Michigan
10-18, 3-12Big
Minnesota
15-13, 7-8Big T
Michigan Drops Road Finale at Minnesota
2/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Junior Ta'Shia Walker (Lansing, Mich./J.W. Sexton HS) put forth a solid outing, finishing with a team-high 11 points in 23 minutes off the bench. Sophomore Carly Benson (Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School) chipped in 10 points and five rebounds, while classmate Stephany Skrba (Toronto, Ontario/Langstaff Secondary School) contributed nine points and six boards. Junior Krista Clement (St. Ignace, Mich./LaSalle HS) posted a game-high five assists in 19 minutes.
The Gophers scored on the games opening possession, but the Wolverines answered with seven unanswered points to take an early 7-2 lead with 17:18 left in the first half. Benson started things off with a triple from the wing, freshman Krista Phillips (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate HS) converted on a put-back off her own miss and Skrba capped off the run with a lay-up in transition.
Minnesota found its rhythm and countered with a 13-2 run to reclaim a 15-9 advantage at 13:30. Michigans reserves, however, kept the Wolverines in contention by scoring the teams next 10 points. Walker accounted for six of the points, including a three-point play at 6:13 that cut the Gopher lead to one, 20-19.
The Golden Gophers pulled ahead again thanks to a 10-4 run that put the Minnesota lead at 33-23 with 1:29 to go until the break. Michigan's bench continued to shine, with sophomore Melinda Queen (Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg HS) and freshman LeQuisha Whitfield (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King HS) scoring a pair of quick hoops that sent the Maize and Blue into the locker room trailing 38-27.
Both teams shot nearly identical in the first half, with the Gophers going 12-of-25 and Michigan finishing at 12-of-27. The major difference on the stat sheet was at the foul line, where Minnesota hit 11-of-17 compared to the Wolverines 2-of-4.
The Maize and Blue started off the second half strong, with Skrba converting on a three-point play that cut the Gopher lead to 38-30. Michigan's reserves would step up once again, as back-to-back buckets from Phillips and freshman Kalyn McPherson (Traverse City, Mich./West HS) kept the Minnesota lead at eight points, 44-36, at 14:40.
The Golden Gophers would retain control of the game with a 6-0 run that extended their lead to 50-36. The Wolverines continued to fight, as a Benson triple punctuated a 6-0 Michigan surge that trimmed the Minnesota lead back, 50-42. Another 6-0 Gopher run put the lead back at 14 points, 56-42, with 9:54 left to play.
Despite a strong effort in the remaining minutes of the game, the Wolverines were unable to draw closer than 11 points the rest of the way.
The Wolverines will honor senior Kelly Helvey (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic HS) prior to Sunday's (Feb. 25) regular-season finale against Ohio State (No. 5 AP/No. 6 ESPN/USA TODAY) in Crisler Arena. The game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start and can be heard live over the radio on WTKA (AM 1050).
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
