Women’s basketball: Gophers stay undefeated with win over Eastern Illinois

The Gophers women’s basketball team moved to 6-0 on the season after a dominate 81-52 win over Eastern Illinois Wednesday night at Williams Arena.

The Gophers shot 54.5 percent from three-point range in the win against Eastern Illinois.

The Maroon and Gold had three players score in double figures, led by Grace Grocholski, who had 16 points and two steals. Annika Stewart added 14 points off of the bench and Tori McKinney helped out with 14 points.

Minnesota out-rebounded Eastern Illinois 34-29 in Wednesday’s game, paced by five boards from Mallory Heyer.

The Minnesota defense was effective at taking away the basketball in Wednesday’s game, forcing 18 Eastern Illinois turnovers while committing 10. Those takeaways turned into 11 points on the offensive end of the floor. Grocholski’s two steals led the way individually for the Gophers.

Gophers star shooting guard Mara Braun did not play. Braun had a walking boot on her right foot.

The Gophers will host Montana on Sunday.

(University of Minnesota Athletics contributed information to this article.)