GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Green Bay women's basketball's first WNIT win evaded them Thursday night, as they fell to the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the tournament's first round, 75-63.
The Phoenix (20-8) had three players score in double figures, led by Sydney Levy's 20 points. Hailey Oskey and Maddy Schreiber each had 13, while Jasmine Kondrakiewicz chipped in with six off the bench.
Sara Scalia was unstoppable for the Gophers, racking up 33 points while shooting 11-of-26 and playing all 40 minutes.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Green Bay went on a 7-0 run with 5:34 left in the first quarter to take an early 12-9 lead, capped by a Julia Hartwig layup. Green Bay did most of its first-quarter damage by scoring 10 of their 18 points in the paint.
A Bailey Butler triple and Levy jumper gave the Phoenix a 23-16 advantage with 8:40 to go in the second quarter. However, a game-defining 14-0 run by Minnesota quickly flipped the game on its head, with the Gophers taking a 30-23 lead. Kondrakiewicz broke up Green Bay's 6:18 scoring drought with a trey, pulling GB back within four at 30-26 with 2:22 to go before intermission. That basket also marked the start of an 11-2 run, eight of which came from Levy, to end the half. GB went into the break with a 34-32 advantage.
The Phoenix came out firing, opening the third quarter on a 7-0 run, going up 41-32 with 8:07 to go. The Gophers would claw their way back, cutting the deficit to 45-42 with 2:28 left in the quarter after Kadiatou Sissoko drove through the lane for a layup. Green Bay would enter the final frame holding a 52-46 lead.
Green Bay held their lead through the first 3:27 of the quarter until a Scalia made jumper gave Minnesota a 58-57 lead with 6:33 to go. The Phoenix would fight back and regain the lead thanks to a valiant effort from Oskey, who received a back-door pass from Meghan Pingel before finishing a reverse layup to bring the game to 62-61 with 3:18 to play. However, the Gophers would end the game on a 12-3 run, which was kick-started by consecutive triples by Scalia and Gadiva Hubbard. Maddy Schreiber tried to keep the Phoenix in the game, knocking down a triple with eight seconds to play, but it wasn't enough in the 73-65 loss.
GAME NOTES
» Green Bay was 15-1 when leading at the half coming into the game.
» The Phoenix held the Golden Gophers to only 39.3-percent shooting from the field.
» The loss marks just the second time GB has surrendered 70 or more points all season.
» Green Bay's bench made an impact by adding 29 points to its scoring output.
» Green Bay cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 12 offensive boards in the game.
» The Phoenix was previously 6-0 following a loss.
» Jasmine Kondrakiewicz collected a team-high seven rebounds.
» Minnesota won the turnover battle, 15-12.
» Each team had a stellar rebounding effort, but the Gophers won the battle on the boards, 39-36.
» Pingel filled the stat sheet in her final game, chipping in four points along with six assists, four rebounds, and one block and one steal.
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