University of Minnesota Athletics
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21-6,12-4Big Ten
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22-5,11-4Big Ten
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No. 23 Minnesota Downs No. 10 Ohio State 74-61
2/18/2026 10:10:00 PM | Women's Basketball
It's the Gophers first win over the Buckeyes since 2016
MINNEAPOLIS - The No. 23 University of Minnesota women's basketball team (21–6, 12–4 Big Ten) defeated No. 10 Ohio State (22–5, 11–4 Big Ten) 71–64 at Williams Arena, snapping a 14-game losing streak to the Buckeyes en route to earning its first win in the series since 2016.
The Golden Gophers had four players score in double figures, led by Sophie Hart, who notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Mara Braun tacked on 18 points and nine rebounds, Amaya Battle chipped in as well with a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Grace Grocholski had 12 points on the evening.
In addition to Battle's double-double, she had five assists, officially surpassing Lindsay Whalen for Minnesota's No. 2 spot on the program's all-time assists list.
Hart pulled down five offensive rebounds to lead an offense that racked up second chance opportunities for Minnesota, grabbing 15 boards and turning them into 17 second chance points.
Minnesota's defense held Ohio State to only 39.3 percent shooting from the field. The Buckeyes did not have much luck cleaning up their misses on the offensive glass either, as they finished with six offensive rebounds and managed six second chance points while Minnesota cleared 32 defensive rebounds.
How It Happened
After falling behind 11-8, Minnesota went on a 6-0 run with 2:40 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Hart, to take a 14-11 lead. The Gophers then surrendered that lead and entered the second quarter down 16-14.
Ohio State kept adding to that lead, building a 23-14 advantage before Minnesota went on a 6-0 run to narrow its deficit to 23-20. The Gophers were unable to narrow the gap any further, but did not lose ground either and entered halftime with a 29-26 deficit.
Minnesota came out of halftime on fire, going on a 9-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Tori McKinney, to grab a 35-29 lead with 6:45 to go in the third. Before the third period was over, the Gophers added five points to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 53-42 edge. Minnesota knocked down four three-pointers in the quarter to score 12 of its 27 total points.
Minnesota kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run to grow the lead to 74-61 with 35 seconds to go in the contest, a score which would hold for the rest of the game. Minnesota fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 21 points.
Game Notes
» Amaya Battle recorded five assists to officially surpass Lindsay Whalen for Minnesota's No. 2 spot on the program's all-time assists list.
» Minnesota got double-doubles from both Sophie Hart and Amaya Battle.
» The Gophers shot well from three point range, knocking down nine of 21 long range attempts.
» The Gophers held the Buckeyes to only 39.3 percent shooting from the field.
» Minnesota recorded 17 total assists in the game.
» Minnesota had a 47-32 edge on the boards in the win.
» Minnesota cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 15 offensive boards in the game.
» Sophie Hart and Mara Braun led the Gophers with 18 points each.
» Amaya Battle nabbed a game-high 12 rebounds to lead Minnesota and Sophie Hart added 10.