SAN FRANCISCO – Gophers big man Pharrel Payne watched from the bench as the starters struggled to open Sunday’s 76-58 loss against San Francisco, trailing 10-1 in the first four minutes.

After the 6-9 sophomore entered the game, the Gophers finally scored their first field goal when the threat of Payne inside allowed leading scorer Dawson Garcia to get more open looks.

The Gophers (4-2) never recovered after falling behind in the first half Sunday and trailed from start to finish against the Dons (5-2) at the Golden State Warriors’ Chase Center. One of the few bright spots, though, was Payne scoring 15 of his team’s 31 points off the bench in the loss.

It was the first time this season Payne played more than 20 minutes after the Gophers had him on a minutes restriction to help with a lingering foot injury to open the season.

“Hopefully I can carry it over to other games,” Payne said Sunday. “I feel like I’m definitely getting more comfortable on the court. Definitely out there making my mark. It’s been a little tough, but I know it’s for my own good.”

Payne’s performance was one of the four things learned from Sunday’s loss in San Francisco:

Progressing Payne

There was heavy enthusiasm within the program this offseason that Payne was going to make a significant jump, but with his foot injury came a setback.

After starting at center in the opening win vs. Bethune-Cookman, Payne would miss the second game of the season against Texas San Antonio. He had seven blocks combined in the next two games after returning, but the Gophers limited him to just 15 minutes a game.

At less than 100% healthy, Payne was even being cautious with his foot in practice, but he looked more like his old self Sunday with season-highs in points (15), rebounds (six) and minutes (26).

“I feel like the last game his mentality was right,” Gophers coach Ben Johnson said. “There was a fight to him. He was moving. He showed that energy, which I love. So, we need him to continue that mental piece because that’s really big for him. Hopefully he can build on the success he had.”

Payne’s more productive the more he plays. He’s averaging a career-best 20.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 4.7 blocks, per 40 minutes this season.

Turnover issues

The Gophers are the most turnover-prone team in the Big Ten this season — and it has become arguably their biggest weakness.

The 18 turnovers Sunday turned into 25 points for the Dons, who also recorded 14 steals on the night. Four of the team’s eight turnovers came from point guard Elijah Hawkins in the first half, but taking care of the ball got worse for others as the game progressed.

Mike Mitchell Jr. and Cam Christie combined for six of the team’s 10 turnovers in the second half. Minnesota’s point guard trio of Hawkins, Mitchell and Christie crumbled under USF’s pressure to combine for 12 turnovers in the game.

Through six games, the Gophers lead the Big Ten with 14.7 turnovers per game and rank last in the league in turnover margin (minus-4.5).

“We have to fix that,” Johnson said. “That’s been our Achilles’ heel. Eighteen turnovers is way too many, especially playing against a really good team. We have to figure out and understand the value of hitting singles and making the simple play.”

Defensive letdown

Defense became a bigger part of the U’s identity after the first loss earlier this month against Missouri, but it didn’t travel well.

In the first road game of the year, Johnson saw the Gophers have their worst defensive showing of the season by allowing USF to shoot 52% from the field, including 60% in the second half.

The Dons were not only bigger — they played with a 7-2 center and 6-8 guard at times — but also more aggressive defensively than their Big Ten foe Sunday. They had seven players 6-7 or taller on the floor throughout the game, including 6-8 Jonathan Mogbo, who finished with a career-high 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Nothing in transition

The Dons were able to beat the Gophers at their own game on Sunday night.

Entering Sunday, Johnson’s new, fast-paced style of play averaged 14 fastbreak points per game this season, including a 24 against UTSA earlier this season.

USF’s defense forced a season-high in turnovers. The Gophers played much faster than they could handle but also were outscored 10-1 in fastbreak points. It was the first time this season they weren’t able to score one basket in transition.

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In order for the Cincinnati Bengals to reach the playoffs, quarterback Joe Burrow and the rest of the offense must limit the number of sales in the future. Burrow leads the league in interceptions for 13 weeks at 14.

Burrow, in his sophomore season in the NFL, knows that giving the ball away as it is, even if several are not his fault, is not a recipe for success. Certainly not in December.

“That was something that I’ve been disappointed with this year, as far as I can control,” said Burrow. “Too many in my opinion.”

It’s not so much the number of interceptions Burrow has thrown that is cause for concern.

In fact, four of the five players who rank just behind Burrow in interceptions are on teams capable of making the playoffs: Lamar Jackson (13), Ryan Tannehill (13), Patrick Mahomes (12), Justin Herbert ( 11) and Zach Wilson (11). The problem is more controversial when the wiretapping takes place.

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Some of them came when Burrow tried to force the ball into narrow windows like the one he threw them in the end zone against the Cleveland Browns, resulting in a combination of six.

Some came because his wide receivers didn’t secure the ball. Regardless, some came into the game at critical times and played a role in the bottom line.

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The Bengals are going into the final leg of the regular season and you could argue that any game in the future is a must to win.

In order to win these games and secure a place in the playoffs for the first time since 2015, Cincinnati cannot give the ball to its opponents in its current form. With 19 a year (14 interceptions, five fumbles), the Bengals are ranked 23rd in the NFL for giveaways.

“Yeah, I mean it has to change somehow, its shape or form,” said Brian Callahan, Bengal offensive coordinator. “The crazy thing is, we’re still sitting by… In our last three defeats we flipped the ball eight times in three defeats, I think. It won’t make it against a lot of good teams.

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“The ball losses are too many. There are too many everywhere. Our defense did a good job of getting the ball back. We really neutralize that advantage if we give the ball away as quickly as we are.” no matter if fumbles or interceptions or whatever they come. ”

The league’s leadership at interceptions is not a statistic Burrow is proud of, and he can only control a limited amount of what happens.

The Bengals can help their franchise quarterback by stepping up protections for him to limit the number of hits. When Burrow is under constant pressure, he has less time to read through his books and make the right decision about football.

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More importantly, a team has more opportunities to knock the ball out of their hand when they hit it. Burrow has been sacked 36 times this season – the second most common NFL quarterback that year.

The Bengals know they’ll go as far as Burrow needs them to go, and he has a knack for helping Cincinnati win AFC North this season. Now it’s up to him and his teammates to make sure they give each other the best chance to do so, and a large part of that will limit turnover.

More:Joe Burrow had to train with a pinky finger injury as the Bengals prepare for the 49ers on Wednesday

“We have faced a lot of adversity this year,” said Burrow. “We have really good people in the locker room who work really hard. These are the guys you want to go to war with here when they have to go down the track and get some tough victories.”

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