Gophers-Badgers women's basketball preview

Gophers hope dominance goes on

Preview: After playing three of their past four games on the road, the Gophers (14-5, 3-3 Big Ten) return to Williams Arena to face the Badgers. The Gophers are coming off a 80-70 overtime loss at then-No. 21 Rutgers on Saturday. Wisconsin (7-12, 0-6) is looking for its first conference victory. The Badgers are coming off a 69-62 loss at home to Penn State on Sunday. The loss was the seventh consecutive for the Badgers. The Gophers have defeated the Badgers nine consecutive times dating to 2012.

Players to watch: Gophers G Kenisha Bell is averaging 19.3 points and 6.4 assists per game. G Carlie Wagner is averaging 18.1 points per game and has scored in double figures a team-high 18 times. The Badgers have three Minnesotans among their top six players. Senior G Cayla McMorris leads the team in scoring (13.7 points per game). Sophomore G Suzanne Gilreath is averaging 9.6 points and sophomore F Courtney Fredrickson 9.2 points. McMorris and Gilreath are from Brooklyn Park and Fredrickson is from Minnetonka. Junior F Marsha Howard averages 10.7 points and 7.5 rebounds.

Numbers: Wagner, who needs 60 points to reach 2,000 for her career, is the 10th-leading active scorer in Division I women's basketball.

joel rippel