Every good sports team experiences bumps in the road over the course of a season.
So if Minnesota’s women’s basketball team’s tough 81-68 loss Sunday at Penn State was one of those bumps, perhaps the best way to describe its game Thursday against Iowa is catching some serious air off a big jump.
The Gophers responded to Sunday’s bruising by putting a hurt on the Hawkeyes, getting some solid inside-outside offense en route to an 81-50 win at Williams Arena.
“I thought this was a great game to get our team back heading in the right direction after the loss to Penn State,” Borton said.
Minnesota’s revitalized perimeter game provided the spark in the first half.
Junior point guard Shannon Schonrock, who finished with 14 points, drained a trio of three-pointers inside the game’s first five minutes. Schonrock’s third three-pointer triggered an 11-0 Minnesota run, giving the Gophers a 20-10 lead nine minutes into the game.
Altogether, Minnesota shot six three-pointers in the first half – four of which came from Schonrock.
“Schonrock, I thought, was outstanding,” Hawkeyes coach Lisa Bluder said. “I thought she was just great. (She) comes down, hits those first four three-pointers, and she set the tone for the game early.”
Schonrock’s last three of the half kick-started an 11-3 run, pushing Minnesota way ahead before taking a 41-27 lead into halftime.
As good as Minnesota’s outside game was in the first half, its inside game in the second was even better.
Janel McCarville played just 10 minutes in the first half because of two early fouls, but she wasted no time getting things going in the second. She scored the period’s first two baskets and teamed with Broback – who finished with 21 points, nine boards, and a career-high five steals – to score Minnesota’s first 19 points of the second half.
McCarville finished with 16 points.
“The guards were really hitting from the outside, so I knew it was going to be open inside,” McCarville said.
Altogether, Minnesota saw a balanced offensive attack – something Borton had been craving after getting little perimeter production.
“Shannon Schonrock and Jamie really stepped up,” Borton said. “And I was very pleased with our overall team effort tonight.”
Roysland just one shy
Guard Kelly Roysland made all three of her free throws on the evening to move into second place on Minnesota’s all-time list with 25 straight and is now just one shy of the record.
