If you’re going to win in the Big 10, you probably want to win when you’re at home and your opponents shoot 28% in the 1st half. Well, the Gopher women did indeed survive Purdue in just such a case, but they made very hard work of it, shooting just 36% themselves including 26% from 3-point range. But Mara Braun hit a 2-pointer to tie it up at 0:13 and Amaya Battle got a steal and a foul and made 2 foul shots with 0:03 remaining for the final score of 60-58.
It was 7-7 after a 1st quarter in which both teams shot, well, horribly. The Gophers kind of got it together in the 2nd quarter while Purdue did not, and the Gophers led by as much as 10 at 23-13 and by 7 at the half at 25-18. Still, the lead could easily have been much larger. Then, in the 3rd quarter, it was Purdue’s chance to get hot and that’s what the Boilermakers did, outscoring the Gophers 15-5 in the first 5 minutes and 25-13 for the quarter. But, trailing 43-38, the Gophers opened the 4th quarter with a 6-0 run to take a 44-43 lead. At 5:32, the lead was 4 as Braun scored 5, Battle 4 and Sophie Hart 4 for a 13-4 run.
Purdue stormed back with a 10-2 run of their own to lead 57-53 at 1:23. Hart scored 2 more, then Battle got the Gophers within 57-56 at 0:29 but missed the potential game-tying throw. Purdue then matched Battle, making 1-of-2 FT at 0:26 for a 58-56 lead. Braun tied it up with just 13 ticks left on the clock, and that was only after Battle missed a shot but the Gophers got a team offensive rebound. Battle then picked Madison Layden’s pocket at 0:03 (Layden’s 6th turnover), drew the foul and made both for the 60-58 final.
In the end Purdue’s shooting stats were OK, 41% each on FG and 3s and 70% from the line. The Gophers comparable numbers were 36-26 and 58%. But the Gophers got 4 more offensive boards and 11 fewer turnovers, and so they had 14 more FGA than the Boilers. The Gophers had a 17-10 edge on points off turnovers and a 14-7 edge on 2nd chance points. All of that was just enough to survive Purdue 60-58. If you’re gonna win in the Big 10, this was one that you had to have and the Gophers had just enough to do that in their Big 10 opener. Good thing, too, as their 2nd and final Big 10 game of December will be on New Year’s Eve Eve in Iowa City.
Braun scored 21 on 8-of-18 shooting; Battle added 15 on 5-of-16 with 4 assists; Sophie Hart had 14 on 7-of-11. Mallory Heyer and Grace Grocholski had tough shooting days, combining for 2-of-12, but Heyer contributed with a team-high 12 rebounds. The Gopher bench continued its recent weak performances, contributing just 2-of-10 FG, 0-for-4 3s and 1-of-2 FT for a total of just 5 points.
After Iowa, the Gophers get Maryland and at Michigan. The next time they’ll be favored might be Nebraska at home on Sunday Jan. 14.