Gophers women learn from loss to Michigan, entering pivotal game vs. Wisconsin

There were times Wednesday when open shots, point-blank, didn’t fall. There were times when the best decision might have been to pass out of a swarming defense rather than try to force a shot. Sometimes better shots will come when the Gophers women’s basketball team gets a stop at one end and can force the action at the other.

But, with one more home game — against Wisconsin on Sunday at Williams Arena — before a daunting two-game road trip against fourth-ranked USC and No. 1 UCLA, Gophers coach Dawn Plitzuweit is looking for her team to be more efficient around the rim.

“In the first quarter [of Wednesday’s five-point home loss to Michigan] we scored efficiently at the rim,” Plitzuweit said Friday. “The second through the fourth quarter we didn’t. And, probably, the third quarter is when we got to the rim the most. We had 10 short shots, which is what we call them, around the rim. And we were 2-for-10.”

Through eight Big Ten games the 23rd-ranked Gophers are 17-3 overall, 5-3 in the Big Ten. The loss to No. 24 Michigan — the team’s first home loss — was particularly disappointing. But, for the most part, the Gophers have beaten teams below them in the standings while going 0-3 against teams ranked in the Top 25 (Nebraska at the time, Maryland and Michigan).

There are always other things to work on, too. The Gophers defense being able to get stops is so important. In five conference victories, Gophers' opponents have shot 38.3% overall and 30.9% on three-pointers. In three losses those numbers are 50.5% and 44.6%, though the quality of the competition has to be weighed.

The Gophers have also struggled from behind the arc in conference play, ranking 16th in three-point shooting at 31.0%.

But that makes being more efficient inside that much more important. And it won’t get any easier against the Badgers, who are built around post Serah Williams, who is second in the conference in blocks.

The Gophers broke a four-game losing streak to the Badgers — the only conference opponent the Gophers will face twice this season — with a 59-50 victory Dec. 31 in Madison. In that game the Gophers hit nine of 17 shots and four of eight threes while jumping out to a 23-4 lead after a quarter, but shot just 35% the rest of the way while being outscored by 10 points. For the Badgers (10-9 overall, 1-7 Big Ten) it is the only conference loss by fewer than 10 points.

This is another game the Gophers need to win to keep their NCAA tournament hopes alive.

And being more efficient around the rim could be a key.

Point guard Amaya Battle could be a key. In recent games she has played much more aggressively on the offensive end, hitting more threes but also driving the lane. In the last four games she has averaged 20.8 points on 15 shots per game, shot 48.3% overall, made five of 12 threes and gone to the line 26 times.

“Earlier in the season we were talking about how she was shooting the ball quite a bit better from behind the arc,” Plitzuweit said. “But she wasn’t really getting to the free throw line like she was in the past. Now she’s doing such an improved job of understanding when to attack.”

2 p.m. Sunday at Williams Arena

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The Gophers (17-3, 5-3 Big Ten) are looking to rebound after their first home loss of the season. Point guard Amaya Battle is coming off a season-high 25 points — she was 9-for-18 shooting and got to the free throw line 10 times — in Wednesday’s loss to Michigan. ... Wisconsin has lost seven straight Big Ten games — by an average of 17.1 points — since opening conference play with a two-point victory over Rutgers. Still, forward Serah Williams remains a potent scorer and rebounder. She is fourth in the Big Ten in points (18.7), first in rebounding (11.4) and second in blocks.