The Minnesota women’s basketball team held UMass Lowell to just 18.5 percent from 3-point range in a 5-for-27 shooting performance on the way to an 82-37 victory over the River Hawks at Williams Arena on Tuesday night. Minnesota improves to 3-0, 0-0 B1G to start the season, while UMass Lowell drops to 0-3, 0-0 America East.
The Golden Gophers had four players score in double figures, led by McKenna Johnson, who had 13 points. Taylor Woodson added 12 points off the bench and Tori McKinney helped out with 11 points and seven rebounds subbing in.
Minnesota out-rebounded UMass Lowell 53-32 in Tuesday’s game, led by Mallory Heyer’s 10 boards. The Gophers also pulled down 22 offensive rebounds and scored 19 second chance points.
The Minnesota defense held UMass Lowell shooters to just 25 percent from the field, including 18.5 percent from three-point range.
How It Happened
Minnesota started out the scoring by going on an 11-0 run, culminating in a three from Amaya Battle, to take an early lead with 5:27 left in the first quarter. The Gophers then added seven points to that lead by the end of the period and entered the quarter break with a 20-2 advantage. Minnesota relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 20 points.
Minnesota built that first quarter lead to 34-14 before going on a 7-0 run starting at the 1:58 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Woodson, to increase its lead to 41-14, a score that would hold until halftime. Minnesota forced five UMass Lowell turnovers in the period and turned them into nine points.
Minnesota continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 7-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Sophie Hart, to expand its lead further to 58-25 with zero seconds to go in the third, a score which remained until the end of the third quarter. Minnesota played well near the basket, scoring 16 of its 17 points in the paint.
Minnesota started tacking on points in the fourth almost immediately, going on an 8-0 run to grow the lead to 66-25 with 7:07 to go in the contest. The Gophers kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 82-37 win. Minnesota took advantage of its opportunities in the post, scoring 12 of its 24 points in the paint.
Game Notes
» The Gophers held the River Hawks to only 25 percent shooting from the field.
» The Gophers never trailed after taking a 20-2 first quarter lead.
» Minnesota recorded 16 total assists in the game.
» Minnesota had a stellar day defensively, holding UMass Lowell to 19 percent from beyond the arc on 27 attempts.
» The Minnesota bench came alive by scoring 50 points to its scoring output.
» McKenna Johnson and Taylor Woodson came off the bench to score 13 and 12 points, respectively.
» Minnesota had a 53-32 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Minnesota defense forced 16 turnovers.
» Minnesota cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 22 offensive boards in the game.
» McKenna Johnson led the Gophers with a game-high 13 points.
» Minnesota got a team-high 10 rebounds from Mallory Heyer.
(info and photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
