With 9:15 remaining in the first half, the Harvard women’s basketball team was two points away from the lead. Junior guard Bev Moore had sunk a three-pointer that narrowed Minnesota’s edge to 26-24.

The Crimson had plowed back from an early deficit and Harvard’s chance to shine on a national scale had arrived.

And then it passed.

The Golden Gophers went on a 18-2 drive in the next six minutes, as the Crimson committed three turnovers and a foul while allowing No. 12 Minnesota two steals.

Harvard’s 27 turnovers played a key role in the 82-58 loss, as Minnesota scored 34 points off of turnovers. The Gophers turned the ball over 17 times, but these mistakes were countered by their 17 steals.

Minnesota point guard Lindsay Whalen grabbed six steals, including two in the final six minutes of the game.

“We were supposed to not let [Whalen] have as many steals as she had,” said Harvard coach Kathy Delaney-Smith. “That’s one of the things that upset me the most—allowing those steals.”

The Crimson suffered as the Gophers capitalized on long, errant passes and poor ball protection, often ending in a Minnesota breakaway layup.

During a three-minute span in the second half, the Gophers racked up five steals, as Harvard’s game became a bit frantic under the Minnesota pressure.

The Crimson has to expect the same kind of press from No. 22 Boston College next Sunday. The Eagles were at yesterday’s game and saw the success the Gophers reaped.

“We have to make an adjustment on the floor regarding entry passes, regarding handling the pressure, regarding handling teams that are up in the passing lanes,” Delaney-Smith said.

Swallowed by a Whalen

Harvard knew what it was getting from Whalen, a Third-Team All-American and a candidate for the Naismith Player of the Year Award. The Crimson had a chance to scout the Gophers as both teams played at UNC in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year.

“She’s great, that’s what I said to my team all week,” Delaney-Smith said. “She has the ball 75 percent of the time. She’s one of the best players in the country, so why you think you can isolate one-on-one—you can’t. You have to have a team effort to stop a player of that caliber.”

Though Whalen was only on the floor for 24 minutes, she still tallied a game-high 25 points. The Big Ten Player of the Week created space in the paint, broke through double teams and made contested layups look easy as she led her team to victory.