University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Host Badgers Sunday in "Burst the Barn" Event
1/5/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Minnesota Golden Gophers (9-6, 1-2 Big Ten)
vs.
Wisconsin Badgers (12-3, 1-1 Big Ten)
LOCATION Williams Arena (14,625) - Minneapolis, Minn..
DATE / TIME: Sun., Jan. 7 - 2 p.m.
TELEVISION: Fox SportsNet North (Tape-Delay, Jan. 8, 7 p.m.)
Marney Gellner (play-by-play), Andrea Lloyd-Curry (analyst)
RADIO / WEBCAST: WCCO AM 830, KBEM-FM-88.5, KRDS 95.5 /
Gopher Radio Network / gophersports.com
Rita Maloney (play-by-play), Lynnette Sjoquist (analyst)
Golden Gopher Watch List — Jan. 7, 2007
• Minnesota Host Wisconsin in Border Battle - Minnesota (9-6, 1-2 Big Ten) plays host to Wisconsin (12-3, 1-1 Big Ten) on Sunday, Jan. 7, in another chapter of the border battle. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. in Williams Arena
• Burst the Barn - Gopher head coach Pam Borton has vowed to donate $5,000 ($1,000 to five charities) if 14,000 fans attend the Gophers game versus border-rival Wisconsin on Jan. 7. A check presentation will be made following the game.
• Minnesota/Wisconsin Game on FSN North - Fox SportsNet North will broadcast the Minnesota/Wisconsin game. Due to a scheduling conflict with the Minnesota Timberwolves, FSN North in Minnesota will air the contest on a tape-delayed basis on Monday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. FSN in Wisconsin is broadcasting the game live.
• Double Against Some of the Best - Ashley Ellis-Milan collected her fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds battling No. 7/8 Ohio State and All-American Jessica Davenport.
Gophers Host Wisconsin in Border Battle
Minnesota (9-6, 1-2 Big Ten) plays host to Wisconsin on Sunday, Jan. 7, in another chapter of the border battle. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. in Williams Arena. The Gophers are coming off a hard-fought 75-62 loss at No. 7/8 Ohio State. The Badgers (12-3, 1-1 Big Ten) enjoyed a bye on Thursday and lost at Michigan State, 56-46, a week ago.
Minnesota / Wisconsin Game on FSN North
Fox SportsNet North will broadcast the Minnesota/Wisconsin game with Marney Gellner providing the play-by-play and Andrea Lloyd Curry the color commentary. Due to a scheduling conflict with the Minnesota Timberwolves, FSN North in Minnesota will air the contest on a tape-delayed basis on Monday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. FSN in Wisconsin is broadcasting the game live.
Putting Away the Books for Now
The Golden Gophers have completed the first semester of the academic year and are now able to focus on only basketball for a little while. The Gophers will play three more games before returning to class for the second semester on Jan. 16.
Big Crowd Expected for Burst the Barn/Border Battle
Minnesota is expecting its biggest crowd of the 2006-07 season thus far when Wisconsin visits Williams Arena on Sunday for not only a border battle but also the “Burst the Barn” event. An attendance figure of five figures would tally the 21st crowd of over 10,000 fans in Minnesota history. A list of these 10,000-plus crowd are listed on the final page of this release.
Borton to Present Donation Checks After Game
Golden Gopher head coach Pam Borton selected five charities to benefit from the “Burst the Barn” event centering on her family values and love for animals. The five charities sharing in the event are Ronald McDonald House, St. Joseph’s Home for Children, Boys & Girls Clubs, Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota and the Animal Humane Society.
Borton will present a check for $1,000 to each of the charities above following Sunday’s game with Wisconsin.
Borton has been an active supporter of charitable giving organizations throughout her coaching career. Most recently, Borton served as the Gopher Athletics Department spokesperson for the University’s 2005 Community Fund Drive campaign. Last summer, Borton and the Golden Gophers participated in the Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota Walk for Children.
Ellis-Milan Notched Double Versus Ranked Team
Redshirt freshman Ashley Ellis-Milan showed she wasn’t intimidated playing at an arena of a highly ranked opponent and against one of the finest players in the collegiate game today. Ellis-Milan collected her fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds battling No. 7/8 Ohio State and All-American Jessica Davenport. The last freshman to record a double-double versus a ranked team was Janel McCarville, who accomplished the teat twice in her 2001-02 rookie season with the Gophers.
Halftime Buzzer Beaters in Last Three Games
The Gophers have made the last few seconds of the first half very exciting in the last three games hitting a shot at the buzzer. Kelly Roysland hit three-pointers as the first-half clock expired in games versus Iowa and Illinois, then Emily Fox dropped in a 16-foot jumper at Ohio State. Earlier in the season, Ashley Ellis-Milan gave the Gophers a halftime boost with a last second shot versus Nebraska.
Four Reach Double Digits Once Again
Four Golden Gophers scored in double figures versus No. 7/8 Ohio State, marking the sixth time this season Minnesota’s lineup accomplished the feat. Emily Fox scored 17, followed by 11 by Brittany McCoy and 10 by both Ashley Ellis-Milan and Leslie Knight.
Gophers Win When They Score 70 Points
Though for a team with a defensive philosophy this statistic only makes sense it’s worthy of mention nonetheless. Minnesota has won 59 straight games, including nine this season, when the Gophers have scored 70 or more points. One has to go back to the 2003 Big Ten Tournament and an 80-77 loss to Iowa to find the last time Minnesota tallied 70 yet lost.
Gopher Posts Establishing a Name for Themselves
Early on this season, the Gophers identity became somewhat of a guard-oriented team. Starting post players Ashley Ellis-Milan and Leslie Knight are out to change that a bit and have made impressive strides in making the Gophers’ post presence something to reckon with. The duo has contributed 20 or more points to the offensive punch in each of the last two games, a season first. Both Ellis-Milan and Knight tallied 10 points in the loss to No. 7/8 Ohio State. Ellis-Milan (13) and Leslie Knight (12) combined for 25 points in the win over Illinois, the most points contributed by the starting frontcourt this season. In the three-game losing streak before the Illinois game, the duo struggled averaging just 9.3 points combined.
Random Thoughts on the Ohio State Game
Yes, Ohio State All-American Jessica Davenport scored 22 points, but the Gophers’ post defense performed very well in denying the 6-5 center the ball. Davenport hit just five baskets within the scope of the Buckeye offense, including just one in the first half. The rest of her points resulted from fouls on rebounds or in non-shooting bonus situations. Most of the credit here goes to Ashley Ellis-Milan but she had plenty of help from her teammates.
The Gopher defense, especially Brittany McCoy, also deserve a shout-out on their play against Buckeye sharpshooter Marscilla Packer. Packer threw down 32 points with eight three-pointers against the Gophers last season. This time around - four points on just 1-9 shooting.
Minnesota out-scored Ohio State in the paint (38-32), off turnovers (21-17) and in fast-break points (19-10). The stat of the game? Free throws. Ohio State outscored Minnesota by a 28-8 margin from the line. The Buckeyes visited the line a staggering 39 times, while Minnesota managed just 12.
Assists just don’t come as easy as they used to. Minnesota was credited with just seven assists on 21 baskets (total of 26 but five baskets were scored on offensive rebounds). Ohio State had assists on 14 of 15 baskets (total of 23 with eight second-chance baskets).
Roysland Puts Up Career Numbers
Senior guard Kelly Roysland scored a career-high 27 points in the win over Illinois. The outing was Roysland’s fourth game with over 20 points this season. Roysland added another career best with five three-point field goals. The 27-point tally (tied with Purdue’s Katie Gearlds versus Iowa) is the highest individual scoring effort in Big Ten play this season.
Gopher Press Caused Havoc
Minnesota was down by 10 points with 13 minutes remaining against Illinois when the Gophers used a full-court press to erase the deficit and go on to victory. The Gophers’ press defense caused 11 Illinois turnovers down the stretch.
Minnesota Tops Big Ten in Double-Doubles
Minnesota may have the youngest team in the Big Ten, but the Golden Gophers also have the most players to post a double-double among the Conference teams this season. Four Gophers have tallied the honored double. Korinne Campbell, Ashley Ellis-Milan and Leslie Knight have collected double-double of the points/rebounds variety. Emily Fox added a double-double performance in points and assists.
Crashing the Glass to Fuel the Offense
Minnesota tops the Big Ten in offensive rebounds, snagging 18.4 per game. The Gophers hauled in 23 offensive rebounds versus Iowa, the seventh time in 2006-07 that Minnesota bettered 20 offensive boards. Ironically, all seven of those games were home contests.
Scouting Wisconsin
Wisconsin is off to a 12-3 start on the season, its best under fourth-year head coach Lisa Stone and best since the 2001-02 season when the Badgers went 16-1 to kick off the season. Badger fans would rather forget game 19 of that season, when Minnesota upset then No. 5 Wisconsin, 92-85, in front of a sold-out crowd in the Kohl Center. But back to the present. The Badgers are 1-1 in Big Ten with a win over Northwestern and a loss at Michigan State. Wisconsin had a bye on Thursday. The backcourt tandem of Jolene Anderson and Janese Banks average a combined 32.5 points per game. Anderson is third in the Big Ten at 17.5 ppg., while Banks chips in 15.2 ppg.
The Minnesota / Wisconsin Series
Wisconsin owns a 28-27 edge in the series with Minnesota. The Gophers had won five straight before the Badgers captured a 67-61 win in the second meeting a year ago.
