University of Minnesota Golden Gophers guards Amaya Battle (Hopkins) and Niamya Holloway (Eden Prairie), University of Wisconsin Badgers guard Ronnie Porter (St. Paul Como Park), University of Nebraska Cornhuskers guard Kendall Coley (St. Louis Park), University of Illinois Illini guard Adalia McKenzie (Park Center), and University of Michigan Wolverines forward Taylor Woodson (Hopkins) have something in common.
All made their mark in high school as girls basketball players in the metro area, and all recently represented their teams in the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament held at the Target Center last week.
McKenzie, a 5’11” junior, and Illinois lost their second-round contest 75-65 to the University of Maryland Terrapins.
Porter, a 5’4” sophomore, led Wisconsin with 15 points in an 80-56 second-round setback to the Penn State University Nittany Lions.
Battle, a 5’11” sophomore, had 32 points and Holloway, a 6’ 0” freshman, gave a fine defensive effort during Minnesota’s 77-69 opening round win over the Rutgers University Scarlet Knights before losing 76-57 to Michigan in the following round.
In addition to the victory over Minnesota, Woodson, a 6’0” freshman, contributed to a 68-58 quarterfinal before losing 73-61 to Nebraska in the semifinals.
Coley, a 6’2” junior, helped Nebraska reach the championship game—losing 94-89 to the University of Iowa Hawkeyes in overtime—with victories over the Purdue University Boilermakers (64-56), the Michigan State Spartans (73-61), and Maryland (78-68).
The metro area was well represented in the 2024 Big Ten Women’s basketball tournament.
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