Border Battle Up Next For Women's Hoops

MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota (8-7, 1-3 B1G) is back in action on Sunday at 3 p.m., against Wisconsin (4-11, 0-4 B1G) at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. The game is scheduled to be streamed on B1G+ and can be heard on the iHeartRadio app or on KFAN+ with Justin Gaard and Lynnette Sjoquist on the call.

ABOUT THE WISCONSIN GAME

Minnesota's matchup with Wisconsin is the 84th matchup between the two programs and is the 39th time the teams will play in Madison. Last time the two teams faced off was at Williams Arena last season when the Gophers won 57-55. Minnesota has won the last five matchups, and 18 of the last 19, with the Badgers with the last loss coming during the 2019-20 season in Minneapolis.
Minnesota is 47-36 overall against the Badgers.
Wisconsin head coach Marisa Moseley is familiar to Minnesota as she previously served as an assistant for the Golden Gophers from 2007-09 under then head coach Pam Borton. In two seasons the Gophers were 40-24 and 22-14 in the Big Ten, making the NCAA Tournament both years and winning a tournament game in 2009.
The Gophers last loss in Madison was on Jan. 9, 2011, which was a 78-72 final score.
The Badgers are losers of their last three games, which came against Purdue, Illinois and Green Bay. Wisconsin's last win was against St. Thomas on Dec. 11, 72-64.
Individually Julie Pospisilova is the team's leading scorer at 13.5 points per game while also leading the the team in assists at 4.0 per game and threes made at 29 (38.2 percent).
Wisconsin has five players who average double figures this season with Maty Wilke, Serah Williams, Brooke Schramek and Avery LaBarbera all above 10 points per game on average this season.

GOPHER NOTABLES

Last time out the Maroon and Gold dropped a tightly contested matchup with No. 3/3 Ohio State at Williams Arena. The Gophers led by four at halftime, and by as much as 10 during the contest, but a 28-10 advantage for the Buckeyes in the fourth quarter kept Ohio State undefeated at 16-0. Mallory Heyer finished with a massive double double of 15 points and a career high of 12 rebounds along with three assists to lead the Gophers. Fellow freshman Amaya Battle had a career day herself, blocking three shots while shooting an efficient 6-of-9 from the floor to finish with 14 points all while adding nine rebounds.
Alanna 'Rose' Micheaux extended her double figures scoring streak to five games in the loss to Ohio State. The sophomore has turned up her efficiency, scoring 15.0 points per game while shooting 58.9 percent (33-of-56) from the floor in that span. She's also averaged 6.4 rebounds per game and 2.8 offensive rebounds in that stretch.
As of Dec. 27, Minnesota's latest starting lineup of Mara Braun, Amaya Battle, Mallory Heyer, Katie Borowicz and Alanna 'Rose' Micheaux, is an average age of 19 years and 4 months and 29 days. The group consists of three true freshman, one redshirt freshman and one sophomore with the group's first three games against Power 5 opponents. Minnesota is the only Big Ten team to start four freshmen in a game this season (Wisconsin is the only other team to start start three). The only other team to start four freshmen in the nation is Navy.
Freshman guard Amaya Battle continues to show why she is one of the most versatile young guards in the country with her play. Battle has shot 47.3 percent from the floor in her last eight games, up from 36.0 percent in her first seven games. As of Jan. 6, Battle is 11th overall in the Big Ten in rebounding per game (6.6) and is the No. 1 freshman in the conference in rebounding. She's seventh in assists per game (4.5) in the Big Ten, and is the No. 1 freshman, and is 10th overall in blocks per game (1.0), all while averaging 10.1 points per game.
Despite Minnesota's back-to-back losses, the Gophers' offense has been shooting well in its past five contests. The offense has shot 43.7 percent (150-of-343) from the floor in its past five games. In that stretch Minnesota has also done well on the glass, out rebounding their opponents on average by 5.2 per game (219 to 193 total).
Lindsay Whalen announced on Jan. 6, the signing of center Sophie Hart to the Gophers' program. Hart is a 6-5 graduate of Farmington High School, who played two seasons at NC State, and will join Minnesota with two years of eligibility. Coming out of high school Hart was the No. 64 ranked overall recruit in the class of 2021 and the No. 5 ranked player at her position by ESPN.
Minnesota head coach Lindsay Whalen announced the addition of five student-athletes on Nov. 16, that have signed National Letters of Intent or an Acceptance of Admission to join the Minnesota women's basketball program for the 2023-24 season. Signing NLIs with the Golden Gophers are Kennedy Klick, MyKynnlie Dalan, Ajok Madol and Dominika Paurová while Brynn Senden signed an Acceptance of Admission.

BY THE NUMBERS
5 - Katie Borowicz has registered five steals in five different games this season, the only Big Ten player to do so this season.
6 - Minnesota is seeking it's sixth-straight win over the Wisconsin Badgers.
16 - The Gophers and Badgers have a combined 16 freshmen or redshirt freshmen on their rosters.
9 - Mallory Heyer has made at least one three in nine consecutive games.
50 - This season Minnesota gets 50.7 points per game from freshmen or redshirt freshmen.

The University of Minnesota returns home for a matchup with Rutgers at Williams Arena on Jan. 12. The game can be seen on Big Ten Network with a tip time set for 7:30 p.m. The game can be heard on the iHeartRadio app or on KFAN+.

For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@GopherWBB) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the 2022-23 season.

Upcoming Events

Players Mentioned

Amaya Battle

Katie Borowicz

Mara Braun

Mallory Heyer