University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Virginia Tech
Banham Sinks Buzzer-Beater to Lift Gophers Past Virginia Tech
11/26/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 26, 2011
Freshman Rachel Banham hit a jumper in the paint with 0.6 seconds remaining on the clock to lift the University of Minnesota women's basketball team to a victory over Virginia Tech, 65-64, Saturday afternoon in the consolation game of the St. Mary's Concord Hilton Tournament in Moraga, Calif.
"That shot felt really good," Banham said of the last-second winner. "Coming off of yesterday's game where someone shot it over me... it felt like I got payback a little bit."
The win was career-number 250 for head coach Pam Borton and improved the Golden Gophers' record to 4-3 on the season.
Junior Katie Loberg was named to the all-tournament team after racking up 35 points and 20 rebounds over the course of the event. The forward finished Saturday's contest by matching her career-high with 20 points, which included an 8-for-10 outing from the free throw line, and added seven rebounds.
Banham was one of three players to finish the contest in double-figures for points, recording 15 points and four assists, while senior Kiara Buford extended her streak of double-digit outings to seven games with 15 points, three assists and three rebounds.
The Golden Gophers outshot the Hokies, .469-.440, but the two squads were pretty much neck-and-neck in every other category. The only difference was Virginia Tech making eight three pointers, compared to only one for the Maroon and Gold.
After taking an early, 1-0, lead on a Banham free throw, the Gophers fell behind the Hokies by as many as seven points in the opening stanza. But, Minnesota went on a 10-0 run in which it held Virginia Tech scoreless for 4:39, taking its second lead of the contest on a pair of free throws by Loberg.
From that point, the Maroon and Gold cruised to a five-point advantage, 23-18, on back-to-back scores by Micaëlla Riché and Leah Cotton, before taking a 12-point lead thanks to a 25-6 run.
The Golden Gophers made the trip to the free throw line 19 times in the opening stanza, getting 16 points on .842 shooting, led by Loberg, who was 7-for-8 from the line. Minnesota also registered a .423 field goal percentage on 11-of-26 shooting.
Virginia Tech made it interesting near the end of the stanza following a long injury timeout which saw a Hokie taken out of McKeon Pavillion by the local paramedics, as it put together a 12-4 run to end the half trailing Minnesota, 38-34.
The Hokies continued their hot hand in the opening minutes of the second half, taking the lead back from the Gophers on an 8-2 run. Minnesota continued to trail Virginia Tech in the second half, before Banham evened the score, 58-58, on a jumper in the paint with 4:10 to play.
The squads would even the score two more times, before a free throw by Virginia Tech's Monet Tellier put the Hokies ahead, 64-63, with nine second remaining on the clock. But, Banham stayed composed and took the Gophers down the court, pulled up with 0.6 second to play and sunk the jumper to seal the win for the Maroon and Gold.
Minnesota continues play on the road Thursday when they travel to Winston-Salem, N.C., for a match-up vs. Wake Forest in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Tip off for the contest is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT.
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