University of Minnesota Athletics
Game Preview: Purdue
2/22/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
| Minnesota vs. Purdue | |
| Date / Time | Thursday, Feb. 23 | 8 p.m. |
| Location | Williams Arena - Directions |
| Tickets | Click Here |
| Travel | Local Weather | Parking | Preferred Hotels |
| TV/Live Video | BTN / BTN2Go.com |
| Radio | 1500 ESPN | Listen Online |
| Live Stats | |
| Live Updates | Game Day Live |
| Clips | Senior sendoff | Sights and Sounds Ep. 3 |
| Game Notes | Minnesota | Purdue |
| Official Sites | Minnesota | Purdue |
| Social Media | @GopherWBB | Facebook |
The University of Minnesota women's basketball team (15-13, 5-9 Big Ten) closes its home season Thursday, Feb. 23 with a matchup against Purdue (17-11, 8-6 Big Ten). The game will tip off at 8 p.m. and air on BTN and 1500 ESPN.
The Gophers will honor their seniors prior to the game. A student giveaway of replica practice jerseys will go on while supplies last. Student admission to games is free with a U Card.
Here are five notes before the Gophers' Williams Arena finale:
1 Carlie Wagner is ninth on Minnesota's career scoring list with 1,528 points, just five from passing Kiara Buford (2008-12) for eighth place. Wagner has made 194 career 3-pointers, six from passing Katie Ohm (2006-10) for fourth on the Gophers' list. This season, she has made a career-best 70 triples, the seventh-most in a season for Minnesota. Four players are tied for fourth at 73 and Ohm's 2008-09 total of 74 ranks third.
2 Wagner and Kenisha Bell are the No. 2 scoring duo in the Big Ten with a combined average of 35.8 points per game (behind Maryland's Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough). Wagner is averaging a career-best 19.4 points per game, and Bell adds 16.4. Wagner was part of the nation's leading scoring duo last year, combining her 18.9-point average with Rachel Banham's 28.6.
3 The Gophers will honor their seniors on Thursday as they close the home season. (Minnesota is 39-9 at Williams Arena under Marlene Stollings, 11-4 this year). Joanna Hedstrom is one of three Minnesota natives in the senior class, and the only one to spend all four years at the U of M. She is a 2016 CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree, and increased her on-court production after switching to the frontcourt as an upperclassman. Allina Starr and Whitney Tinjum both transferred home to Minnesota, and Milwaukee native Karley Barnes came by way of community college.
4 With two games left in the regular season, the Gophers are assured of a Day 1 bye at the Big Ten Tournament. They are currently in position to play in the 7-seed vs. 10-seed game. Should Minnesota win its last two games and Northwestern lose its last two, the Gophers would have the tiebreaker over the Wildcats and move into the 8 vs. 9 game.
5 Freshmen Taiye Bello and Jasmine Brunson have made six consecutive starts. In each of the last five games four newcomers were part of the starting lineup, as transfers Kenisha Bell and Whitney Tinjum joined the pair of freshmen. Gadiva Hubbard has come off the bench since returning from an injury and averages 12.4 points (would rank third among Big Ten freshmen if she had played one more game).
SCOUTING THE BOILERMAKERS
• Purdue is 17-11 overall and 8-6 in Big Ten play. The Boilermakers are on a two-game winning streak, picking up victories at Rutgers and against Iowa.
• Head coach Sharon Versyp is in her 11th season at Purdue. She has the most wins in program history at her alma mater, with 231 victories there.
• Senior guard Ashley Morrissette leads Purdue with averages of 16.0 points, 4.6 assists and 2.5 steals per game.
• Dominique Oden and Bridget Perry also score in double figures regularly, averaging 10.5 and 10.2 points per game, respectively. Ae'Rianna Harris is the Boilermakers' biggest shot-blocking threat at 2.0 per game.
• Purdue leads the Big Ten in scoring defense, allowing only 58.5 points per game.
