the slimmed-down Walker were evident on the court last year as his 18.5 minutes, 7.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game were all easily career highs. And he did that while starting just three of the 32 games he played in a year ago.
Now as a senior, Walker has emerged as the Gophers' starting center. He's come off the bench just once in 21 games. Walker seems to relish the opportunity to start, something that was unthinkable two years ago.
"I don't think it's worn on me, but it is an adjustment starting and getting more minutes," Walker said. "I know teams are going to game plan for me a lot more. . . . I feel like I'm adjusting."
Walker and the Gophers head east Wednesday to face Penn State, a team rather similar to Minnesota. Both schools have six Big Ten losses, and both have suffered a number of close defeats in conference play.
In order to come away with their first Big Ten road victory, the Gophers will have to be more physical than the Nittany Lions. A repeat performance of Saturday from Walker would certainly help in that department.
"Mo understands what it takes to compete at this level," Pitino said. "Like I say to him all the time, 'Why do we need to go down that road and be yelling at you? We don't. You know you've got to play tough.' So sometimes it's lighting a fire under him a little bit, and other times maybe he just needs to get punched first to react a little bit. We need that from him, and he's still not there."
He's getting there, though. Saturday's double-double -- he chipped in 12 points along with his 13 rebounds -- shows that Walker has continued to make strides. There's not a ton of time left in his senior season, but he still has several more chances to show just how far his transformation has come.
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