Guards rally Gophers over Xavier in women's basketball

The Gophers defeated Xavier 74-62 in a matchup of unbeaten women's basketball teams Wednesday night at Williams Arena to improve to 5-0.

It's the first time Minnesota has started with five wins since the 2007-08 season when that team opened with eight consecutive victories.

Guards Carlie Wagner and Kenisha Bell led the Gophers with 24 and 20 points, respectively. Bell also had seven assists and six rebounds.

"We just play off each other," Bell said, referring to Wagner and herself.

Freshman Destiny Pitts added seven points and a team-high 10 rebounds as the Gophers won the rebounding battle 42-36.

Na'Teshia Owens had 12 points for the Musketeers (4-1) and A'riana Gray added 10 points and 11 rebounds.

For the first time this season the Gophers trailed at halftime (40-32). But they closed within 45-43 on center Bryanna Fernstrom's rebound basket midway through the third quarter. And a three-point play by Bell, when she scored on a layup and was fouled, gave Minnesota a 48-47 lead with 3:20 left in the quarter.

After getting outplayed in the first half, the Gophers held Xavier to only 22 points in the second while scoring 25 points themselves in the third quarter and 17 in the fourth.

The difference?

"Me stepping up my defense," Bell said in a postgame interview on the Big Ten Network. The junior was named the co-Big Ten player of the week on Monday and had a career-high 31 points her previous game.

Wagner also credited her team's improved one-on-one defense for its better second half.