Gophers women's basketball team needs to lift out of gloom quickly — there's a game to play

Even after the biggest disappointment of the season, Gophers coach Marlene Stollings stuck to her usual rule. She allows her players 24 hours to work through their postgame emotions — whether it's celebrating a victory or lamenting a loss — then expects them to get their minds right for the next opponent.

The Gophers' pain was particularly acute Tuesday, following Monday's announcement of an NCAA tournament field that didn't include them. By midafternoon, though, the clock was winding down.

"We'll have to cut them a little bit short," Stollings said. "By practice this evening, we've got to switch gears and look at this opportunity in front of us."

That opportunity starts Wednesday, when the Gophers open play in the WNIT with a first-round game against Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Williams Arena. Though it wasn't their first choice, Stollings and her players conceded there is much to gain by participating in the other 64-team tournament.

Senior Rachel Banham, whose heartbreak over missing the NCAAs was still fresh Tuesday, can continue her campaign for major national awards and enhance her credentials before April's WNBA draft. Sophomore Carlie Wagner can edge closer to 1,000 career points and set herself up for a larger leadership role next season. And the Gophers have the chance to end the season in satisfying fashion.

"It's been a little bit emotional because we wanted to get our seniors to the NCAA tournament, especially Rachel," said Wagner, who is 24 points away from 1,000 for her career. "To not get there is like one of our goals we didn't accomplish. But we still get to bring them back to their home court to play again.

"We want to get everyone back into a tournament environment, to have momentum for next year. And we want the seniors to go out on the highest note possible."

Banham returned for a fifth season in large part because she wanted to play in the NCAA tournament. A knee injury sidelined her last year as the Gophers made their first NCAA appearance since 2009. Tuesday, her usually chipper mood remained glum.

The Gophers had teetered on the NCAA bubble for weeks, kept on the periphery by an inflated RPI and a dearth of victories over top teams. Their chances were further damaged by four defeats in their final five games, including a loss to Northwestern in their Big Ten tournament opener. Banham said she still had hope, knowing the Gophers were in the NCAA conversation, and she struggled Tuesday to move past the letdown.

"We were all kind of hoping for a miracle, but it didn't work out that way," said Banham, the nation's second-leading scorer averaging 27.6 points per game. "It's definitely hard on me, and it's still hanging there a little bit.

"But I'll be fine. [Wednesday] will be a new day, and it's a game day, so you've got to move on and let that stuff go. There's another opportunity to win more games, and maybe even set more records."

Stollings said she also was hopeful that the Gophers would slip into the NCAA field, and she felt the Big Ten was slighted as a whole. Five league teams got into the NCAA tournament, one fewer than last year.

Stollings said she held a team meeting Monday to review games — and even possessions — that slipped away, but the coach didn't want to minimize the pain, either.

"I want them to feel this," she said. "We don't want it to be OK that we didn't go.

"But it's also an opportunity to say 'Hey, maybe we should have gone,' and get into the WNIT and really show them what we're about. We have to go in motivated and look at it as an opportunity to continue playing in front of our home fans."