Gopher Basketball
The Gophers fell behind by 15 points early in the game against the Kansas Jayhawks before a home crowd of 8862. The Gophers shot only 39% from the field in the first half, but they heated up in the second half with 53% shooting.
Sophomore post player Liz Podomonick came in off the bench to score 14 points and grab 7 rebounds in 19 minutes of play. Senior post player Janel McCarville led the Gophers with 15 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocked shots (and 5 turnovers).
For the second game in a row, the Gophers limited their opponent to only 12 second half points. Kansas shot only 27% in the second half of Sunday’s game.
Sunday’s win followed an easier win Thursday over Detroit Mercy, 85-34.
Sophomore Kelly Roysland started in place of injured Shannon Bolden and went 7 of 9 from the field and scored 16 points for the Gophers. (Bolden, out with an injured ankle, returned to the starting lineup on Sunday.) McCarville added 19 points and 9 rebounds. Sophomore forward Jamie Broback added 14 points and 7 rebounds, as the Gophers easily handled an outmanned Titan team.
The schedule gets tougher this week for the Gophers with road games against UW-Green Bay and Santa Clara. Here’s a preview of those teams:
UW-Green Bay. Nicknamed the Phoenix, UW-Green Bay is off to a 6-0 start, not including 2 exhibition wins to start the season.
On Sunday, the Phoenix beat previously undefeated in-state rival Marquette, 69-51, and extended their home winning streak to 13 games.
UW-Green Bay also has wins over Auburn, Vermont, Kent State, Alcorn State, and Illinois. The 72-43 route of Illinois was UW-Green Bay’s first win in 5 tries against a Big 10 team. (Illinois then rebounded from this drubbing by beating No.21-ranked Louisiana Tech Saturday on the Lady Techsters home court, ending Louisiana Tech’s 30-game home winning streak.)
UW-Green Bay could be the toughest opponent the Gophers have faced this year. They return all five starters from a team that last year won the Horizon League regular season title and the Horizon League tournament title.
The Phoenix advanced to the NCAA tourney for the 6th time in 7 years, but lost a first round NCAA game to the University of Houston, 62-47.
UW-Green Bay finished with a 23-8 record last season, including a loss to the Gophers at Williams Arena. They are the preseason pick to win their 7th straight Horizon League title.
The Phoenix are led by Abby Scharlow, the league’s preseason player of the year. They also have 3 other players who were named to the preseason all-conference team: sophomore Nicole Soulis (1st team) and seniors Tiffany Mor (1st team) and Mary Kulenkamp (2nd team). Kulenkamp played her high school basketball at Woodbury High School in Minnesota.
Like the Gophers, the Phoenix are a balanced team with a lot of depth. UW-Green Bay starts 2 forwards and 3 guards, so we should expect the Gophers to have a size and strength advantage under the basket. UW-Green Bay did however block 13 shots in their win over Alcorn State. The 6’1″ Mor had 6 of these blacks.
These teams have had only 1 common opponent this year–exhibition game opponent the Wisconsin AAU Viking Club. The Gophers beat Wisconsin AAU, 82-71; UW-Green Bay beat them, 73-67.
Just as the Phoenix could be the Gophers toughest opponent so far this year, the Gophers could likewise be UW-Green Bay’s toughest oppenent. A capacity crowd of 1800-plus is expected. If the Gophers are going to win, they’ll have to do so in an unfriendly venue.
In order for the Gophers to win this game, they’ll have to play the smothering defense they played in the second half against Kansas, especially on the perimeter. UW-Green Bay is an experienced, well-coached team that will probably be willing to work for good shots and will probably not have a lot of unforced errors.
On offense, Minnesota is probably going to want to utilize its size and strength inside. McCarville, Broback, and Podomonick may well be the key players on offense for the Gophers. At least 2 of these players will have to have big games offensively for the Gophers to win.
Santa Clara. The Broncos come into the game with a 3-3 record, with wins over San Jose State (75-74), Hawaii (75-68), and, most recently, University of California-Davis (90-42). Santa Clara’s losses were to Georgia, No. 3-ranked at the time (87-68), Michigan State, No. 14-ranked at the time (81-59), and Fresno State (76-71).
Like UW-Green Bay, the Broncos are a guard-oriented team, starting 4 guards and a forward.
Although this game could be a test for the Gophers, it shouldn’t be, unless they’re looking past this game to the December 14 showdown against No. 1-ranked LSU at Williams Arena.
Notes and Observations:
- Gopher signee Ashley Ellis-Milan, a senior at St. Paul Central High School, had a monster game this past week, with 43 points and 18 rebounds in a win over Holy Angels.
- You blew it? Detroit Mercy coach Mickey Barrett, quoted in the Star Tribune after his team lost by 52 points to the Gophers: “I just feel we had a hell of an opportunity against a great team and we blew it.”
My response: Yah, Mickey…and I’ve got a shot at dating Charlize Theron. - The Auburn team which UW-Green Bay beat to open the season is coached by former ESPN women’s basketball analyst Nell Fortner, who moved from the studio to the bench when she decided to get back into coaching.
- Penn State upset No. 2-ranked North Carolina on Sunday, 77-71, in State College, PA.
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