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University of Minnesota Athletics
Wednesday, February 24
6:00 PM
University of Minnesota
8-11,7-10Big Ten
73
vs
63
Nebraska
11-10,9-9Big Ten
1
2
3
4
F
Nebraska
12
18
21
12
63
Minnesota
15
16
20
22
73
Photo by: Kelly Hagenson
Team Effort Leads to Victory Over Nebraska
2/24/2021 9:08:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota (8-11, 7-10 Big Ten) got contributions up and down its lineup and used a late defensive stand to shut down Nebraska (11-10, 9-9 B1G) in a 73-63 win Wednesday night at Williams Arena.
With starting point guard Jasmine Powell out for the game with an injury suffered at Maryland Saturday, four Gophers reached double figures as they recorded their first-ever three-game win streak over the Cornhuskers.
Senior Gadiva Hubbard tied for the team lead with 14 points with 11 coming in the second half alone. She added five rebounds and three steals.
She was matched by sophomore Klarke Sconiers, who equaled a career high that she set in this year's season opener with her 14 points off the bench. Playing less than 11 minutes, Sconiers did all of her scoring between the second and third quarters, including eight points in the second quarter.
Fellow sophomore Sara Scalia shouldered more of the point guard duties with Powell out and responded with a brilliant stat line of 11 points, a career-high eight assists, a season-best seven rebounds, three steals and zero turnovers. She was also a perfect 6-6 at the free throw line, setting a personal best for makes in a game.
Battling foul trouble, sophomore Kadi Sissoko was still able to post 10 points and six rebounds. She was limited to just 7:18 of playing time through three quarters, but played all 10 minutes in the fourth with eight points and four rebounds.
The game was tied at 62-62 with 3:43 to play, but Minnesota outscored Nebraska 11-1 over the remainder of the game to sweep the regular season series.
Former Husker Kayla Mershon, who had eight points in a career-high 34:18 of playing time, broke the tie with a layup, while Sissoko pushed the lead to four with a driving layup. Nebraska's Sam Haiby, who had a game-high 22 points, made one of two at the line with 1:36 to play to get it back to a one-possession game but that would be the final points for the Huskers, whose 63 points tied for the fewest by a Gopher opponent this year.
Sissoko answered with a layup to make it a five-point game with 1:08 to play, while Hubbard and Scalia each made a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 72-63 with 33 seconds to go.
In the final 3:43, Nebraska was 0-5 from the floor and 1-2 at the free throw line with two turnovers. Conversely, Minnesota was 3-6 from the field and 5-6 on free throws with just one turnover in that same span.
Minnesota plays its final home game of the regular season Sunday when it hosts No. 12/12 Michigan. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
GAME NOTES
Minnesota committed only seven turnovers, tied for its lowest amount this year and the seventh-lowest total in program history; the Gophers also had only seven turnovers at Nebraska on Jan. 19 ... the 10-point victory matched Minnesota's largest of the season (83-73 vs. Illinois on Feb. 10) ... Alexia Smith played a career-high 38:38 and tied personal bests with five rebounds and two steals
With starting point guard Jasmine Powell out for the game with an injury suffered at Maryland Saturday, four Gophers reached double figures as they recorded their first-ever three-game win streak over the Cornhuskers.
Senior Gadiva Hubbard tied for the team lead with 14 points with 11 coming in the second half alone. She added five rebounds and three steals.
She was matched by sophomore Klarke Sconiers, who equaled a career high that she set in this year's season opener with her 14 points off the bench. Playing less than 11 minutes, Sconiers did all of her scoring between the second and third quarters, including eight points in the second quarter.
Fellow sophomore Sara Scalia shouldered more of the point guard duties with Powell out and responded with a brilliant stat line of 11 points, a career-high eight assists, a season-best seven rebounds, three steals and zero turnovers. She was also a perfect 6-6 at the free throw line, setting a personal best for makes in a game.
Battling foul trouble, sophomore Kadi Sissoko was still able to post 10 points and six rebounds. She was limited to just 7:18 of playing time through three quarters, but played all 10 minutes in the fourth with eight points and four rebounds.
The game was tied at 62-62 with 3:43 to play, but Minnesota outscored Nebraska 11-1 over the remainder of the game to sweep the regular season series.
Former Husker Kayla Mershon, who had eight points in a career-high 34:18 of playing time, broke the tie with a layup, while Sissoko pushed the lead to four with a driving layup. Nebraska's Sam Haiby, who had a game-high 22 points, made one of two at the line with 1:36 to play to get it back to a one-possession game but that would be the final points for the Huskers, whose 63 points tied for the fewest by a Gopher opponent this year.
Sissoko answered with a layup to make it a five-point game with 1:08 to play, while Hubbard and Scalia each made a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 72-63 with 33 seconds to go.
In the final 3:43, Nebraska was 0-5 from the floor and 1-2 at the free throw line with two turnovers. Conversely, Minnesota was 3-6 from the field and 5-6 on free throws with just one turnover in that same span.
Minnesota plays its final home game of the regular season Sunday when it hosts No. 12/12 Michigan. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
GAME NOTES
Minnesota committed only seven turnovers, tied for its lowest amount this year and the seventh-lowest total in program history; the Gophers also had only seven turnovers at Nebraska on Jan. 19 ... the 10-point victory matched Minnesota's largest of the season (83-73 vs. Illinois on Feb. 10) ... Alexia Smith played a career-high 38:38 and tied personal bests with five rebounds and two steals
Team Stats
Nebr
MINN
FG%
.389
.458
3FG%
.474
.385
FT%
.857
.700
RB
30
39
TO
10
7
STL
4
8
Game Leaders
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
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