Minnesota Defeats Missouri State, Advances to WBIT Quarterfinals

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The University of Minnesota women's basketball team (22-11, 8-10 B1G) defeated the Missouri State Bears (27-8, 16-4 MVC) on Sunday afternoon on the road to advance to the quarterfinal round of the WBIT. The Golden Gophers will face Gonzaga on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT at The Barn. 

The Golden had three players score in double figures, led by Grace Grocholski, who had 18 points and eight rebounds. Stewart added 18 points off of the bench and Amaya Battle chipped in as well with 15 points and five assists.

Led by Mallory Heyer's five offensive rebounds, Minnesota did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 13 boards that resulted in 13 second chance points.

How It Happened

After falling behind 2-0, Minnesota went on a 6-0 run with 8:49 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Battle, to take a 6-2 lead. The Gophers then added 11 points to that lead by the end of the period and entered the quarter break with a 27-12 advantage. Minnesota got a great contribution from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for 10 of its 27 total points.

Minnesota went on an 8-0 run starting at the 2:57 mark in the second period, highlighted by a three from Grocholski. Minnesota was strong from deep in the period, knocking down three three-point shots to account for nine of its 15 points.

Minnesota went on a 6-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Battle. Minnesota knocked down three three-pointers in the quarter to score nine of its 22 total points.

The Gophers then held on for the victory in the fourth quarter. Minnesota got a boost from its bench in the period, with non-starters scoring six of its 14 total points.

Game Notes
» The Gophers shot well from three point range, knocking down 10 of 21 long range attempts.
» The Minnesota bench made an impact by adding 26 points to its scoring output.
» Minnesota had a 43-27 edge on the boards in the win.
» Minnesota cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 13 offensive boards in the game.
» Grace Grocholski and Annika Stewart led the Gophers with 18 points apiece.
» Minnesota got a game-high 12 rebounds from Mallory Heyer.