With eight minutes left and the game tied 45 apiece, Minnesota’s junior guard Rachel Banham sparked an 8-0 Gophers run with back-to-back threes, giving Minnesota its biggest lead of the game.
But the UCLA women’s basketball team withstood the run on the road and delivered its knockout punch, scoring the game’s final 11 points en route to a 58-55 comeback victory over Minnesota (9-3) on Friday in the first round of the Subway Classic.
UCLA (5-5) relied on senior power down the stretch over the last five minutes. Senior guard Thea Lemberger scored six of her 17 points and sixth-year senior forward Atonye Nyingifa chipped in four points, accounting for 10 of UCLA’s last 13 points.
The Bruins defense managed to hold the Gophers without a point in the final 5:27, but it did allow four offensive rebounds that could have spelled trouble.
One of those offensive rebounds ended up in the hands up Minnesota’s Banham, who had a game-high 24 points. Her 3-point shot would have given the Gophers a one-point lead with four seconds left, but Nyingifa was there to block the shot and save the day.
The game was a back-and-forth contest with six ties and 13 lead changes and neither team was able to push its lead to double digits.
While not scoring in the pivotal 11-0 run, sophomore guard Nirra Fields continued her hot 3-point shooting, hitting 4-10 shots from distance and scoring a team-high 19 points.
The Bruins escaped with the win but will not be able to leave Minnesota just yet. UCLA will play Auburn Saturday in its last game of this two-game tournament.
Compiled by Derrek Li, Bruin Sports reporter.