Gophers’ Win Streak Snapped by No. 18 Michigan State in Home Finale

The Gophers' nine-game win streak was snapped in Sunday's home finale at the Barn in a 75-61 loss to No. 18 Michigan State. Here's what we learned.

Will a lack of depth catch up to them?

The Gophers faced plenty of adversity before the season when projected starter Mallory Heyer entered the transfer portal just weeks before the season. That was tested even more when top reserve Taylor Woodson suffered a season-ending knee injury. They still played with a nine-player rotation in the early part of the season, but that has dwindled down to just seven players.

True freshman Makena Christian and veteran forward Niamaya Holloway have both played more than 20 games this season, but they did not play against Michigan State. Mara Braun and Grace Grocholski combined to shoot 3 of 22 from the field, and Minnesota had just two points off the bench. It looked like they could've used an extra player on Sunday night.

Tori McKinney's huge night

McKinney has battled injuries in her second year with the Gophers, but she continues to prove why she's one of the best two-way players in the Big Ten. She had one of the best offensive performances of her college career on Sunday with a career-high 29 points on 10 of 19 shooting from the field. She did all she could to keep Minnesota in the game, but her tremendous performance was not enough.

THEY KEEP COMING FROM MCKINNEY 🌧️

📺: FS1 pic.twitter.com/8qck2grPSx
— Minnesota Women's Basketball (@GopherWBB) February 23, 2026

Amaya Battle's Senior Night

The Gophers recognized five seniors on Sunday for their annual Senior Night. Battle was the lone player who began her college career at Minnesota. She recently passed her former head coach Lindsay Whalen for the second most assists in program history, and she kept he momentum going with the Gophers' first six points of the game on Sunday.

She nearly pulled Minnesota back into the game with a late flurry of points in the fourth quarter to finish with 11, but it was too little too late. She might not have the same postseason success as some, but she will go down as one of the most productive players in program history.

Lack of close games

The Gophers had only three games decided by single digits during their nine-game winstreak before taking on Michigan State. They faced plenty of adversity on Sunday, with much of their starting lineup struggling to reach their normal season production. The competition will only get tougher the further Minnesota advances this March, so it seemed valuable to get some experience against a team that will likely play in the NCAA Tournament.

What's next?

The sky is not falling. The Gophers are still 21-7, and there's a good chance they're still ranked in the AP Top 25 poll on Monday. Next Sunday's game at Illinois does become huge for their chances of earning a double bye in the Big Ten tournament as a top-four seed. Sunday was their first loss since Jan. 18; they will now need to respond.