Gophers women’s basketball has begun its 2026-27 season with a 2-0 record, but it fell from No. 17 to No. 18 in the latest AP poll. Its second week will include a home game Tuesday night against defending SWAC champions Southern University and a neutral-site game Saturday against Kansas State. Here’s what we’ve learned so far.

Grace Grocholski has taken her game to the next level

With last year’s leading scorer, Tori McKinney, out for the season with an injury, Minnesota needed someone to step up. Grocholski leads the team with 22.5 points per game on 51.6% shooting from the field, 61.5% from 3-point range and 71.4% from the free-throw line. She’s also averaging 8.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.

It’s obviously a small two-game sample size, but Grocholski looks like a player who could be taking a huge leap in production. Her career high is 13.1 points per game as a sophomore in 2024-25, and she has always been an elite 3-point shooter, but she looks ready for more this season.

Rotation without McKinney

Minnesota had tremendous depth on its roster with McKinney, and it’s still a deep team without her. Nine players have averaged at least 8.5 minutes per game through the first week, and seven have played more than 15 minutes per game. Leah Harmon, Natalie Kussow, Grocholski, Mara Braun and Tayla Thomas have been the starters for the first two games, with Gracie Merkle and Tori Oehrlein as the top two options off the bench. Makena Christian and Kennedy Klick add depth to the roster.

Braun’s shooting struggles

After coming back from a second season-ending injury last year, Braun averaged a career-low 11.7 points per game for the season. She has struggled even more to begin 2026-27, averaging just 7.5 points per game on 26.3% shooting from the field and 11.1% from 3-point range. It’s her fifth year with the program, and Minnesota will need more consistency from her to reach its full potential this season.

Freshman duo looks promising

Kussow won Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year last year, and Oehrlein was one of the most productive players in the history of Minnesota girls’ high school basketball. Both players have shown a ton of promise to begin their college careers.

Kussow has averaged 10.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and a team-high 4.5 assists per game. She looks like a player who can quickly become one of the best point guard options on the roster. Oehrlein isn’t too far behind, averaging 8.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in two appearances off the bench. It’s never easy to become a contributor as a freshman at the college level, but Kussow and Oehrlein both look like they’re up for the challenge.

Frontcourt transfer duo

Merkle averaged 19.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season at Penn State, so it seemed like she could’ve been a focal point of this year’s Gophers team. She flashed in the season opener with 22 points, but Thomas has also looked like an impressive pickup after transferring from Northwestern. Thomas is averaging 7.5 more minutes per game and a team-high 10 rebounds per game. It looks like Minnesota has two starting-level post players this season.

Source: Yahoo Sports