The second exhibition for the Gophers women's basketball team didn't go as well as the first, but the end result was another victory over a local Division II program.
Rachel Banham had 20 points and five assists, Micaella Riche added 19 points and 12 rebounds and the Gophers beat Minnesota State Mankato 66-56 on Sunday at Williams Arena, their final tuneup before the regular season begins Saturday.
"I thought we were a very undisciplined group out there, didn't look like a team, that's why I'm not even using the word team," Gophers coach Pam Borton said. "We didn't even look like a team out there. We have a lot of work to do before we open up on Saturday. I just felt like we took a couple of steps backwards from the other day."
Gophers guard Sari Noga did a bit of everything, recording eight points, seven rebounds, five steals and four assists.
"It was an ugly win," Noga said. "We got the win, but there's a lot that we have to take in, learn through adversity and move on and get ready for Saturday because it's going to be a lot different and a lot tougher."
The Gophers shot 47.3 percent but struggled to take care of the ball, finishing with 25 turnovers. Just as in their first preseason game, a 76-49 victory over Concordia (St. Paul) on Wednesday, they built a first-half lead Sunday, taking a 41-28 lead into the break. Banham had 14 points and Riche 12 in the first half.
The Gophers extended their lead after halftime to 22 before going without a basket for 7 minutes, 23 seconds, enabling the Mavericks to pull within 64-56 with 1:17 to play. But Minnesota State didn't score again.
Ali Wilkinson scored 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Mavericks, and Ashley Olson added 12 points.
