University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Michigan State
WBB: Golden Gophers Fall 55-49 in Big Ten Final
3/7/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Minnesota lost to Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship final by a score of 55-49. Jamie Broback led the way for the Gophers, scoring a game-high 18 points, all in the second half.
With the win, No. 7 Michigan State earns the Big Ten's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The conference tournament title is the first for the Spartans as both Minnesota and Michigan State made their first appearance in the Big Ten playoff final.
Minnesota's shooting percentage tells the story of the game. Despite shooting 50 percent from behind the three-point arc, the Gophers made just 15 of 57 field goal attempts in the game (26 percent). Minnesota missed its first 11 field goal attempts from two-point territory, and didn't score a two-point basket until Liz Podominick sank a jumper with 2:16 remaining in the first half. Meanwhile, Michigan State went 21-51 on its field goal attempts (41 percent).
Jamie Broback was Minnesota's top scorer, tallying 18 points, all in the second half, and added eight rebounds. Michigan State successfully contained Janel McCarville, who only scored two points in the game on 1-18 shooting. McCarville did contribute 11 rebounds, and was the only player in the game with double-digit rebounds.
Liz Shimek led the effort for the Spartans, earning 15 points. Also in double figures for Michigan State were Kelli Roehrig and Lindsay Bowen with 10 points each.
Shannon Schonrock sank a three- pointer in the first minute of play to put the Gophers up 3-0, but the lead didn't last long. Michigan State went on a 7-0 run to bring the score to 7-3 in favor of the Spartans before Schonrock hit another trey to bring the Gophers within one point at 7-6. Michigan State rattled off an 11-2 run to bring its lead to 10 points at 18-8. The lead would be the largest of the game.
Michigan State entered a scoring drought that would last more than six minutes, giving the Gophers a chance to get back in the game. Shannon Bolden knocked down two three-pointers during the stretch, bringing the Gophers to within four at 18-14. Minnesota battled back to get the score within two points at 22-20, but Victoria Lucas- Perry tallied a three-point shot with six seconds on the clock to give the Spartans a 25-20 lead at the half.
Jamie Broback returned to the court after halftime with a fury, notching six points in the first 1:35 of the second stanza. Her jumper at 18:25 tied the score at 28-28. Rene Haynes ignited a 6-0 run for Michigan State to reclaim the lead at 34-28. Minnesota didn't give up, and went on an 11-0 run which included seven points by Broback. The Gophers' run was capped by a Broback three-pointer to bring the Minnesota lead to 39-34 with 11:41 to play.
The teams battled for the scoring lead, which Minnesota held until the Spartans evened the score at 49-49 on a jumper by Liz Shimek with 3:54 on the clock. Minnesota was unable to score in the last four minutes of the game, while Michigan State tallied six more point to bring the game to 55-49.
Michigan State's victory was its third over Minnesota this season, and its sixth straight won over the Gophers. The last time Minnesota defeated the Spartans was on January 7, 2002, in a narrow 70-69 victory in East Lansing, Mich.
Each of Minnesota's games in the 2005 Big Ten Tournament were decided by six points or less, as the Gophers defeated both Purdue and Ohio State by three points with scores of 71-68 and 66-63, respectively.
