Next test for 13-1 Gophers women’s basketball: archrival Wisconsin

The Gophers women’s basketball team did a lot of good things while demolishing visiting Penn State 90-54 Saturday afternoon.

Now it has to do it away from Williams Arena.

“We have to figure out how to play tough on the road,” Gophers coach Dawn Plitzuweit said. “We haven’t been able to do that consistently. We played pretty well on the road in the WNIT last year. But this is another level.”

The Gophers (13-1 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) get another chance Tuesday in Madison, where they’ll try to break a four-game losing streak to the Badgers (10-3, 1-1).

The Gophers haven’t won a true road game yet this season, though they’ve won four neutral-site games. Minnesota’s only road game was an 84-65 loss at Nebraska in early December, where the Gophers were outscored 27-11 in the first quarter and never recovered.

It was a different story in Saturday’s win against Penn State, probably the best game the team has played in one-plus seasons under Plitzuweit.

The Gophers shot 55.6% overall, made better than 40% of their threes, took care of the ball, had wonderful ball movement — 22 assists on 35 made baskets — and, with her career-high 25 points, saw freshman guard Tori McKinney throwing her name into the battle for Big Ten Conference Player of the Year.

All good.

But even more important: the defense.

Plitzuweit had said it since she arrived here prior to the 2023-24 season: Defense is the most important thing. Saturday the Gophers held the Lions to under 40% shooting, to 4-for-17 shooting on threes and forced 24 turnovers that resulted in 30 points.

Oh, and they held Penn State’s top two scorers — 6-6 center Gracie Merkel and guard Moriah Murray — to two points.

What the Gophers did to Merkle was especially effective. She came in averaging 20.2 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.

All game long, Gophers center Sophie Hart and Annika Stewart battled Merkle for position. Almost every time the Lions got the ball inside, a Gophers defender came to help. By the time the game ended, Merkle had played 22 minutes and taken one shot. She had gone scoreless with only four rebounds and turned the ball over four times.

Now the Gophers have to do it again.

In order to beat the Badgers — something the Gophers haven’t been able to do for two seasons — they will have to stop another top post player, Badgers forward Serah Williamsand her teammate, transfer Carter McCray.

The reigning conference defensive player of the year and a first-team all-conference pick last season, Williams — a 6-4 junior — has never lost to the Gophers.

In two victories over the Gophers last season, Williams made 20 of 28 shots, had 54 points, 30 rebounds, getting to the free-throw line 16 times.

“She’s so tough because she can score one-on-one,” Plitzuweit said. “And she makes good decisions on [double-teams]. She’s the best shot-blocker in the league, and rebounder. Oh, and she can score. A handful in every way, shape and form.”

And she’s not alone. The 6-1 McCray has given the Badgers a double-post presence. Between them, Williams and McCray are averaging 30.8 points and 19.7 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 53%.

Doubling Williams leaves teams vulnerable either to McCray down low or on the perimeter. It also catches a defense in rotation, making it more difficult to block out.

The Gophers have to figure out how to start Tuesday’s game like they did Saturday but in Madison, where the Badgers are 7-0 this season. Add to that, the Badgers will be looking to respond to a one-sided 83-52 loss at Indiana on Saturday.

That takes toughness. The Gophers' starting five — especially point guard Amaya Battle and forward Mallory Heyer — is experienced, enough that Plitzuweit says she believes it will happen sooner or later.

Tuesday would be a good place to start for a Gophers team that is 1-9 under Plitzuweit on the road in the Big Ten.

3:30 p.m. Tuesday at Kohl Center

TV, radio: BTN+, 96.7-FM

Gophers update: Minnesota (13-1, 1-1 Big Ten) is coming off its best performance in one-plus seasons under coach Dawn Plitzuweit, a 90-54 victory over Penn State. Freshman guard Tori McKinney is coming off a career-high 25 points and has scored in double figures in all but one game since taking over for the injured Mara Braun. Annika Stewart has scored in double figures in seven games off the bench, including the past two, where she has totaled 35 points on 14-for-18 shooting.

Wisconsin update: The Badgers (10-3, 1-1) are coming off a 31-point loss at Indiana on Saturday, where posts Serah Williams and Carter McCray combined to score 23 of Wisconsin’s season-low 52 points. Williams, the Big Ten’s reigning defensive player of the year, has double-doubles in nine of 13 games. She and McCray are averaging 30.8 points and 19.7 rebounds together. Wisconsin has won four in a row vs. Minnesota. The Badgers’ last home loss to the Gophers was on Jan. 12, 2022.