University of Minnesota Athletics
Game Preview: Penn State
2/7/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
| Minnesota at Penn State | |
| Date / Time | Wednesday, Feb. 8 | 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Pinnacle Bank Arena (Lincoln, Neb.) |
| Live Video | BTN Plus |
| Radio | KBEM 88.5 FM | Listen Online |
| Live Stats | |
| Game Notes | Minnesota | Penn State |
| Official Sites | Minnesota | Penn State |
| Social Media | @GopherWBB | Facebook |
The University of Minnesota women's basketball team (12-11, 3-7 Big Ten) is coming off its first conference road win, vying for a second at Penn State (15-8, 5-6 Big Ten) this Wednesday, Feb. 8. The game will tip off at 6 p.m.
Here are five notes about the Gophers
1 Over the past two games, Carlie Wagner moved up two places to ninth on Minnesota's career scoring list. The junior has 1,472 points. She passed Carol Peterka (1982-86) for 10th and Emily Fox (2005-09) for ninth. Wagner's average has her on pace to be eighth at the end of the regular season, ahead of Kiara Buford (1,532 points/2008-12). Wagner is fifth on the Gophers' career 3-point list with 186. With 62 this year, she is only two away from tying her best season total.
2 Wagner's season average of 20.3 points ranks 14th in the nation. She and Kenisha Bell (16.5 ppg) are the leading scoring duo in the Big Ten with a combined 36.8 points per game (ahead of Maryland's Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough). Bell is among conference leaders with 5.5 assists (third, and on-pace for a top-five season in Gophers history) and 2.1 steals (fifth) per game.
3 Minnesota has won all three meetings with Penn State under head coach Marlene Stollings. The Gophers beat the Lady Lions at home and on the road in Stollings' first year, and won last year's meeting 98-85 at Williams Arena. Wagner scored 32 points in that game, and had a combined 29 points against Penn State as a freshman.
4 Since committing 22 turnovers against Michigan, the Gophers have taken better care of the ball in recent games. Over the last five games Minnesota has averaged just 12.2 turnovers. In her first two Big Ten starts, guard Jasmine Brunson played a total of 47 turnover free minutes in the Michigan State and Nebraska games. Carlie Wagner has committed one or zero turnovers in four of the past five games.
5 Before missing the past two games with an injury, guard Gadiva Hubbard ranked second among Big Ten freshmen with an average of 13.4 points per game. Hubbard's average is one of the best by Minnesota freshmen in recent years. Others in the past six years: Rachel Banham (16.1 ppg in 2012), Amanda Zahui B. (15.1 ppg as redshirt freshman in 2014) and Carlie Wagner (12.1 ppg in 2015). Hubbard has scored in double figures in 10 of her 16 games.
SCOUTING THE LADY LIONS
• Penn State is 15-8 with a 5-6 record in Big Ten play. The Lady Lions are coming off their first conference road win, a 74-58 victory at Northwestern.
• Three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year Coquese Washington is in her 10th year at Penn State. She has been to 12 NCAA Tournaments as a coach.
• 2016 Big Ten All-Freshman selection Teniya Page is leading her team in scoring as a sophomore at 19.1 points per game. She is also second on the team with 82 assists this year.
• Lindsey Spann (10.7 ppg) and Sierra Moore (9.3) are the next two scorers for PSU.
• Freshman point guard Amari Carter has a 2.83 assist to turnover ratio and adds 7.5 points per game.
COMING UP NEXT
The Gophers will return home for Alumni Day on Saturday, Feb. 11 against Rutgers. The game tips off at 2 p.m. with past players being honored at Williams Arena. At Minnesota's Monday, Feb. 13 game against Northwestern, the first 1,000 fans will receive free gold t-shirts.
