Gophers' season ends with first-round loss

The Minnesota women's basketball team can finally breathe a sigh of relief, even if it comes rather unsatisfactorily.
One of the Gophers’ most disappointing seasons in recent years came to an end Thursday as they fell to Penn State 63-52 in the first round of the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis.
The loss gave Minnesota a final record of 13-17 (6-12 in regular-season Big Ten games), marking the first ever losing season under head coach Pam Borton and most recent since 2000-01.
Thursday’s game was the last in the Gophers careers of seniors Ashley Ellis-Milan , Zoe Harper , Brittany McCoy , Katie Ohm and Tanisha Smith .
“This isn't how we wanted to end the year,” Borton said. "We've had a tough season, but for the seniors…they've had a great four years with memories and three postseasons and the friendships, and they've given a lot to this program… For everybody that's coming back, we've got a lot of work to do.”
Gophers junior guard China Antoine came off the bench to lead the Gophers. She made 4-of-6 3-point field goals for her team-leading 12 points.
Antoine’s performance was a good sign for the future, as she had battled injuries through most of the second half of the season but is expected to be one of the primary ball-handlers for the Gophers next season.
Nittany Lions senior guard Tyra Grant scored a game-high 15 points. Freshman center Nikki Greene added 12 points and six rebounds for Penn State.
The Gophers began the game exactly as they wanted, playing solid defense while their guards got open looks at the basket. A 3-pointer from sophomore guard Kiara Buford and two more from Antoine helped Minnesota go on an early 11-0 run to take a 16-6 lead.
But as has been the case often this season, Minnesota's offense was stagnant for more than five minutes during the first half, which allowed Penn State to chip away at the Gophers’ lead. It was a 27-27 game at halftime.
The Nittany Lions’ momentum carried over into the second half, as they went on a 10-0 run early in the half to take a 39-31 lead. From that point, they answered any Minnesota run, holding a five- to 10-point lead the rest of the way.
Although the Gophers entered the tournament in last place in the conference, McCoy said the team had a positive mindset entering Thursday’s game.
“We knew this was something we could do: make a run at this tournament, take it one at a time and look at the bigger picture, know we had a pretty good draw, and we had a good opportunity to win it all,” she said. “I think people’s minds are in the right place, and unfortunately we just didn't get the win today.”