No. 23 Gophers Ready for No. 10 Buckeyes on Pink Jersey Auction Night

MINNEAPOLIS - The No. 23 University of Minnesota women's basketball team (20-6, 11-4 Big Ten) returns to Williams Arena on Wednesday to host the No. 10 Ohio State Buckeyes (22-4, 11-3 Big Ten). Tip off is set for 7 p.m. CT on B1G+ with Marisa Cate and Blythe Whealy on the call. Fans can also listen on KFAN+ 96.7 FM or the iHeartRadio app with Justin Gaard and Lynnette Sjoquist.

No. 23 Minnesota (20-6, 11-4 Big Ten) vs. No. 10 Ohio State (22-4, 11-3 Big Ten)
Stream: B1G+ (Marisa Cate, Blythe Whealy)
Tip Time: 7 p.m. CT
Radio: KFAN+ 96.7 FM, and the iHeartRadio app (Justin Gaard and Lynnette Sjoquist)
Location: Williams Arena
Promotions: The Gophers take on Ohio State for their annual Pink game! All 14 Gopher Women's Basketball student-athletes game-worn, pink jerseys will be available for auction. 100% of the proceeds will go to the Masonic Cancer Center Breast Cancer Research Fund. Bidding starts Sunday, February 15. Bids can be placed here.

STARTING FIVE

The No. 23 Golden Gophers have extended their winning streak to eight after grabbing wins over Nebraska (84-67) on Thursday and at Wisconsin (83-60) on Sunday.
It's the team's longest win streak overall since opening the 2024-25 season with 10 consecutive victories. In addition, it's the Gophers' second longest win streak within the Big Ten ever. The only longer streak was a program-record 11 straight wins from February of 2003 to January of 2004.
Sunday at Wisconsin, four starters scored in double figures led by Mara Braun, who had 20 points. Amaya Battle tacked on 17 points and Sophie Hart helped out with 13 points and six rebounds. Tori McKinney had 12 points and matched her career high with five steals.
The Wisconsin win improved the Gophers to 20-6 overall and 11-4 in Big Ten play. It marks the best 15-game start in conference play since the 2017-18 season when the team also started 11-4. That season was also the last time Minnesota made the NCAA Tournament.
This week, Minnesota came in at No. 23 in both the AP Top 25 and USA TODAY/WBCA Coaches Poll.

PINK JERSEY AUCTION

Each year, teams across the country host "Pink Games" to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research and treatment. These games honor and celebrate breast cancer survivors while paying tribute to those who are no longer with us.
In 2024, the University of Minnesota women's basketball team partnered with the Masonic Cancer Center and University of Minnesota and introduced its first online auction, allowing fans, families, and friends to bid on the team's game-worn pink jerseys.
100% of the proceeds went directly to the Masonic Cancer Center through the University of Minnesota Foundation.
We are honored to once again host an online auction featuring game-worn pink jerseys from all 14 Gopher Women's Basketball student-athletes. These jerseys will be worn during our game versus Ohio State on February 18.
Bids can be placed here.

WHERE THEY RANK

The Gophers came in at No. 23 in this week's AP Top 25 Women's Basketball Poll, released on Monday.
It's the first appearance in the AP Top 25 for the Golden Gophers this season after being the first team out of the poll last week when they received 42 votes. Minnesota last appeared in the AP Poll on Jan. 20 of last season when it was also 23rd.
In addition, the Maroon and Gold received a No. 23 ranking in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. It's their first appearance in it since last season.
Minnesota is ranked No. 9 in the NET and is one of nine Big Ten teams in the top 25.
Minnesota's 1.6 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks fourth nationally and second in the Big Ten, only behind No. 2 UConn (1.88), No. 3 UCLA (1.73), and No. 4 Iowa State (1.6).
The Maroon and Gold's defense allows only 56.5 points per game, ranking them 21st in the nation and first in the conference.

20 WIN MILESTONE

After defeating the Badgers, the Gophers reached the 20-win mark for the third consecutive season.
Head Coach Dawn Plitzuweit is only the second coach in program history to achieve 20 wins in three consecutive seasons. The other to do so was Pam Borton in 2002-03 (25-6), 2003-04 (25-9) and 2004-05 (26-8).
In Plitzuweit's career, she totaled 17 winning seasons, two 30-win campaigns, and now 12 20-win seasons.

OHIO STATE SERIES HISTORY

The Buckeyes lead the series 67-16 overall, 25-11 at Williams Arena, 31-3 in Columbus, and 10-2 at neutral sites.
Ohio State currently holds a 14-game win streak over the Gophers. Minnesota last beat the Buckeyes at home in 2016. It took then-ranked No. 5 Ohio State to overtime and won 90-88.
Last season, the Gophers fell to Ohio State in overtime, 87-84 in Columbus.

BATTLE TIME

Amaya Battle is the only active NCAA player (playing from 2022-present) with more than 1,000 career points, 700 career rebounds and 500 career assists.
Battle's career totals stand at 1,442 points, 717 rebounds and 578 assists.
Along with Battle, Rachel Banham is the only other Golden Gopher to record at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, and 500 assists in a career.
Battle is tied for second all-time in Minnesota's record book in assists. She is one assist away from surpassing Lindsay Whalen (578).

THE ORIGINAL G-MONEY

This season, Grace Grocholski leads Minnesota with 335 points and is second at 12.9 points per game.
The guard-forward is shooting 50.4% from the field, 46.0% from 3-point range and 71.9% from the free throw line.
The North Prairie, Wis., native has 209 career made 3-pointers, ranking No. 8 all time in Minnesota program history.
Grocholski is ranked No. 7 in the nation and third in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage.
Grocholski also ranks second on the Gophers' roster with 70 assists.
Against No. 7 Maryland on Dec. 7, Grocholski knocked down a career-high nine 3-pointers on her way to a career-best 31 points, tying for the second-most 3-pointers made in a single game in program history.

McKINNEY MAGIC

In the Maroon and Gold's last seven games, Tori McKinney has averaged 14.4 points per game, has tallied 26 assists and has a team-leading 16 steals during that stretch.
She's hit double figures in seven of the last eight games.
McKinney recorded back-to-back 20-point games, scoring 23 points against Penn State on Jan. 28 after posting 20 against Wisconsin on Jan. 25.
It marked the first time a Gopher scored 20 or more points in consecutive games since Mara Braun did so against Purdue (21 on Dec. 10, 2023) and Grambling (26 on Dec. 13, 2023).
Against the Nittany Lions, McKinney set a career high threes made in a game, going 5-of-7.

MINNESOTA MARA

In Minnesota's last eight games, Mara Braun has been a spark on offense, averaging 12.8 points per game.
Braun had a team-high 20 points in Minnesota's win over Wisconsin on Sunday.
She led the Gophers and scored a season-high 22 points at Penn State on Jan. 28.
At Iowa, she had 16 points and went 4-of-4 from the 3-point line.
Against Nebraska, Braun had a 9-0 run on her own putting away three 3-pointers.

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Players Mentioned

Amaya Battle

Mara Braun

Grace Grocholski

Sophie Hart

Tori McKinney