University of Minnesota Athletics
Sunday, December 15
1:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
UC Davis
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's Basketball
F/C
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: Brad Rempel
Gophers Return Home to Raise McCarville's Banner
12/13/2019 1:59:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS -- Winners of eight straight, RV/RV Minnesota (8-1) returns to Williams Arena Sunday following a three-game road trip. The Gophers host UC Davis (4-5) at 1 p.m. on BTN Plus and their radio home, 96.7 KFAN Plus.
PROMOTIONS
• Fan Giveaway: The first 2,000 fans will receive a replica McCarville banner
• Zone 3 Bench Tickets are available for $4 | BUY NOW
• 100 lucky fans will have a large No. 4 poster at their seat when they enter the arena. Hold it up during the second half when prompted to win a prize pack.
• Letters to Goldy: Young Gopher Fans are encouraged to visit the marketing table to write a letter to Goldy for the holiday season. The marketing table is located on the main concourse by section 107.
• Winter Coat Drive: Gopher Women's Basketball is committed to providing winter coats to those in need this December. Donate a new or gently used coat at any home game this month. Collection bins will be located in the University Ave and Oak Street lobbies on game day.
• Halftime Entertainment: FM Acro
THE OPENING TIP-OFF
FACING UC DAVIS
RECAPPING THE WIN AT GEORGE WASHINGTON
FRESHMEN POWELL, SCALIA MAKING INSTANT IMPACT
GOPHERS WINNING TURNOVER BATTLE
• Converting turnovers into points has been a trend for the Gophers all season. They have turned 187 takeaways into 233 points this year, an average of 1.25 points for every turnover forced.
PROMOTIONS
• Janel McCarville Day: Former Gophers great Janel McCarville will have her banner raised to the Williams Arena rafters in a pregame ceremony
• Fan Giveaway: The first 2,000 fans will receive a replica McCarville banner
• Zone 3 Bench Tickets are available for $4 | BUY NOW
• 100 lucky fans will have a large No. 4 poster at their seat when they enter the arena. Hold it up during the second half when prompted to win a prize pack.
• Letters to Goldy: Young Gopher Fans are encouraged to visit the marketing table to write a letter to Goldy for the holiday season. The marketing table is located on the main concourse by section 107.
• Winter Coat Drive: Gopher Women's Basketball is committed to providing winter coats to those in need this December. Donate a new or gently used coat at any home game this month. Collection bins will be located in the University Ave and Oak Street lobbies on game day.
• Halftime Entertainment: FM Acro
THE OPENING TIP-OFF
• Prior to Sunday's tipoff, former Minnesota great Janel McCarville will become the seventh player in team history to be honored in the rafters of Williams Arena when her banner is raised in a pregame ceremony. McCarville reached the NCAA tournament in each of her four seasons in the Maroon and Gold, including two trips to the Sweet 16 and a memorable run to the 2004 Final Four. In addition to being a two-time First Team All-American and two-time finalist for the Wade Trophy, she was the first in program history to be all-conference in each of her four seasons, including three First-Team honors. McCarville was the first of four Gophers ever to win Big Ten Freshman of the Year, doing so in 2002.
• Senior Taiye Bello, the reigning co-Big Ten Player of the Week, has posted double-doubles in six of the team's nine games this year, including a stretch of four straight at one point. Her six double-doubles lead the Big Ten and are seventh in the nation. In her career, Bello has 21 double-doubles to rank sixth in Gophers history, and the Gophers are 19-2 in those games. She is just one of 28 players in the country, and the only one from the Big Ten, to be averaging a double-double. Even better, she's one of just 21 players nationally with her averages of at least 13.9 points and 10.3 rebounds per game this year.
• Through nine games, the Minnesota offense has picked up its scoring and production in year two under head coach Lindsay Whalen. The Gophers are averaging 79.6 points per game this year, over eight points better than the 71.3 points they were averaging at this same stage a season ago. Two areas where Minnesota has seen improvement are from 3-point range and at the free-throw line. The Gophers' field goal percentage on 3-pointers is over 70 points better than last year even though they have 75 more attempts this year, and they are shooting 138 points better on free throws. The Gophers lead the Big Ten and rank sixth nationally as they shoot 79.6 from the line.
• Individually, Destiny Pitts is shooting a Big Ten best 45.8 percent (27-59) on 3-pointers this year, after making 38.5 percent (20-52) through nine games a year ago. In addition, freshman Sara Scalia (47.2%) and redshirt junior Gadiva Hubbard (38.5%), who missed last year with an injury, have bolstered the 3-point shooting. Meanwhile at the line, five Gophers have attempted at least nine free throws this year and all are shooting better than 76 percent. Last year at this stage, of the six players with at least nine attempts, only two were above 64 percent.
• Senior Taiye Bello, the reigning co-Big Ten Player of the Week, has posted double-doubles in six of the team's nine games this year, including a stretch of four straight at one point. Her six double-doubles lead the Big Ten and are seventh in the nation. In her career, Bello has 21 double-doubles to rank sixth in Gophers history, and the Gophers are 19-2 in those games. She is just one of 28 players in the country, and the only one from the Big Ten, to be averaging a double-double. Even better, she's one of just 21 players nationally with her averages of at least 13.9 points and 10.3 rebounds per game this year.
• Through nine games, the Minnesota offense has picked up its scoring and production in year two under head coach Lindsay Whalen. The Gophers are averaging 79.6 points per game this year, over eight points better than the 71.3 points they were averaging at this same stage a season ago. Two areas where Minnesota has seen improvement are from 3-point range and at the free-throw line. The Gophers' field goal percentage on 3-pointers is over 70 points better than last year even though they have 75 more attempts this year, and they are shooting 138 points better on free throws. The Gophers lead the Big Ten and rank sixth nationally as they shoot 79.6 from the line.
• Individually, Destiny Pitts is shooting a Big Ten best 45.8 percent (27-59) on 3-pointers this year, after making 38.5 percent (20-52) through nine games a year ago. In addition, freshman Sara Scalia (47.2%) and redshirt junior Gadiva Hubbard (38.5%), who missed last year with an injury, have bolstered the 3-point shooting. Meanwhile at the line, five Gophers have attempted at least nine free throws this year and all are shooting better than 76 percent. Last year at this stage, of the six players with at least nine attempts, only two were above 64 percent.
FACING UC DAVIS
• Sunday marks the first ever meeting between the Gophers and Aggies.
• UC Davis is the fifth and final team that Minnesota is playing for the first time ever this season. The Gophers have already beaten George Washington, Montana State and Bryant and lost to Missouri State.
• The Golden Gophers are 5-4 all-time against teams currently in the Big West. They've won two in a row against those teams and five of the last six meetings.
• The last meeting for Minnesota against a Big West team came on Dec. 22, 2017, in a 101-75 win over UC Riverside.
• At 16.8 points per game, Katie Toole is one of two UC Davis players averaging double figures. The other is Cierra Hall (11.1), who is also the team's leading rebounder at 6.2 boards per game and has the most free throws made (27) and attempted (39) in the Big West.
• After starting the season 0-4, UC Davis has turned things around with four wins in its last five games. The Aggies and Gophers have one common opponent this year in Montana State. Minnesota won its meeting with the Bobcats on Nov. 23, 71-60, while the Aggies lost theirs in the season opener, 77-65.
• UC Davis is the fifth and final team that Minnesota is playing for the first time ever this season. The Gophers have already beaten George Washington, Montana State and Bryant and lost to Missouri State.
• The Golden Gophers are 5-4 all-time against teams currently in the Big West. They've won two in a row against those teams and five of the last six meetings.
• The last meeting for Minnesota against a Big West team came on Dec. 22, 2017, in a 101-75 win over UC Riverside.
• At 16.8 points per game, Katie Toole is one of two UC Davis players averaging double figures. The other is Cierra Hall (11.1), who is also the team's leading rebounder at 6.2 boards per game and has the most free throws made (27) and attempted (39) in the Big West.
• After starting the season 0-4, UC Davis has turned things around with four wins in its last five games. The Aggies and Gophers have one common opponent this year in Montana State. Minnesota won its meeting with the Bobcats on Nov. 23, 71-60, while the Aggies lost theirs in the season opener, 77-65.
RECAPPING THE WIN AT GEORGE WASHINGTON
• Minnesota's win streak sits at eight games, tied for the seventh longest in program history, after the team closed out its three-game road trip with an 83-50 win at George Washington Tuesday night.
• The Golden Gophers scored the first eight points of the game and never trailed as they posted their largest margin of victory in a road game in nearly 17 years and seventh largest overall. Minnesota shot exactly 50 percent from the floor (31-of-62) and 52.0 percent on 3-pointers as their 13 makes from long range tied for the 10th most made in program history.
• Defensively, the 50 points scored by the Colonials was a season low for a Minnesota opponent, and the Gophers scored 33 points off of 23 GW turnovers.
• Sara Scalia set career highs in points (23), field goals made and attempted (9-of-13) and blocks (2), while also tying career highs in 3-pointers made and attempted (4-of-6), rebounds (7) and steals (4).
• Destiny Pitts made six 3-pointers to finish with 20 points, her 20th career game with at least that many. She also tied a career high with seven assists. Also reaching double figures was Gadiva Hubbard, who finished with 10 points and tied a career high with five steals.
• The Golden Gophers scored the first eight points of the game and never trailed as they posted their largest margin of victory in a road game in nearly 17 years and seventh largest overall. Minnesota shot exactly 50 percent from the floor (31-of-62) and 52.0 percent on 3-pointers as their 13 makes from long range tied for the 10th most made in program history.
• Defensively, the 50 points scored by the Colonials was a season low for a Minnesota opponent, and the Gophers scored 33 points off of 23 GW turnovers.
• Sara Scalia set career highs in points (23), field goals made and attempted (9-of-13) and blocks (2), while also tying career highs in 3-pointers made and attempted (4-of-6), rebounds (7) and steals (4).
• Destiny Pitts made six 3-pointers to finish with 20 points, her 20th career game with at least that many. She also tied a career high with seven assists. Also reaching double figures was Gadiva Hubbard, who finished with 10 points and tied a career high with five steals.
WIN STREAK AT EIGHT
• After falling in the season opener to a Missouri State team that currently ranks 20th in the AP Poll, Minnesota has rattled off eight straight wins. That ties for the seventh longest win streak in program history and is the longest since the team opened the 2018-19 season with 12 straight victories.
• A win Sunday would move the Gophers to 9-1, which would tie for the fourth best 10-game start in team history. They also started 9-1 in 2014-15 and 2017-18, while the only 10-0 beginnings came in 2002-03, 2003-04 and last season.
• A 9-1 record would also tie the 2017-18 season for the fifth best one-loss start in program annals. Minnesota has started 15-1 in both 2002-03 and 2003-04, while in 2014-15 it began the year 14-1. A year ago, the Gophers started the season 12-1.
• A win Sunday would move the Gophers to 9-1, which would tie for the fourth best 10-game start in team history. They also started 9-1 in 2014-15 and 2017-18, while the only 10-0 beginnings came in 2002-03, 2003-04 and last season.
• A 9-1 record would also tie the 2017-18 season for the fifth best one-loss start in program annals. Minnesota has started 15-1 in both 2002-03 and 2003-04, while in 2014-15 it began the year 14-1. A year ago, the Gophers started the season 12-1.
FRESHMEN POWELL, SCALIA MAKING INSTANT IMPACT
• Minnesota has six freshmen on its 2019-20 roster and some are already making significant contributions.
• Sara Scalia has started each of the last eight contests and leads the team in 3-point percentage (.472), is second in field goal percentage (.500), third in rebounding (4.0) and fourth in scoring average (11.0).
• Against Bryant on Nov. 26, she scored a 20 points and tied a career high with seven rebounds en route to being named B1G Freshman of the Week. She later followed that up at George Washington on Dec. 10 when she set or tied multiple career highs, including points (23), rebounds (7), steals (4) and blocks (2).
• Jasmine Powell, who has come off the bench in all nine games, is fifth on the team in scoring at 9.8 points per game and has a 2.47-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, which ranks fifth in the Big Ten. She's also 29-of-35 (.829) at the line to lead the team in free throws made, tie for the lead in attempts and rank second in the conference in free-throw percentage.
• Powell put up 19 points against Vermont on Nov. 10, the most by a non-starter at Minnesota since teammate Destiny Pitts had 20 on Nov. 16, 2017, and has scored in double figures in four games this year.
• With Scalia averaging 11.0 points per game and Powell at 9.8, the Gophers' duo is showing the makings of one of the top freshman scoring combinations in recent program history. In the last 10 years, Minnesota has not seen two freshmen score average more than 6.2 points per game in the same season.
• Additionally, the four freshmen that have played this year, including Klarke Sconiers (4.3 ppg) and Barbora Tomancova (1.0), have combined for 26.0 points per game, the highest figure among Gopher freshmen in the last 10 years.
• Sara Scalia has started each of the last eight contests and leads the team in 3-point percentage (.472), is second in field goal percentage (.500), third in rebounding (4.0) and fourth in scoring average (11.0).
• Against Bryant on Nov. 26, she scored a 20 points and tied a career high with seven rebounds en route to being named B1G Freshman of the Week. She later followed that up at George Washington on Dec. 10 when she set or tied multiple career highs, including points (23), rebounds (7), steals (4) and blocks (2).
• Jasmine Powell, who has come off the bench in all nine games, is fifth on the team in scoring at 9.8 points per game and has a 2.47-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, which ranks fifth in the Big Ten. She's also 29-of-35 (.829) at the line to lead the team in free throws made, tie for the lead in attempts and rank second in the conference in free-throw percentage.
• Powell put up 19 points against Vermont on Nov. 10, the most by a non-starter at Minnesota since teammate Destiny Pitts had 20 on Nov. 16, 2017, and has scored in double figures in four games this year.
• With Scalia averaging 11.0 points per game and Powell at 9.8, the Gophers' duo is showing the makings of one of the top freshman scoring combinations in recent program history. In the last 10 years, Minnesota has not seen two freshmen score average more than 6.2 points per game in the same season.
• Additionally, the four freshmen that have played this year, including Klarke Sconiers (4.3 ppg) and Barbora Tomancova (1.0), have combined for 26.0 points per game, the highest figure among Gopher freshmen in the last 10 years.
GOPHERS WINNING TURNOVER BATTLE
Minnesota is winning the turnover battle so far, forcing 187 turnovers while giving the ball away just 109 times through nine games.
• Not only do the Gophers rank second in the Big Ten and 12th nationally with with just 12.1 turnovers committed per game, they also rank third in the league in turnover margin (+8.67; 14th nationally), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.30; 18th nationally) and turnovers forced per game (20.78; 42nd nationally).
• In terms of taking care of the ball, against Vermont on Nov. 10 the Gophers only committed five turnovers, which tied for the third fewest in program history. The Gophers have had three games this year with less than 10 turnovers and only three contests where it has turned the ball over more than 13 times.
• Five times this year Minnesota has forced opponents into at least 20 turnovers. Against Milwaukee on Nov. 14, Minnesota forced the Panthers into 33 turnovers, which tied for the 10th most forced in program history. The Gophers then turned those 33 turnovers into 35 points.
• Not only do the Gophers rank second in the Big Ten and 12th nationally with with just 12.1 turnovers committed per game, they also rank third in the league in turnover margin (+8.67; 14th nationally), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.30; 18th nationally) and turnovers forced per game (20.78; 42nd nationally).
• In terms of taking care of the ball, against Vermont on Nov. 10 the Gophers only committed five turnovers, which tied for the third fewest in program history. The Gophers have had three games this year with less than 10 turnovers and only three contests where it has turned the ball over more than 13 times.
• Five times this year Minnesota has forced opponents into at least 20 turnovers. Against Milwaukee on Nov. 14, Minnesota forced the Panthers into 33 turnovers, which tied for the 10th most forced in program history. The Gophers then turned those 33 turnovers into 35 points.
• Converting turnovers into points has been a trend for the Gophers all season. They have turned 187 takeaways into 233 points this year, an average of 1.25 points for every turnover forced.
IN THE POLLS
• Minnesota is receiving votes in both the latest AP Poll and the USA Today Coaches Poll.
• The Gophers moved up two spots to come in 28th in the latest AP Poll with 19 points, and moved up three spots with to 29th with 13 points in the Coaches Poll.
• Nine of the Gophers' opponents this season currently appear in at least one of the two Top-25 polls. Indiana (12 AP/15 Coaches), Maryland (13/12), Michigan State (19/22), Missouri State (20/18) and Michigan (24/23) are ranked in both polls.
• Arizona State, Ohio State and Rutgers are receiving votes in both polls, while Northwestern is receiving votes in just the Coaches poll.
• The Gophers moved up two spots to come in 28th in the latest AP Poll with 19 points, and moved up three spots with to 29th with 13 points in the Coaches Poll.
• Nine of the Gophers' opponents this season currently appear in at least one of the two Top-25 polls. Indiana (12 AP/15 Coaches), Maryland (13/12), Michigan State (19/22), Missouri State (20/18) and Michigan (24/23) are ranked in both polls.
• Arizona State, Ohio State and Rutgers are receiving votes in both polls, while Northwestern is receiving votes in just the Coaches poll.
Cinematic Recap: Gophers-Wyoming
Tuesday, December 16
Highlights: Gophers 80, Wyoming 34
Sunday, December 14
Cinematic Recap: Gophers-Alabama A&M
Friday, December 12
Highlights: Gophers 82, Alabama A&M 44
Wednesday, December 10