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Gophers Survive Scare Against Rutgers, Top-25 Ranking to Follow?

The Minnesota women's basketball team won its sixth consecutive game on Sunday and could be headed for a spot in the AP Top 25.
Will Ragatz|
Feb 2, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Dawn Plitzuweit on the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
Feb 2, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach Dawn Plitzuweit on the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. | Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

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After a slow start, the Gophers eventually pulled away from Rutgers for a 63-52 win in Piscataway, NJ on Sunday afternoon. It's the sixth consecutive victory for Dawn Plitzuweit's team, which could find itself with a spot in the AP Top 25 rankings on Monday.

Coming off a huge upset road win over No. 10 Iowa on Thursday, the Gophers (18-6, 9-4 Big Ten) may have had a bit of an emotional hangover early in Sunday's game. They missed their first ten shots from the field, with their first field goal coming on a Tori McKinney three a little over six minutes into the game. Minnesota was just 4 of 18 in the first quarter, but the score was tied 12-12 against a lowly Rutgers team that has won only once in Big Ten play so far (9-15, 1-12).

It didn't get any better in the second quarter. Even with an Amaya Battle three in the final seconds of the half, Gophers shot 4 for 17 in the second and headed into halftime trailing the Scarlet Knights 25-22. They were at some risk of a dreadful loss that would've likely ended any possibility of earning a national ranking in Monday's updated poll.

But in the third quarter, the Gophers finally got going. Mara Braun scored 10 points in the period, including eight straight late in the quarter. The score was tied at 33 with a few minutes left before Braun's surge sparked a 12-4 closing run for Minnesota.

In the fourth quarter, Rutgers was never able to cut its deficit to fewer than five points, and the Gophers held on for an unspectacular win. They'll take it.

The Gophers shot just 34 percent from the field for the game, but Rutgers wasn't much better at 41 percent. The big difference was that Minnesota had only five turnovers, compared to 15 for the Scarlet Knights.

Sophie Hart led the way with 17 points and 10 rebounds for Minnesota, while McKinney added 16 points and Braun chipped in 12. Grace Grocholski and Brylee Glenn recorded three steals apiece. For Rutgers, Nene Ndiaye (26 points) and Zachara Perkins (18) combined to score 44 of their 52 points as a team.

In last week's AP poll, the Gophers received nine votes, placing them 30th in the country. After two more wins, including a big one in Iowa City, the Gophers should have a chance to crack the top 25 for the first time this season.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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