Women's basketball gameday preview: Gophers at Wisconsin

2 p.m. at Wisconsin • BTN Plus*, 97.7-FM

Both teams starved for Big Ten success

Gophers update: Minnesota, on a four-game losing streak overall, has lost three Big Ten games — all against teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 — by an average of 21 points. Going against a Badgers team also winless in conference play, this is a chance for the Gophers to stop their streak. Both the Gophers and Badgers are near the bottom of the conference in points scored, points allowed, shooting and field-goal defense. The Gophers had a 13-game winning streak vs. the Badgers ended in Williams Arena last January. But the Gophers won in Madison two weeks later and have won 14 of the past 15. Sophomore G Jasmine Powell leads the team in scoring and is 13th in the conference at 17.2 points per game, and she averages 6.2 assists. Sophomore F Kadi Sissoko averages 13.2 points and 6.8 rebounds. Senior G Gadiva Hubbard, averaging 10.6 points, has made nine of 25 three-pointers.

Badgers update: The Badgers last played Thursday at No. 16 Michigan, taking a 92-49 drubbing, one in which Wisconsin was outscored 20-2 on points off turnovers, 24-3 on second-chance points and 50-30 on points in the paint. Badgers G Sydney Hilliard is having a breakthrough sophomore season. After averaging 9.2 points as a freshman, she was fourth in the Big Ten in scoring (20.7) heading into the weekend. She also averages 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists. Junior F Imani Lewis, who scored nearly 15 points per game last season, is at 13.3 points with 8.7 rebounds. They are the only Badgers players averaging in double figures.

Kent Youngblood

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