Tubby Smith’s recruiting class features a lot of talent. Freshmen post players Ralph Sampson III and Colton Iverson figure to play key roles for the Gophers. Freshman guard Devoe Joseph is more of a combo guard, but he was solid in both exhibitions, after he overcame early jitters and turnovers. And Paul Carter is probably one of the team’s top four players.

It’s hard to assess Devron Bostick. He was the national junior college player of the year last season. And many figured that he’d be one of the top scorers for the Gophers. But he had some problems in the first two exhibition games. It’s not unusual for a junior college transfer to go through growing pains. But Smith said one of the problems Bostick may be having is that he’s somewhat intimidated by his new coach.

Bostick finished Thursday’s game with zero points in 22 minutes. He scored five in 12 minutes against St. Cloud State Monday.

During Thursday’s game, Smith said he pulled Bostick aside to ask him what was wrong. Bostick told Smith that he was intimidated by him. Smith told Bostick to “get used to it … because I’m going to be here.” Not only is Bostick struggling with a new system, but he’s also trying to get over the reality that he’s being coached by Smith and he’s playing in the Big Ten. Smith said he still has confidence in Bostick but said there are some things he has to “re-learn” because he’s been with another team for the past two seasons.

Based on the practices and games I’ve watched so far, Bostick has a tendency to rush shots. He’s a proven scorer that will probably help his team out if he settles down once he gets into the game. But that’s easier said than done.

In the long run, I think Bostick will contribute a lot to this team. But it’s probably going to take some time.

-For the first 10 minutes Thursday’s game, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. The same Gophers that struggled against Division II St. Cloud State were making the same mistakes Thursday night against Northern State. At one point in the first half, the Gophers turned the ball over five times in six possessions. But they definitely picked up the pace and ultimately crushed a Northern State team that’s expected to finish higher than St. Cloud State in the Northern Sun conference.

Smith said Carter played a key role during the first half when the two teams were neck-and-neck. Carter sparked a key run. And he finished with 17 points and seven boards. Lawrence Westbrook also stepped up with 19 points. He should be one of Minnesota’s top scorers every night. He’ll have to be.

Here’s the bottom line about Minnesota’s exhibition games: a young Gophers team struggled at times, but they also proved that they can put up big numbers when they’re playing up-tempo basketball and avoiding turnovers. The Gophers will beat teams with fast-break basketball and good defense. Eleven steals against Northern State is a good start. But the talent pool will only improve from here. Unlike last season’s Gophers, I think Minnesota will have a fight on its hands every night during non-conference play. But they should enter the Big Ten season with a good record.

-It was good to see Northern State head coach Don Meyer, a legend in the fraternity of basketball coaches, coaching from the sidelines Thursday night, only two months after part of his leg was amputated as the result of a car crash.

-Aaron Cosby, a 6-3 shooting guard from Kentucky in the class of 2010, is visiting the Gophers this weekend. He attended the Northern State exhibition game. Indiana and Minnesota are among Cosby’s top choices, according to scout.com. Cosby has received scholarship offers from the Gophers, Oklahoma State, Miami (Ohio) and Western Kentucky. Scout.com has him listed as a three-star recruit.

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