University of Minnesota Athletics
2014-15 Golden Gophers - NCAA Tournament First Round
Front row (L-R): Shayne Mullaney, Rachel Banham, Joanna Hedstrom, Allina Starr, Kayla Hirt, Shae Kelley, Amanda Zahui B., Carlie Wagner, Josie Buckingham.
Second row: Kate Taber, Tiffanie Couts, Nikita Lowry Dawkins, Marlene Stollings, Mikayla Bailey, Tori Jacobs, Stabresa McDaniel, John Motherwell, Fred Chmiel, Sara Wiley, Jermaine Brown
Third row: Jess Yule, Chris Birkholm, Tyler Geisthardt, Cole Van Beusekom, Brandon Barta, Nicolette Peterson, Stephanie Kolb
DePaul 79, Minnesota 72
March 20, 2015
NCAA Tournament First Round
South Bend, Ind.
Game Summary:
Minnesota made its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in six seasons, but the No. 8-seed Gophers fell to ninth-seeded DePaul 79-72 in the first round.
Amanda Zahui B., named a finalist for the 2015 Naismith Trophy earlier in the day, set an NCAA First Round and program single-game record with 22 rebounds, in addition to her team-high 21 points which marked her 24th double-double of the season. It marks the second-highest individual rebounding total in any NCAA tournament game.
Zahui B. was one of four Gophers in double-figure scoring, as Shae Kelley had 17 points while Carlie Wagner chipped in 14 and Shayne Mullaney added 11.
Leading a quartet of DePaul players in double figures was Megan Podkowa who led all players with 23 points. Minnesota held a 50-to-40.3-percent field goal shooting advantage, but was plagued by 28 turnovers, compared to 11 for the Blue Demons.
The Gophers and Blue Demons traded leads to open the game, before a 9-0 run gave the Maroon and Gold an eight point lead, 14-6, with 13:19 to play in the opening stanza, a stretch in which Minnesota held DePaul scoreless for 5:02.
A 7-2 run from the Blue Demons cut the Gophers' lead to just three points, before taking a one-point lead with 6:03 remaining in the half. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Wagner put Minnesota back on top by five, and Minnesota stretched its lead to 39-28 at the two-minute mark on a 14-2 run.
Minnesota led 41-30 at halftime after notching a .500 (14-28) field goal percentage, which included a .444 (4-9) percentage from three-point range. The Gophers also scored nine points of six Blue Demon turnovers and had nine second-chance points, while outrebounding DePaul, 26-16.
The Gophers extended their lead to 15 points with just over 15 minutes to play as Zahui's layup made the score 49-34 at the 15:24 mark. However, the Blue Demons mounted a 19-2 run which allowed them to take the lead with 10:10 left on a Chanise Jenkins layup.
Another Zahui layup 30 seconds later tied the score at 53-all, but DePaul began to pull away and held the lead for the remainder of the contest.
The Gophers’ ninth appearance in the NCAA Tournament ended their first season under head coach Marlene Stollings. They compiled a 23-10 record, their most wins in 10 years.