AUSTIN, Texas — Bobby Jackson has followed the Gophers since his 1997 Final Four season, hoping to see his alma mater succeed in the NCAA tournament.
That day finally came 16 years later.
The former University of Minnesota and NBA guard expressed his excitement in a phone conversation with the Pioneer Press on Saturday, March 23, about Tubby Smith’s team running away with an 83-63 second-round win over UCLA on Friday.
“They’ve had some good teams; they just haven’t been able to put it together until now,” said Jackson, now a Sacramento Kings assistant coach. “This year, I kind of knew they were going to beat UCLA because they played hard. They definitely had an edge to themselves. They approached the game with a different aspect. They came ready to play.”
Officially, the Gophers’ last NCAA tournament win before Friday came in 1990.
The academic fraud under former Minnesota coach Clem Haskins led to vacating the 1997 Final Four season. Jackson was a part of the cheating scandal; he accepted blame and moved on years ago, and hopes to be around the Gophers program more.
“We were extremely blessed to be in that situation, to take that team to the Final Four and win a Big Ten championship,” he said. “I don’t like some of what happened while I was there, and a couple years after I left. But it’s a learning process.
“I was young. Most of those guys were young. We tried to take the easy way out. Things happened. You just have to move on and try not to make the same mistakes. And when you have kids, you teach your kids to do the things the right away — follow the rules and be upstanding citizens, athletes and scholars.”
Jackson was the Chicago Tribune’s Big Ten player of the year in 1997. Drafted by the Seattle Supersonics with the 23rd pick overall that year, he spent 13 seasons in the NBA before retiring in 2009.
Now, Jackson is trying to establish himself as an NBA coach. He also wants to support the Gophers coach who has received heavy criticism the past few years for failing to live up to high expectations. Jackson has talked with Smith and said he appreciates Smith for teaching players “how to be men in life after basketball.”
Last summer, Jackson attended Smith’s golf event. He plans to be back for it this year, too.
“He’s genuine, and he cares about the athletes,” Jackson said. “He holds everyone accountable for the mistakes they make on and off the court. It’s about winning, but his guiding these young men in the right direction is important.
“Minnesota is always going to have a fond memory in my heart. I’m always going to support the program. I’ll be there for them and see if I can attend as many events as possible.”
Jackson was preparing for a Kings game Saturday night against the Denver Nuggets. But he flashed back to his days under Haskins, learning how to balance being a scorer and floor general. He said he wasn’t truly comfortable with the role until his senior year.
Sophomore Andre Hollins’ 28-point performance on Friday was the most spectacular NCAA tournament game for a Gophers point guard since Jackson scored 36 points against Clemson in the 1997 Sweet 16.
Jackson’s NBA ties prevented him from talking about Hollins, but he spoke in general about how a shooting guard can make the transition to point guard.
“I tried to go the first six or seven minutes getting everybody involved before I got myself going,” he said. “It took me awhile because I always had a scorer’s mentality from high school to college and even the league. But you learn and you grow.”
