Six-Game Homestand Starts Saturday vs. San Diego

MINNEAPOLIS -- No. 25 Minnesota (2-0) returns to Williams Arena for the start of a six-game homestand Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. against San Diego (1-1). It's the team's longest continuous stretch of games at home since also playing six in a row at The Barn during Dec. of the 2013-14 season.

Saturday's game will be available to stream on BTN Plus and can be heard on the Gophers' new radio home this season, 96.7 FM KFAN Plus

THE OPENING TIP-OFF

• After holding New Hampshire to just 47 points in the season opener and Xavier to 53 Wednesday, Minnesota has allowed 100 points so far this year. That's the lowest point total allowed in the first two games of the season for the Gophers since the 1975-76 season when they held Mankato State (44) and Lakehead (49) to a combined 93 points.

• Sitting 2-0 on the season, Minnesota enters Saturday night's game ranked No. 25 in the AP Poll. It's the first time the Golden Gophers have been ranked since Jan. 19, 2015, when they were No. 21, and it's just the fourth time overall since the 2005-06 season. The Gophers are 1-1 all-time as the No. 25 team.

• According to women's basketball writer Mel Greenberg, Minnesota head coach Lindsay Whalen is now the 39th person in women's basketball history to be ranked as both a player and a coach and the 12th to do it at the same school. The Golden Gophers were ranked for the last eight weeks of Whalen's sophomore season as well her entire junior and senior years.

• The Golden Gophers are looking to start 3-0 for the fourth straight season and fifth time in the last six years. A win Saturday would also make Whalen the third coach in Gophers' history to win her first three games, joining Pam Borton and Marlene Stollings. The record for most wins to start a Gophers coaching career belongs to Borton, who won her first 12 games during the 2002-03 season, Whalen's junior season.

• Minnesota opened the 2018-19 season with a 70-47 win over New Hampshire on Nov. 9. The announced sellout crowd of 14,625 was a program record, surpassing the previous high of 14,363 set during Whalen's senior season in 2004. Four of the top five marks in team history, and eight of the top 10, have now occurred with Whalen as either a player or coach.

SERIES WITH SAN DIEGO
• Minnesota and San Diego each have one win in their series history. The Golden Gophers won the first ever meeting back in 1999, while the Toreros secured the win last year in San Diego.

• Last season, Minnesota came back to tie the game after trailing for most of the afternoon, but fell 72-69 at San Diego. The Gophers had multiple 3-point attempts to tie the game near the end, but could not get them to fall. Kenisha Bell led the Gophers with 20 points and Gadiva Hubbard added 19. Carlie Wagner had 14 points, and Annalese Lamke contributed what was then a career-high eight points. Taiye Bello also grabbed 12 rebounds.

RECAPPING THE WIN AT XAVIER
• With a dominant first quarter setting the tone, No. 25 Minnesota won its road debut Wednesday night at Xavier, 78-53.

• Four players scored in double figures for the Golden Gophers with Kenisha Bell leading the way with 18 points, six rebounds and four assists. Taiye Bello notched her second double-double in as many games with 11 points and 16 rebounds, which tied a career high. Destiny Pitts scored 12 of her 14 points in the second half, while Jasmine Brunson had 11 of her 13 come in the opening half.

• The Golden Gophers blew the game open in the first quarter thanks to a 16-2 run over a span of 6:22, turning a 4-3 lead into a 20-7 advantage by the end of the frame. Brunson had six points during the stretch, while Bell and Bello each had four.

• After holding New Hampshire to just 47 points in the season opener and Xavier to 53 points Wednesday, Minnesota has held consecutive opponents under 60 points for the first time since Dec. of 2015.

BELLO POSTS BACK-TO-BACK DOUBLE-DOUBLES

• Junior Taiye Bello has posted double-doubles in both games this season. She now has six in her career, with Minnesota going 6-0 in those games.

• Bello scored 10 points in the first half in the season opener and finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds.

• She followed that up with 11 points and 16 rebounds at Xavier. Not only did she tie a career high for rebounds, she also had her double-double by halftime with 10 points and 13 rebounds in the first 20 minutes.

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Players Mentioned

Kenisha Bell

Taiye Bello

Jasmine Brunson

Gadiva Hubbard

Annalese Lamke

Destiny Pitts

Carlie Wagner