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Patricia Babcock McGraw's Bio: Patricia Babcock McGraw is a women's basketball analyst for the Big Ten Network. Submit your comments below or e-mail her at the right, then come back all season for her views on all Big Ten women's hoops. |
| Jan 19 2009, 8:32 AM | Topic: Women's basketball | |
| Minnesota's got my vote…in the Associated Press Top 25 women's basketball poll, that is. When filling out my ballot Sunday night, I felt that I could not ignore what the Golden Gophers did this week in beating Ohio State…at Ohio State. That's not easy to do. Not at all. In fact, Minnesota's 59-56 victory on Thursday ended Ohio State's streak of 86 (that's right, 86) straight wins at home over unranked teams. It also ended a big-time drought by the Golden Gophers themselves. Believe it or not, before this win, Minnesota women's basketball had never won at Ohio State. Ever. Thursday's victory was its first in 24 attempts. Incredible. Hats off to junior center Ashley Ellis-Milan, who had an amazing week for the Golden Gophers. She scored a game-high 19 points in a win over Michigan on Sunday and was clutch in the Ohio State game. Not only did Ellis-Milan pick up 17 points and 7 rebounds against the Buckeyes, she also hit three free throws in the final 17 seconds to help seal the deal. Meanwhile, Minnesota's Katie Ohm also came up big against Ohio State, hitting on 5-of-6 three-pointers for 15 points. BUH-BYE: Got a winning streak going? Then you don't want to play Minnesota. The Golden Gophers have become the Big Ten's unofficial streak killer this season. Ohio State's 86-game winning streak over unranked opponents at home and its 8-game winning streak this season are both history thanks to Minnesota. And Indiana's 9-game winning streak? Gone after playing Minnesota in early January. The winning streaks by Indiana and Ohio State were the longest in the Big Ten this season. TRIPLE THREAT: Iowa's Kachine Alexander was, well, a machine on Sunday against Northwestern. Three times over. The sophomore guard made a bit of history when she posted the first triple-double at Iowa in nearly a decade with 12 assists, 11 rebounds and 10 points. The last such rare feat came in February of 2000 when Cara Consuegra hit on all cylinders against Indiana. In addition, Alexander's 12 assists tied a school record, also set by Consuegra. FROM HOT TO HOTTER? With wins in seven of its last 10 games, Iowa is one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten. But could the Hawkeyes get even hotter? Well, the odds are in their favor. They play three of their next for games at home, where they are 7-1. TAKE CARE: Wisconsin not only took care of business in its 61-43 victory over Illinois on Sunday, it also took care of the ball. Good care. I mean, really, really good care. The Badgers committed only five turnovers in the game, including absolutely none in the second half. The mark tied a school record set last season against Penn State. Meanwhile, Illinois, which is still searching for its first Big Ten win (0-8) coughed the ball up 15 times, leading to 17 Wisconsin points. DOUBLE DOUBLE-DOUBLES: The bright spot for Illinois in its loss to Wisconsin was that Jenna Smith and Lacey Simpson again saw double. The dynamic duo each recorded their second consecutive double-double. Smith rolled up 15 points and 12 rebounds while Simpson was at 11 points and 12 rebounds after big games against Iowa earlier in the week. FIRST TIME: It was a game of firsts for Michigan State Sunday against Penn State. The Spartans' 70-59 victory gave them their first series sweep of Penn State in school history. (They also beat the Lady Lions on Dec. 21). Besides that, Michigan State became the first team this season to hold the sensational Tyra Grant to single digits in points. Grant is averaging 19.3 points per game for Penn State, and is the second-leading scorer in the Big Ten. But the junior guard managed a season-low 7 points against Michigan State. TROPHY TIME: It's guaranteed to be a barn-burner Monday in Bloomington. Well, it is the annual Barn Burner Trophy Game, after all. Every year since 1994, Purdue and Indiana have competed for the Barn Burner Trophy, which is similar to the Old Oaken Bucket traveling trophy that the two schools compete for in football. Purdue has won 13 of the last 15 games in the series, including the last 10. But the Boilermakers can't afford to rest on their laurels. Not this time. Sure Purdue is hot, having won four straight games, including seven of its last eight. Plus, the Boilers also sit atop the Big Ten with a 5-1 record. The thing is, they are having to share that seat with Ohio State…and Indiana, which are also 5-1 in league play. Catch the battle of the Hoosier state tonight on the Big Ten Network at 7 p.m. Eastern. LOOKING AHEAD: Besides the Purdue-Indiana clash, other big games in the Big Ten this week include: Thursday…Minnesota at Purdue. The Golden Gophers have won five of their last six games and are still riding high from a win at Ohio State last week. The Big Ten Network will show this game at 7 p.m. Eastern. Sunday…Ohio State at Purdue. It's the clash of the titans, the league's perennial powers. Catch it on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. Eastern. Wisconsin at Michigan State, at 1 p.m. on the Big Ten Network, should also be a good one. Both teams are playing very well right now. |
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