Minnesota Tops Wisconsin 74-68 In OT

A comeback victory for the No. 6-seeded University of Minnesota women's basketball team (20-11) to kick off the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, Ind. Despite trailing by 16 points early in the second half, Minnesota overcame a double-digit deficit in order to defeat the No. 11 seed Wisconsin (10-19), 74-68, in overtime at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

The Gophers, led by junior Rachel Banham with 22 points and redshirt freshman Amanda Zahui B. with 19 boards, would fight their way back in the second half to tie the game with less than a minute to go in regulation.

Zahui B. recorded her Big Ten-leading 15th double-double with 12 points and tied her career high with 19 rebounds en route to the comeback victory. In her last three outings, Zahui B. has averaged 18.7 rebounds per game. Strabresa McDaniel grabbed a career-high eight rebounds and Kayla Hirt posted 14 points on the evening.

It was the second overtime appearance in the Big Ten Tournament for the Golden Gophers. The last time the Gophers played extra minutes in the conference tournament was in 2005, when they defeated No. 1-seeded Ohio State, 66-63, to earn an appearance in the championship game.

The game marks the 20^th victory for the Golden Gophers this season, a feat that has not been accomplished since 2009.

The Gophers advance to 20-11 on the season and will take on No. 3-seeded Nebraska tonight at 8 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.