U women gameday
Noon at No. 13 penn STate • bryce jordan center • Ch. 4, 1500-am
Gophers at a glance: Minnesota (13-7, 2-4 Big Ten) ended a two-game losing streak with a 64-53 homecourt victory over Wisconsin on Thursday. … Minnesota had four players in double figures against the Badgers — Rachel Banham 19, Micaëlla Riché 15, Shayne Mullaney 11 and Kayla Hirt 10 — and won despite Amanda Zahui B. being in foul trouble and getting just four points and four rebounds. Zahui B. is the team's second-leading scorer behind Banham, averaging 14.4 points per game and a Big Ten-leading 10.6 rebounds. … The Gophers made four of nine9 three-point shots Thursday, and are No. 2 nationally with a three-point percentage of .430. Banham has hit 55 of 114 three-pointers (.482 percent). … In conference play, Minnesota is second in field-goal percentage (.449).
Lady Lions at a glance: Penn State (14-4, 5-1) has won six of the past seven meetings against the Gophers, but Minnesota can claim victory in the most recent meeting, 89-81 last February. … Minnesota's gaudy offensive shooting numbers figure to be tested by Penn State's defense. The Lady Lions are first in field-goal percentage defense (.347) and second in scoring defense (63.2 ppg) in conference games. … Senior Maggie Lucas leads Penn State with an average of 20.7 ppg — second in the league to Banham's 22.6 — and has made her last 31 free throws. Lucas is No. 2 in the Big Ten in career three-pointers with 330, only 27 behind former Nittany Lion Kelly Mazzante. … Ariel Edwards is averaging 14.2 points per game, while Dara Taylor is averaging 11.6 points and 4.3 assists.
dennis brackin
