TicketsCINCINNATI – University of Cincinnati women's basketball defeated Minnesota, 72-65, on Sunday afternoon at Fifth Third Arena in the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) second round.
The victory marks the first time the Bearcats (23-10) have won consecutive postseason games in program history. In addition, 23 victories in a season is the most in 16 years, matching the 2002-03 team. Moreover, the triumph is the Red & Black's first over a Power 5 school since besting Ohio State at home in 2013.
A dominant fourth quarter in which the Bearcats outscored the Gophers (21-11) 24-12 allowed UC to continue its postseason run. In total, the home team outpaced the visitors 43-29 in the second half after facing a 36-29 halftime deficit.
Junior guard Antoinette Miller (Detroit, Mich./Southfield-Lathrup) notched her third 20-plus-point game of the season with a team-best 20 points. She also pulled down five rebounds and dished out five assists. Junior guard Sam Rodgers (Cincinnati, Ohio/Lakota East) scored a career-high 18 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Additionally, junior forward Angel Rizor (Zebulon, N.C./East Wake) scored 11 points and grabbed a career and game-best 14 rebounds.
With a quick turnaround from Thursday's first-round win over Youngstown State, the Bearcats and Gophers engaged in a highly-competitive opening period featuring three ties and a 17-all score at the end of one. The first few minutes of the second quarter was also back and forth before UC broke through for its first lead of the game, 23-22, with 6:28 left in the stanza. Minnesota answered with a 14-4 run over the next four minutes and proceeded to take a 36-29 advantage into halftime.
The home team competed in the third quarter, falling behind by eight early on, but responded to trail by five just a few minutes later. With UM again going up by eight points with six minutes left in the third quarter, the Bearcats fought back to get within two, 48-46, with 3:09 left in the period. The Gophers managed to take a 53-48 advantage into the final period, but UC seemed poised for a fourth-quarter breakthrough. The Red & Black took the lead, 54-53, with 6:09 remaining and had the momentum on its side. Following the Gophers tying the game at 58 with 4:08 left, the Bearcats ended the game on a 14-7 run to put the game away.
UC knocked down 41-percent of its shots from the field, buried five 3-pointers, and drained 13 free throws. The Red & Black dominated the glass with a 46-32 rebounding advantage and turned 13 offensive rebounds into 12 second-chance points. The Bearcats also scored 32 points in the paint and distributed 13 assists.
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The Bearcats will welcome the Butler Bulldogs to Fifth Third Arena on Thursday, March 28 in the WNIT third round. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET. Tickets will be available for purchase Monday morning through GoBearcats.com/Tickets and 1-877-CATS-TIX.