Zahui B. finishes strong to help Gophers women's basketball top Central Michigan

The Gophers women's basketball team isn't going to alter its fast-paced style with standout Rachel Banham on the sideline. It's a guard-oriented scheme.

That doesn't always mean that's the Gophers' strength. They excel offensively when sophomore center Amanda Zahui B. touches the ball more frequently in the paint.

Zahui scored the Gophers' final 10 points in a 67-64 victory over Central Michigan on Sunday afternoon in the Subway Classic at Williams Arena. She finished with a career-high 27 points, including 19 in the second half, to go along with 13 rebounds and six blocked shots.

"Coach and the team trusts me to take care of the ball under the basket," said Zahui, who was coming off a 17-point, 13-rebound, six-block performance Saturday. "I have to finish around the basket."

Zahui's two free throws with 33.8 seconds remaining broke a 63-all deadlock. She added two more free throws with 10 seconds left to finish 5-for-5 from the line.

The Chippewas (4-5) had a chance to tie it one second earlier, but senior guard Crystal Bradford made only one of her two free throws. The reigning Mid-American Conference player of the year, who finished with 27 points, misfired on a three-pointer at the buzzer, too.

"Something that has continued to happen here a few times in our nonconference slate is that we get tested down the stretch and we've found a way to win each of those games," Gophers coach Marlene Stollings said. " I think it speaks to the resiliency of this group."

"We have to look more inside because a lot of teams have mismatches," said Wagner, who finished with 13 points, 11 in the first half.

The 6-5 Zahui saw limited touches near the hoop during the first half despite being three inches taller than Central Michigan's biggest starter. She was 4-for-5 from the floor in the opening 20 minutes.

The Gophers (11-1) scored on 51 percent of their possessions when Zahui touched the ball. They operated at only 23 percent efficiency when possessions were limited to three touches or fewer, and that number skyrocketed to 61 percent at seven touches.

The Gophers let the Chippewas hang around due to unforced turnovers and hurried three-pointers. They committed 12 of their 16 turnovers in the first half, and trailed 38-36 at the intermission.

"We have to become better passers," Stollings said. "This is a very unselfish group. They've shown that they are going to step up."

"We talked about defending better [at halftime]," Stollings said. "I think defensively, we will continue to get better and better."