Gopher Women whip Samford

(Minneapolis, MN/Minnesota News Network) — The Golden Gopher women’s basketball jumped out to a 16-0 lead and never looked back, beating Samford at Williams Arena last night 77-40. Minnesota held a 35-9 halftime lead before pushing the advantage to 45-9 early in the third quarter. The largest lead was 42 points in the fourth quarter at 77-31. Gopher senior center Sophie Hart of Farmington had a 17-point, ten-rebound double-double to lead the way, while Tori McKinney returned from a concussion and tallied 13 points, five assists and five steals. The Gophers are now 6-2 on the season, while the visiting Bulldogs dipped to 4-6. Minnesota will host number-seven Maryland on Sunday at 3 P-M at The Barn. The Terps are 9-0 and hosting Mount St. Mary’s tomorrow night.