The Minnesota women’s basketball team (20-9, 8-9 B1G) went into the half tied 33-33 with Washington (17-2, 8-9 B1G), but could not pull away in the second half and fell 72-62 to the Huskies at home Wednesday.
The Golden Gophers had three players score in double figures, led by Grace Grocholski, who had 13 points and two steals. Annika Stewart added 13 points from the bench and Mallory Heyer helped out with 10 points and eight rebounds.
Minnesota utilized great ball movement in Wednesday’s game, piling up 15 assists on 24 made field goals. Amaya Battle’s six assists led the distribution list for the Maroon & Gold.
How It Happened
After playing to a 5-5 tie early in the game, Minnesota went on a 7-0 run with 7:12 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Alexsia Rose, to take a 12-5 lead. The Gophers then maintained that lead and entered the quarter break with a 17-10 advantage. Minnesota relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 17 points.
Minnesota kept its first quarter lead intact before going on a 5-0 run starting at the 9:44 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Heyer, to increase its lead to 22-10. The Huskies then battled back to even it up at 33-33 heading into halftime. Minnesota dominated in the paint, scoring 10 of its 16 points close to the basket.
Washington proceeded to take over in the third quarter and the Gophers entered the fourth trailing 57-44. Minnesota played well near the basket, scoring eight of its 11 points in the paint.
Washington kept widening its lead in the fourth, constructing a 65-48 advantage before Minnesota went on a 12-0 run, finished off by Niamya Holloway’s layup, to shrink the deficit to 65-60 with 1:56 to go in the contest. Washington responded and outscored the Gophers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 72-62.
Game Notes
» The Gophers shared the ball well, recording an assist on 62 percent of made baskets.
» The Minnesota bench came alive by adding 20 points to its scoring output.
» Grace Grocholski and Annika Stewart led the Gophers with 13 points apiece.
» Minnesota got a team-high eight rebounds from Mallory Heyer.
(info and photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
(photo credit – Brad Rempel)
