University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Sets Its Sights on Badgers
1/18/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Minnesota attempts to snap a five-game losing streak to open Big Ten Conference play when it plays host to the Wisconsin Badgers on Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m. (CST).
The game will be televised live on the Big Ten Network, with Marney Gellner calling the play-by-play and Mary Murphy adding color commentary. It will also be broadcast on WCCO Radio (830 AM) and other selected affiliates on the Gopher Radio Network, with Corbu Stathes handling the play-by-play and Lynnette Sjoquist adding color analysis.
It marks the second time the rivals have met in the past 12 days, as UW won by a score of 47-42 on Jan. 9 in Madison. In that game, Minnesota trailed by 18 points with 10:49 remaining, but held the Badgers without a field goal over the final 10:00 to pull within three points late, but the Badgers held on for the win.
The Gophers are 8-10 overall and 0-5 in the Big Ten after suffering a 58-54 setback on Thursday, while the Badgers are 9-9 overall and 4-2 in the conference after a 75-59 loss at Michigan on Sunday afternoon.
Minnesota led by 11 points with 16:39 left in regulation at Penn State, but lost its third Big Ten game this season in which it held a double-digit lead in the second half. Kiara Buford led Minnesota in scoring for the second-straight game, making 8-of-16 field goals and finishing with 19 points, while Katie Loberg had 18 points, five boards, and a career-high three assists.
Individually, Minnesota has two of the top scorers in the Big Ten, as Buford ranks eighth at 15.1 ppg, while Leah Cotton is 13th at 14.2 ppg. Buford has led the Gophers in scoring the past two games, and has scored in double-figures in all but two games she's played in this season.
China Antoine ranks second in the Big Ten for steals per game (2.4 spg), is third for assists per game (4.6 apg) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5), and seventh for three-point percentage (.397). Jackie Voigt is 14th in rebounding (6.2 rpg), while also averaging 6.4 ppg. Cotton also ranks 14th for field goal percentage (.464), while Buford is tied for 12th for assists per game (3.1 apg). Katie Loberg averages 8.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, and 1.2 bpg.
Scouting Minnesota
The start to the Big Ten season has been frustrating so far for the Gophers, who have held double-digit leads in the second half of three games, but have wound up on the losing end of each contest.
Junior guard Kiara Buford finished with 19 points to pace the Gophers at Penn State, and she has scored in double figures in all but two games for the Gophers this season. Sophomore forward Katie Loberg added 18 points, five rebounds, and a career-high three assists, while freshman guard Sari Noga scored six points and made two three-pointers for the second-straight game and freshman forward Kionna Kellogg had four points and tied Loberg with a team-high five boards.
In the Gophers' Jan. 9 loss versus Wisconsin at the Kohl Center, Buford was the lone Minnesota player to reach double figures, scoring 17 points. The Gophers were ice cold from the field in the first half, making just 4-of-24 (.167) field goals, but played well enough on defense to stay within five points, 19-14, at the break. Wisconsin widened the gap to 18 points (36-18) with 10:49 left in regulation before the Gophers rallied to cut it to three points with 4:07 left. The Badgers were held without a field goal over the final ten minutes, but they were able to make 11 free throws during that time to hold on for the five-point win even though the Gophers outscored them 24-11 down the stretch.
Buford leads the team at 15.1 ppg, while sophomore guard Leah Cotton is second at 14.2 ppg. Cotton has scored 20 or more points a team-best five times this season, but has been held to a combined total of 10 points over the past two games.
Loberg ranks third on the team for points per game (8.9) and is tied with Buford for third in rebounds per game (4.0), while leading the Gophers with 15 blocked shots (1.2 bpg).
Junior guard Brianna Mastey averages 5.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per outing, while senior forward Kristen Dockery has started eight games and recorded her first career double-double on Dec. 22 versus Northern Arizona with 10 points and a career-best 11 rebounds. Dockery is averaging 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game this season. Junior forward Jackie Voigt leads the Gophers with an average of 6.2 rpg and has grabbed at least eight boards seven times this year, while adding 6.4 ppg.
Senior point guard China Antoine ranks fourth on the team with an average of 7.3 ppg, while leading the Gophers with 83 assists (4.6 apg), 44 steals (2.4 spg), and a .397 (27-of-68) three-point percentage. Antoine had a career-high 21 points and six steals in the overtime loss to Indiana on Jan. 2, but has scored just 10 total points in her past three games.
Scouting Wisconsin
The Badgers are in their eighth season under the direction of head coach Lisa Stone, who is just four wins shy of her 500th career victory.
Wisconsin struggled in non-conference play, at one point having a record of 2-7. But the Badgers won their final three non-league games and have won four of six to start Big Ten play. Wisconsin's wins have come against Saint Louis (60-32), William & Mary (65-38), Drake (60-49), Milwaukee (68-53), Wyoming (63-59 ot), Purdue (68-66), Penn State (77-62), Minnesota (47-42), and Purdue (60-46), with losses to Green Bay (69-43), Kansas (93-86 ot), Marquette (66-52), BYU (67-55), Saint Mary's (56-50), Duke (59-51), Oklahoma State (50-42), Michigan State (62-43), and Michigan (75-59).
Alyssa Karel leads UW in scoring at 14.3 ppg and assists (2.5 apg), while Lin Zastrow ranks second on the team with averages of 12.6 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game and has made 63-of-112 (.563) field goals. Tara Steinbauer averages 10.8 ppg and 5.9 rpg, while connecting on 81-of-149 (.544) field goal attempts, and Taylor Wurtz leads the Badgers by averaging 6.9 rpg to go along with 8.8 ppg and a team-high 27 three-pointers made.
The Coaches
The University of Minnesota is led by ninth-year head coach Pam Borton (Defiance, 1987), who has a record of 173-100 (.634) at the U of M, and owns a career mark of 242-146 (.624) in her 13th season as a head coach.
Wisconsin's Lisa Stone (Iowa, 1984) is in her eighth year as head coach of the Badgers, with a record of 121-113 (.517) at UW and a mark of 496-231 (.682) in her 26th season overall.
Gopher Players vs. Wisconsin
Taking a look at Minnesota players' career numbers versus Wisconsin, junior guard Kiara Buford averages 12.3 ppg, while junior forward Jackie Voigt averages 7.0 ppg, but Buford and Voigt are the only players on the team who have played in more than two games against the Badgers (each with three). Voigt has made 3-of-7 (.429) three-pointers, and has averaged 5.7 rebounds, including 11 boards to go along with 13 points for a double-double in Minnesota's 76-74 double-overtime loss last Feb. 4. Buford recorded 17 points in that game, while senior point guard China Antoine had 10 points and three assists in her lone appearance against the Badgers last season.
Raise the Roof
Sophomore guard Leah Cotton and sophomore forward Katie Loberg have each significantly raised their scoring averages from their freshman campaigns in 2009-10.
Cotton has registered three of the four highest scoring totals for the Gophers this season, with a career-high 26 points versus Southern on Dec. 9, 25 points in the 71-67 win versus North Carolina State on Nov. 27, and 23 points in the loss to Green Bay on Nov. 14. Last season, Cotton played in 27 games and scored 93 total points for an average of 3.4 ppg. This season, she has already scored 255 points in just 18 games for an average of 14.1 ppg, an increase of +10.7 ppg.
Loberg played in 25 games as a freshman, averaging 2.0 ppg. This season, she missed five games due to injuries, but she's played in 12 games for the Gophers and has increased her scoring average from last season by 6.9 ppg to its current figure of 8.9 ppg.
A Win Would...
Make Minnesota 9-10 overall and give the Gophers their first Big Ten victory this season ... Make the Gophers 8-4 in Williams Arena this season ... Make the Minnesota-UW series 33-30 in favor of the Badgers, but improve Pam Borton's record against Wisconsin to 8-6 ... Make Minnesota 185-299 in regular season Big Ten games since the start of the 1982-83 season ... Make Minnesota 276-179 all-time in Williams Arena, including 104-29 in the Pam Borton era... Improve Pam Borton's record to 174-100 while at Minnesota and 243-146 all-time ... Make Minnesota's record 539-558 since the 1971-72 season.
A Loss Would...
Make Minnesota 8-11 overall and extend the Gophers' losing streak to six games ... Make the Gophers 7-5 in Williams Arena this season ... Make the Minnesota-UW series 34-29 in favor of the Badgers, and drop Pam Borton's record against Wisconsin to 7-7 ... Make Minnesota 184-300 in regular season Big Ten games since the start of the 1982-83 season ... Make Minnesota 275-180 all-time in Williams Arena, including 103-30 in the Pam Borton era... Drop Pam Borton's record to 173-101 while at Minnesota and 242-147 all-time ... Make Minnesota's record 538-559 since the 1971-72 season.
Looking Ahead
Following the game with UW, the Gophers will travel to East Lansing, Mich., for Sunday afternoon's game at Michigan State, which will start at 1:00 p.m. (CST). The Spartans enter Thursday night's game at Indiana at 16-2 overall and tied for first-place in the Big Ten with a mark of 4-1.
For ticket information for Thursday's game with Wisconsin, call the Golden Gopher Ticket Office at 612.624.8080 or 1.800.U.GOPHER, or visit www.mygophersports.com.
