Big Ten Network : Women's Basketball Top Stories

Ellis-MIlan leads Gophers into title game

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:23:00 +0000

Ten Golden Gophers scored, led by Ashley Ellis-Milan with a season-high 16 points, as Minnesota cruised to a 94-58 win over Illinois-Chicago in the second game of the Subway Classic on Saturday. The Gophers (2-1) will face Colorado (2-0) on Sunday at 6 p.m. in the Classic championship game. Minnesota took it right to the Flames opening with a 30-5 run in the game's first 10 minutes. The Gophers made eight of their first nine shots in the game, including three-point field goals by Kiara Buford and China Antoine. The Gophers continued their hot shooting throughout the half to take a commanding 49-31 lead into the locker room at intermission. Ellis-Milan with 12 points and Brittany McCoy with 10 were already in double figures. The Minnesota defense made sure Illinois-Chicago (0-4) would not have a chance for a big comeback. The Gopher defenders hounded the Flames all game resulting in 29 UIC turnovers, 16 coming in the second half. McCoy led the defense attack collecting five the Gophers' 18 steals in the game and adding 13 points on the offensive end. Minnesota's reserve backcourt of China Antoine and Leah Cotton electrified the crowd with several nifty plays on both ends of the court. Antoine dished out a game-high seven assists, grabbed four steals and scored six points. Cotton tallied her first game in double figures, matching her uniform number with 11 points. She also added three steals. Buford was the fourth Gopher in double figures with a quiet 15 points in just 23 minutes of play. She was 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Minnesota finished the game shooting 59.6 percent from the floor and committing just 14 turnovers.

Dayton uses late basket to down Purdue

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:14:00 +0000

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.- Justine Raterman led Dayton (3-1) with 11 points and ‎Brittany Wilson scored 10 points, including a basket with nine seconds left to give ‎Dayton the lead and the victory over No. 23 Purdue, 56-53. ‎ The Boilermakers (2-1), who trailed 23-22 at halftime, were sparked by senior guard ‎FahKara Malone and used a 16-0 run midway through the second half to take a 47-41 ‎lead with five minutes left in the game. ‎ Malone led the Boilers with 17 points and sophomore guard Brittany Rayburn chipped in ‎with 12 points. Malone was 7 of 13 from the field and 2 of 4 from three point range, ‎while also recording three rebounds and three assists. Rayburn was 5 of 10 from the field ‎and also added three rebounds and two assists. ‎ Dayton, which previously upset No. 10 Michigan State, outrebounded Purdue 42 to 25, ‎including pulling down 24 offensive rebounds. Dayton also forced the Boilermakers into ‎‎23 turnovers. ‎ Purdue returns to action Sunday, Nov. 22, when it plays Georgetown in the finale of the ‎Basketball Travelers Classic. The game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. ET tipoff. ‎

Jaeschke, Diamant lead 'Cats past SIU-E, 68-37

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:27:00 +0000

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern took a 10-8 advantage on an early layup by junior Amy Jaeschke (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) and never relinquished the lead, defeating Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 68-37 Friday evening at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Jaeschke recorded her first double-double of the season--tallying 16 points and 15 rebounds--and freshman Dannielle Diamant (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman) followed suit, notching a career-best 17 points and 10 boards. "We did some good things defensively and we're playing with some confidence," head coach Joe McKeown said after the game. "Having Jaeschke and Diamant in there with their skills; we're just scraping the iceberg as far as what they can do." It was clear that physical attributes were going to dictate the game plan for both teams with NU looking to pound the ball down low, while undersized SIU-Edwardsville took to playing on the perimeter. But both offenses came out of the gates sputtering until Northwestern found its rhythm thanks to Jaeschke, who scored six of NU's first 12 points to spark a 6-0 run and put NU up 14-8 with 11:35 left in the first half. Meanwhile, the Wildcats combined full-court pressure with an active zone, holding the Cougars scoreless for five minutes and extending their lead to 18-10 with just under 10 minutes remaining in the half. The Wildcats shot an outstanding 47 percent through the first 12 minutes and continued their accurate marksmanship throughout the rest of the stanza, converting on 44 percent of their looks. Northwestern held the Cougars to just 16 percent shooting from the field and just one basket in the paint through the opening 20 minutes. Northwestern held Southern Illinois-Edwardsville to just 14 points in the first half, the lowest total of the McKeown era. Maggie Mocchi (Wheeling, Ill./Buffalo Grove) led all scorers with nine points in just eight minutes of action, connecting on a perfect 4-of-4 from the field. Jaeschke added eight points and seven rebounds while recording three blocks in the first frame. Diamant opened the second-half scoring with a long-distance connection and forced the visitors to call a timeout. The Wildcats continued to roll offensively, outscoring SIU-E 38-23 in the second half to roll to victory. Sophomore Brittany Orban joined Jaeschke, Diamant and Mocchi in double figures with 12 points.

Purdue routs Seattle

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:29:00 +0000

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.- Sophomore guard Brittany Rayburn scored a career-high 26 points, while sophomore Chelsea Jones finished with a career-high 12 points to help lead No. 23 Purdue (2-0) past Seattle University 69-38. With the 26 points, Rayburn bested a previous career high of 23 points, which she set last game against Western Illinois. Rayburn was 7 of 13 from the field, including 7 of 8 from the free throw line and 5 of 8 from beyond the arc. Rayburn tied a career high with seven rebounds while dishing out four assists and collecting three steals. Jones finished her career night hitting 5 of 12 from the field, pulling down seven rebounds and blocking two shots. Freshman Sam Ostarello led all players with nine rebounds, leading the Boilers in that category for the second straight game. Senior guard FahKara Malone kept the offense moving with a game-high five assists. The 5-foot-3 point guard had three steals and now needs just 57 to set the school record for thefts. The Boilermaker defense forced 21 turnovers, blocking five shots and holding the Redhawks to 30 percent from the field. Purdue outrebounded Seattle 37-29. The Boilermakers had seven ýruns of 6-0 or more, with two separate runs of 10-0.

Iowa's Alexander out with stress fracture

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:48:00 +0000

IOWA CITY – University of Iowa junior Kachine Alexander will be sidelined for approximately one month with a stress fracture in her right leg. Head Coach Lisa Bluder made the announcement Friday. Alexander, a 5-9 junior from Minneapolis, MN, recorded double-doubles in each of Iowa's first three games of the season. She was named co-Big Ten Player of the Week last week after earning MVP honors of the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge. Alexander scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in Iowa's season-opening win over Santa Clara. She followed with a 21-point, 12-rebound performance against Illinois State. She scored 23 points and hauled in 17 rebounds against No. 19 Kansas Wednesday night. Alexander is the fifth Hawkeye player to suffer an injury early in the season. Senior JoAnn Hamlin had a blood clot removed in her leg, and is sidelined indefinitely. Sophomore Hannah Draxten will miss 1-2 weeks with a herniated disc in her back, while freshman Theairra Taylor will also miss 1-2 weeks with a fractured eye socket. Freshman Gabby Machado also missed Iowa's game against Santa Clara with an ankle sprain.

Wisconsin tops UW-Milwaukee

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:13:00 +0000

MADISON, Wis. – An 8-0 run late in the game led the Wisconsin women's basketball team to a 64-55 win over UW-Milwaukee on Thursday night. The Badgers win their first road game of the season at the Klotsche Center in Milwaukee and improve to 2-0 on the season. ""This is a tough place to play and we'll take the win,"" said UW coach Lisa Stone. ""When you're on the road, you expect to have some adverse situations but I'm proud of our kids for overcoming those situations."" Wisconsin controlled most of the game, leading by 14 points in the middle of the first half. The Panthers (2-1) didn't lead until 8:30 left in the game when they took a 48-47 lead on two free throws from Lindsay Laur. Two free throws from Tara Steinbauer with 7:14 remaining put the Badgers back up 49-48 but UWM tied the score at 49 off a free throw from Jenilee Klomstad. That's when Rae Lin D'Alie went to work, tallying two 3-pointers to lead the 8-0 run, putting Wisconsin up 57-49 with 3:57 remaining. The Badgers would up their lead to 60-50 with 1:19 left in the game, a lead that Milwaukee could not overcome. ""What I love about Rae is that she's such a fighter,"" said Stone of her senior point guard. ""She got the ball in her hands at the end of the game at important times."" D'Alie was one of four Badgers in double figures. Steinbauer led the UW with 15 points while D'Alie chipped in 14 points. Freshman Taylor Wurtz recorded her first double-figure scoring performance as a Badger, tallying 11 points. Lin Zastrow chipped in 10 points for Wisconsin. The Panthers were led by Laur with 19 points while Klomstad recorded a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. UWM out-rebounded the Badgers 42-31. Wisconsin was led by Zastrow with eight boards while Steinbauer pulled down seven. ""(Milwaukee) rebounded the basketball – that's one of their greatest strengths but we got them to turn it over,"" said Stone. ""I thought we did a decent job against the zone. But it was the little things. You have to do the little things right."" Wisconsin forced 20 turnovers by Milwaukee while the Badgers turned the ball over only seven times. UW had 11 steals, including four from D'Alie. Led by a career-high seven assists from Teah Gant, the Badgers dished out 17 dimes. ""The bottom line is that I thought we got really good looks tonight. The ball didn't go in the basket but that's what you have to do,"" said Stone. ""Your defense is always there when you're shots aren't going in and when you have games where your shot's not going in and you have only seven turnovers, that helps a lot."" The Badgers shot 39.0 percent from the field, hitting 23-of-59, including 9-of-21 from 3-point range. Wisconsin was 9-of-12 from the free throw line, not going to the line until the last seven minutes of play. ""I give lots of credit to Sandy (Botham) and the Milwaukee team. They did a great job,"" said Stone. ""We could not find a way to get to the free throw line."" Wisconsin jumped out to an 11-point lead, going up 15-4 with 13:12 remaining in the half. The Badgers controlled the play early on, upping their lead to 14 (28-14) with 6:54 remaining on a Taylor Wurtz 3-pointer. UW was scoreless for more than four minutes as Milwaukee cut the lead to three with 2:45 remaining. An Emily Neal 3-pointer ended the Badgers' scoring drought with 2:20 left in the period. The two teams traded buckets as Wisconsin maintained its lead as Wurtz hit a driving layup with only one second left to put the Badgers up 35-29 at the half. ""I challenged our team at halftime,"" said Stone. ""I talked about toughness. It was a short speech because we talked about toughness, (about) how when you're tired you have to work through fatigue. When you have to grind it out, you have to grind it out. It was a great lesson for our team because this is what we had to do tonight.""

Braun nets double-double in Indiana win

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:03:00 +0000

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Senior Jamie Braun collected 12 points and 10 rebounds and junior Hope Elam netted a team-high 15 points as Indiana beat Cincinnati, 64-57, in Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers (3-0) jumped out to an 11-3 lead in the first four and half minutes of the first half only to see the Bearcats (1-1) use an 8-2 run to cut IU's lead to two, 13-11. The Hoosiers closed out the half outscoring Cincinnati 23-12 to take a 36-23 lead into the break. Indiana opened the second half on a 9-6 run to take a 16-point lead, it's largest of the game, 45-29, with 14:23 on the clock. However, Cincinnati built up a 26-11 run to take a 57-56 lead with 2:14 left to play. Sophomore Sasha Chaplin sank one of two free throws with 1:57 on the clock to knot the score for a second time in the game. With 1:16 to go, sophomore Andrea McGuirt nailed what would be the game winning 3-pointer, which was followed by a jumper from Elam with just 31 seconds left to add a little cushion for IU. Elam then hit two more free throws with six seconds on the clock as the Hoosiers came away with the 64-57 win. Elam made 5-of-11 from the field, including a 3-pointer, and added five rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot. Braun sank 5-of-12 from the field, with two 3's, and tallied five assists and five steals. McGuirt scored eight points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field and sank 2-of-2 from the 3-point line to go along with two steals in 12 minutes in her first career start. Junior Jori Davis came off the bench and recorded seven points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. "We work hard in practice and go out there and focus on what we need to do," said Indiana head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. "If you do what you need to do I think the score takes care of itself." "Everyone steps up and we don't know who is going to be called upon," said McGuirt. "We are just always ready and which ever number is called we just have to come through." The Hoosiers shot 46.4 percent (26-of-56) from the field and 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from the 3-point line. IU just won the battle on the boards, 38-35. "There is always going to be growing, but I think it started out with the summer when we were all here bonding and working hard," said Braun. "We hang out (as a team) off the court, not only just on the court, and I think that just helps us out knowing what each other likes to do on the court and it brings us closer together." Indiana returns to action on Sunday, Nov. 22, when it hosts Missouri at 2 p.m. ET in Assembly Hall on the Big Ten Network.

Starting five pushes Michigan past Southern Miss

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:12:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- All five starters scored in double digits, led by 18 points from freshman guard Dayeesha Hollins (Cincinnati, Ohio/Winton Woods),as the University of Michigan women's basketball team beat Southern Mississippi on Thursday (Nov. 19), 91-54, inside Crisler Arena. The win moves the Wolverines to 3-0 on the season. Joining Hollins in double figures were senior center Krista Phillips (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) with 13 points, sophomore forward Carmen Reynolds (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) with 12 points and freshman Jenny Ryan (Saginaw, Mich./Nouvel Catholic Central) with 10 points. Junior guard Veronica Hicks (Chicago, Ill./Thornwood), who scored 12, and freshman forward Nya Jordan (Lathrup Village, Mich./Detroit Community) each posted six rebounds in the victory. The Wolverines held Southern Mississippi's leading scorer Pauline Love, who entered the game averaging 25 points and 12 rebounds, to just seven points and six rebounds. Despite owning a 17-point halftime lead, U-M's offense took a little bit of time to find its rhythm entering the second half, but Reynolds started things off with five points in the first four minutes of action and Hollins added six to push the U-M lead to 20 points. From there, the Wolverines coasted, never allowing the Lady Eagles to get closer than 22 points. Michigan played efficient basketball, recording 21 assists on 35 made field goals, and was equally effective on the defensive side of the ball, posting six blocks and 14 steals. Defense was the name of the game in the first half. U-M forced the Lady Eagles into four early turnovers and kept the ball out of Love's hands and jumped out to an early 19-5 lead. Phillips was a huge reason for U-M's early lead as she opened the game 4-of-5 from the floor and hit two free throws early to lead the team with 13 points in the opening frame. Southern Miss made up some ground with a 15-6 run midway through the half to cut the lead from 22-5 at 12:28 to 28-20 at the 5:48 mark. Three-point shooting made all the difference for Southern Mississippi in the first half as the Lady Eagles hit 5-of-7 for 71.4 percent. It was the opposite for the Wolverines, who were 50 percent from the floor on 15-of-30 shooting but were only 5-of-13 (.385) from behind the arc.

Lady Lions stampede Bison

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:32:00 +0000

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; November 19, 2009 — The Penn State Lady Lions (3-0) shook off the cobwebs of the hour-long bus ride to Lewisburg to turn in a dominating performance in a 77-62 win over Bucknell (0-3) Thursday night at Sojka Pavilion. Penn State landed four players in double figures for the second-straight game to move to 3-0 for the fourth-straight season. Sophomore Zhaque Gray (Chicago, Ill.) and freshman Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas) paced the Lady Lions with 11 points apiece. Gray also chipped in three rebounds, five assists and two steals, while Greene had three rebounds, three steals and a career-best three blocks. Freshman Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) turned in her second consecutive double-digit scoring performance with 10 tallies to go along with four assists. Senior Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio), who did not play in the first half, stretched her consecutive double-figure scoring streak to 15 games with 10 points. Junior Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) added eight points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. The Lady Lions got off to a quick start with back-to-back baskets by Meredith Monroe (Olney, Md.) and Gray to take a 4-0 lead just over a minute into the game. Penn State would make it a 7-2 margin before the Bison scored four consecutive points to cut the lead to 7-6 with less than 17 minutes left in the half. However, the Lions bounced back with a 7-0 thanks to four points by Trogele and three points by Greene to make it an eight-point game (14-6) with 14 and a half minutes on the clock. The lead remained eight for the next several minutes until the Bison went on a 5-0 run to cut the Lady Lion lead to three points at 18-15 with 10:42 left in the half. Gray sparked an 11-0 run for the Lady Lions with a three-pointer, which was followed by a basket by Bentley and four consecutive points by Renee Womack (Lansdale, Pa.). Gray capped the run with another bucket to make it 29-15 with seven and a half minutes to play. Bucknell sliced the lead to nine points with two and a half minutes left, but Penn State ended the frame with back-to-back baskets by Womack and Bentley to head into the locker room with a 39-27 lead. Gray and Womack led Penn State in the opening half with eight points and three rebounds apiece. Greene chipped in five points, two rebounds and a block, while Monroe and Trogele each chipped in two blocks in the opening frame. The lead remained steady at the start of the second half until a three-point play for Rachel Voss and a basket by Morgan Wrightson cut the Lady Lion lead to eight, but a layup by Greene stopped the Bucknell spurt and pushed the lead back to 10 (47-37) with just under 17 minutes left. Grant followed with her first basket of the game before Bentley knocked down a pair of free throws and Gray drained her second three-pointer of the game. Grant capped the 12-0 Lady Lion run with an old-fashioned three-point play to extend Penn State's lead to 20 points (57-37) with 14:23 remaining in the game. After an exchange of points, the Bison scored three straight points to cut the lead to 17 (59-42), but the Lady Lions responded as Grant was fouled on a three-point attempt. She made the first two shots, but came up short on the third. Marisa Wolfe (Ford City, Pa.) pulled in the rebound and knocked down a 12-footer to make it a 63-42 Lady Lion lead with 12:33 left in the game. The Lady Lions added to their lead with a three-pointer by Emily Phillips (South Bend, Ind.) and a layup by Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.) to push the margin to 26 points (68-42) with just over 10 minutes left. The Bison would not go quietly as they reeled off a 13-1 run thanks to a nearly five-minute field goal drought for Penn State that included six turnovers. With the score 71-57 and four minutes remaining, Trogele knocked down a pair of free throws and Bentley scored on a jumper to make it a 75-57 game. Bucknell outscored the Lady Lions 5-2 in the final three minutes to make it a 77-62 win for the Lady Lions.

Prahalis leads No. 3 Ohio State past West Virginia

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:17:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)—Samantha Prahalis had 14 points and 12 assists, and No. 3 Ohio State scored the first 17 points to roll past West Virginia 92-69 Thursday night in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT. The Buckeyes (3-0) will host Oklahoma State on Sunday in the championship game. Jantel Lavender led Ohio State with 19 points, and freshman Tayler Hill added 14. Brittany Johnson had 13, Shavelle Little 11 and Maria Moeller 10 for the balanced Buckeyes, who shot 60 percent from the field. Johnson hit two 3-pointers, Hill had five points and Prahalis four in the 17-0 burst during the first 4 minutes. The Mountaineers (2-1), who got 23 points from Liz Repella, pulled to 27-19 before the Buckeyes went on an 11-0 run.

Barlow leads No. 5 Notre Dame past MSU, 68-67

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:56:00 +0000

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP)—Ashley Barlow scored 18 points and hit a tiebreaking free throw with 10 seconds left, lifting No. 5 Notre Dame to a 68-67 victory over No. 21 Michigan State on Thursday night. The Spartans had a chance to win after Barlow's late foul shot for the Fighting Irish (2-0), but Aisha Jefferson missed a jumper with 4 seconds to go. Allyssa DeHaan led Michigan State (1-2) with 20 points. MSU trailed 45-35 when DeHaan limped off the court with an apparent ankle injury early in the second half. The Spartans, sparked by their defense and forcing turnovers, went on a 15-2 tear immediately afterward to grab a 50-47 lead with 11:52 remaining. DeHaan returned and increased Michigan State's lead to 56-51 with a basket with about 10 minutes to go. But the Irish regained the lead with an 8-0 run capped by Erica Williamson's layup with 8:41 left.

Illinois wins second straight, beats CMU

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:45:00 +0000

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Fighting Illini women's basketball team cruised to their second straight win Wednesday night at Assembly Hall, topping Central Michigan 77-59. Illinois never trailed in the game and dominated inside as senior center Jenna Smith had her third-straight double-double with 31 points and 12 rebounds and freshman forward Karisma Penn has 18 points, nine rebounds, five blocks and five assists. Senior Lacey Simpson also had a rare double-double combo of rebounds (16) and assists (11). Illinois (2-1) jumped all over the Chippewas (0-2) early with dominating inside play. Smith and Penn combined for the Illini's first 20 points of the game (each had 10) as the hosts raced out to a 20-8 lead just 7:38 into the first half. The Orange and Blue later had a 12-0 run midway through the first half, turning a 28-17 advantage at the 7:09 mark into a 40-17 lead with 3:29 to play. The Illini's largest lead was 27 points with 1:05 remaining in the half after sophomore Macie Blinn hit three straight three-pointers off the bench, but the Chippewas scored four quick points to make the halftime score 46-23. The Orange and Blue forced 15 CMU turnovers in the first half and converted that into a 21-4 edge in points off turnovers. In the second half, Illinois pushed the lead to as much as 28, leading 59-31 at the 13:01 mark, and cruised to the victory from there. For the game, Illinois shot 43.1 percent from the field (31-of-71) and dominated on the glass with a 49-35 rebounding advantage that included 18 offensive boards. The Illini also shared the ball well, dishing out 25 assists on the 31 made baskets. The 25 assists are the most for an Illini team since dropping 27 dimes on Rhode Island on Dec. 9, 2006. Illinois also collected 10 blocks as a team, paced by Penn's five swats, just one shy of the school record of 11. Smith, who was named to the Naismith Award Watch List earlier in the day, hit 12-of-20 from the field for her 31 points, just missing her career-high of 32 set exactly two years ago on Nov. 18, 2007 against Southern Illinois. Smith's point total moved her past the 1,600 point mark for her career as she finished the game with 1,611 points to move within 28 points of Angelina Williams' fourth-place total of 1,639 on the UI career scoring list. It was her 42nd straight game scoring in double-figures and was her 35th career double-double, which ties her for third on the UI career list with Cindy Dallas. Not to be outdone, fellow senior Simpson had a monster game despite putting up just two points on 1-of-8 shooting. Simpson pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds, including six offensive, and dished out 11 assists - just one shy of her career high. Defensively, Simpson not only added two blocks and two steals, but she completely shut-down CMU guard Shonda Long, holding her to three points on 1-of-7 shooting after she dropped seven threes and 30 points in the Chippewas' last game. Penn nearly had a third double-double for the Orange and Blue, hitting 8-of-15 from the field to match her point total from the last game. Blinn, meanwhile, provided some much-needed outside shooting to the mix by knocking down a career-high four three-pointers on seven attempts. Tonight's game was the second of three in a row at Assembly Hall for the Orange and Blue, who close out the homestand by hosting Bradley on Sunday, Nov. 22 at 1 p.m.

Kansas sends Iowa to season's first loss

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:42:00 +0000

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Throw out the first four minutes or the final six and the University of Iowa women's basketball team is celebrating its first victory over a nationally ranked opponent since last February. Instead, the Hawkeyes battled hard before falling 66-55 to Kansas, ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press poll on Wednesday. It is Iowa's first loss in three outings this season. "I thought we played pretty well, we just ran out of gas the last six minutes," UI head coach Lisa Bluder said. "Kansas is a great team and they'll do terrific. I don't feel like this was an 11-point differential." The Hawkeyes trailed 11-0 after the first 4:01, but tied the score, 13-13, on a three-point field goal by Kachine Alexander with 11:51 left in the half. There were four more ties in a first half that saw Iowa snag a 24-21 advantage on a layup by Alexander with 2:10 left before the break. While Kansas had five players score 10 or more points, Alexander was the only Hawkeye in double figures with 23 points, 17 rebounds, four assists and a steal in 36 minutes. "I just try to do as much for my team as possible," Alexander said. "I was just trying to do what I could for my team." Kamille Wahlin chipped in with nine points for Iowa, followed by Morgan Johnson with eight and Kelly Krei with six. A turn-around jumper by Johnson off an assist from Jaime Printy with 6:41 left in the game gave the Hawkeyes a 54-51 lead. They would stay in front until Kansas point guard Angel Goodrich spun through the lane and made a layup in the paint with 5:51 remaining. The Jayhawks went on an 11-1 run from that point to improve to 2-0 overall. "I'm proud to bring a good team in here, be competitive and get out with a W," Kansas head coach Bonnie Hendrickson said. Hendrickson was an assistant coach at Iowa for two seasons from 1994-96. "I have fond memories of here." Iowa missed its first nine shots, but never gave up and slowly clawed its way back into the game. Alexander broke the ice for the Hawkeyes with a layup that triggered a 10-0 scoring run. Included in that flurry was a conventional three-point play by Alexander, a three-point field goal by Wahlin and a layup by Wahlin with an assist from Alexander. "It comes down to heart," Johnson said. "We could either give up or try harder. We tried harder." Printy led the Hawkeyes with five assists. Iowa will have its first road experience of the season Sunday when the Hawkeyes travel to in-state rival Northern Iowa with a 3 p.m. tipoff from the McLeod Center.

Lavender's 30 lead Ohio State past UAB

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:01:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Jantel Lavender scored 21 of her 30 points in the first half and No. 3 Ohio State beat Alabama-Birmingham 88-55 on Tuesday night. Lavender came close to outscoring the Blazers in the first half when she hit 10 of 11 field goals en route to a 43-24 advantage for the Buckeyes. She made both of her shots in the second half and added five free throws before leaving the game with 10 1/2 minutes remaining and Ohio State comfortably ahead. Brittany Johnson had 15 points and Samantha Prahalis added 13 for the Buckeyes (3-0). Tamika Dukes led the Blazers (1-1) with 20 points and Amber Jones scored 11. UAB was within 19-17 before the Buckeyes gradually pulled away, helped by hitting nine straight field goals in the final seven minutes before halftime. The Buckeyes host West Virginia on Thursday in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT. The Buckeyes gave up a few offensive rebounds early which helped keep the Blazers close with eight second-chance points. However, the Buckeyes now own a 25-15 lead on the boards.

Gophers struggle on offense, lose at Utah

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:05:00 +0000

Minnesota dropped its first game of the season losing 60-59 to Utah in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. The Golden Gophers (1-1) were led by Ashley Ellis-Milan with 15 points. Despite struggling mightily on offense the entire game, Minnesota used its defense to stay in the contest. China Antoine playing for the fouled-out Brittany McCoy stole the ball with 1:32 left in the game and hit a three-pointer to bring the Gophers to within 58-55. Utah (1-1) missed a jumper on its next possession and Katie Ohm gathered in the rebound. She was later fouled and made one of two free throws with 45 seconds left (58-56). Utah rebounded the miss but turned the ball over due to the Gopher pressure defense with 29 seconds remaining. The Gopher offense was unable to convert on the biggest possession of the game as Jackie Voigt fired a pass over the head of Ellis-Milan notching a very costly turnover. The Gophers were forced to foul and leading scorer Kalee Whipple hit two important free throws to give the Utes a four-point lead at 60-56 with11 seconds left. Voigt hit a three-pointer with 1.8 seconds left. Minnesota started the game cold as ice shooting from the field and at one time was shooting just 21 percent from the floor, missing 11 of their first 14 shots. The Gophers trailed by only two points, 28-26, at the half despite finishing the half 9-of-31 from the field and 1-for-9 (11.1 percent) from three-point range. Utah lead the entire second half extending its lead to as big as nine points at 41-32 with 13:39 remaining. McCoy and Antoine both scored 10 points to join Ellis-Milan in double figures. Kiara Buford scored nine points in the first half, but went scoreless and 0-for-3 from the floor in the second half. The Gophers also came up on the short end of the rebounding battle as Utah maintained a 46-34 advantage, including a damaging 15 offensive rebounds. Minnesota returns home to host the Subway Classic this weekend.

UConn keeps up run at No. 1 in women's poll

DOUG FEINBERG — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:47:00 +0000

With a 70-point laugher in its opener, Connecticut looked every bit like the No. 1 team in women's basketball. If the Huskies can win their next game - and not much slapstick expected at No. 10 Texas - there may be no stopping them for quite a while. UConn remained a unanimous top choice in The Associated Press poll, receiving all 40 first-place votes Monday from the national media panel. The Huskies have been the top team the past 26 polls, including the last 17 as the unanimous choice. The first weekend in the regular season produced several blowouts and few changes near the top of the poll. Stanford was second again after winning at Old Dominion and Rutgers. Ohio State was No. 3 while North Carolina and Notre Dame switched places to round out the first five. It took only 5 minutes for UConn to score the first 28 points on its way to a 105-35 demolition of Northeastern on Saturday. The Huskies, who won by an average of 30 points a game last year in a perfect season, may face a stiffer test Tuesday night against the Longhorns in San Antonio. UConn should be able to breeze through its schedule after that game, with six of its next seven at home before facing Stanford on Dec. 23. Tennessee moved up two places after beating then-No. 7 Baylor at home Sunday. LSU climbed two spots to seventh after a 73-point dismantling of Centenary. The Tigers will face Middle Tennessee next on Wednesday. Baylor fell a spot to eighth. Xavier was ninth - cracking the top 10 for the first time in school history. Duke dropped five places to 11th after losing at Texas A&M on Sunday. The Blue Devils were followed by fellow ACC schools Virginia and Florida State. Arizona State moved up two spots to 14th. The Sun Devils visit Yale before heading to Xavier for a showdown with the Musketeers. Texas A&M jumped into the poll at No. 15 after beating the Blue Devils 95-77. It's one of the biggest leaps ever in the Top 25 over the last decade. Georgia moved up five places to 16th after its victory over then-No. 13 Oklahoma. California and DePaul were tied at 17th. They were followed by Kansas. Oklahoma dropped seven spots to No. 20. It's the Sooners lowest ranking since Dec. 26, 2005, when they were also 20th. Michigan State fell 11 places after losing to Dayton and barely beating Detroit. Vanderbilt, Louisville, Middle Tennessee and Mississippi State rounded out the Top 25. The Lady Bulldogs were ranked for the first time since the final poll of 2003. "We're happy we started 2-0 and the recognition is important for our program,'' Mississippi State coach Sharon Fanning-Otis said. Georgia Tech and Rutgers were the only teams to fall out.

Injury forces Illini freshman out for the year

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:22:00 +0000

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois freshman Amber Moore will miss the rest of the 2009-10 season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee Friday night in the Fighting Illini's season opener at Temple. "I really feel for Amber and her family," Illinois head coach Jolette Law said of Moore's injury. "She worked so hard leading up to the season and was coming into her own as a player. We are still expecting big things from Amber here at Illinois, we'll just have to wait a little longer to see what she can do. Her attitude has been very positive about this so far and I'm confident she'll come back stronger than before." Moore was injured with 4:01 left in the overtime period of Friday's game, the first game of her Fighting Illini career. She had eight points, including two three-pointers, in 22 minutes against the Owls. A native of Detroit, Mich., and a graduate of Country Day High School, Moore is scheduled for surgery in the coming weeks.

Michigan uses hot second half to down Marquette

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:21:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Freshman guard Dayeesha Hollins (Cincinnati, Ohio/Winton Woods) scored 10 of her 17 points as the Wolverines shot 57.7 (15-of-26) percent from the floor in the second frame to overcome a six-point halftime deficit and defeat Marquette, 67-50, on Monday night at Crisler Arena. Hollins was the game's leading scorer on 6-of-12 shooting and was joined in double figures by junior guard Veronica Hicks (Chicago, Ill./Thornwood) and sophomore forward Carmen Reynolds (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson), who had 13 and 11 points, respectively. Senior forward Ashley Jones (Southfield, Mich./Martin Luther King) posted a game-best 10 rebounds. The game was really a tail of two halves as Michigan struggled to find any offense in the first half but was able to use defense to force turnovers and keep the Golden Eagles from getting second-chance shots. It was a slow start for both teams with neither squad scoring a bucket until four minutes had gone off the game clock. Marquette was able to jump out to a 5-0 lead, but the U-M defense forced several turnovers and was able to get a little offense going and cut the Marquette lead to 7-7 early with two early jumpers from Hollins. Marquette used a 13-1 run late in the half to open up a 10-point lead at 26-16, its largest lead of the half, but buckets from senior guard Kalyn McPherson (Traverse City, Mich./West) and Hicks gave the Golden Eagles a six-point lead heading into the break. Statistically speaking, Marquette was getting to the foul line and making things happen. In the first half, the Golden Eagles reached the foul line six more times than the Wolverines and were 11-of-13 from the charity stripe as opposed to U-M, which was 4-of-7 from the line. In addition, U-M was 0-for-5 from long range. Trailing Marquette by six points at halftime, the Wolverines opened the second half with a sense of urgency. U-M got itself right back into the game in the opening minutes behind a 15-9 run, sparked by baskets from Reynolds and Hicks and tied the game at 35-35 at the 12:51 mark of the second half. The teams traded baskets and Marquette took a 39-38 lead on a three-pointer from Angel Robinson but that was the last deficit they faced as the Wolverines went on a 30-11 run to close out the game and move to 2-0 on the season. Jones was key throughout the first several minutes of the second half, coming up with several defensive stops as well as creating havoc for the Marquette guards under the basket. Reynolds, who scored 19 points and had five three-pointer in U-M's last game, started to heat up from behind the arc in the second half, and with a three-pointer at the 10:55 mark, gave U-M's its first lead of the game. The Wolverines, who were 0-for-5 from behind the arc in the first half, found their range in the second half and ended the game with six three-pointers. The Wolverines close out their three-game season-opening homestand against Southern Mississippi on Thursday (Nov. 19). Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in Crisler Arena.

Illini bounce back, destroy Siena, 85-53

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:06:00 +0000

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois rebounded from Friday's season-opening overtime loss at Temple in a big way Sunday afternoon, running all over Siena for an 85-53 victory at Assembly Hall. The Illini shot 62.5 percent from the field and forced 34 turnovers to win their 12th straight home-opener. A pair of freshmen led the scoring attack as Karisma Penn had a game-high 18 points and Adrienne Godbold added 14, while Jenna Smith notched her 34th career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in limited action. There was a lot of talk heading into the season about Coach Jolette Law's squad having a new look, and that has proven to be true thus far. The Illini have pressed and run their way to 78 and 85 points in the first two games. Last season, the team's season-high was 66. On Sunday, Illinois got 49 points off turnovers and 26 off of fast breaks, numbers that were unheard of a year ago. The Illini were on fire offensively in the first half, hitting 18 of their first 24 shots (75 percent) overall and finishing the half shooting 68.8 percent en route to a 50-36 lead at the break. The 50 points in the half is the most since Illinois scored 50 in the second half of a 91-58 win over South Carolina on Nov. 23, 2007, and equals the highest point total in a half in the Jolette Law era at Illinois. Penn led the way at halftime with 11 points, while Smith had eight points and eight boards. In the second half, the Fighting Illini came out with a mission: to shut down Siena defensively. They did just that, holding the Saints to just three points over the first 12 minutes to extend the lead to 72-39 with a 22-3 run. The stifling Illinois defense held Siena to just 3-of-23 from the field (13 percent) and forced 19 turnovers in the second half alone. The Illini, meanwhile, cooled off a bit in the second half, shooting 54.2 percent (13-of-24) to finish at 62.5 for the game (35-of-56). Illinois' freshmen were sensational as Penn hit 8-of-13 from the field and had four steals and two blocks to go along with her 18 points. Godbold hit 5-of-6 from the field and 2-of-2 from three-point range for her 14 points. Brianna Jones had six points in 13 minutes of action and Kersten Magrum had three points and five rebounds in her 17 minutes. In all, the four freshmen that suited up Sunday combined for 41 points and 16-of-25 shooting (64.0 percent). The Orange and Blue played without freshman guard Amber Moore, who injured her knee during Friday's game at Temple and is awaiting the results of an MRI, and freshman forward Destiny Williams, who was not with the team today due to a coaches decision. Sunday's victory wasn't all about the freshmen, however. Senior leader Lacey Simpson was well on her way to a triple-double with seven points, six assists and six steals but played only 14 minutes because of first-half foul trouble and the large second half lead. Smith hit 5-of-7 from the field and scored in double-figures for the 41st consecutive game. She sat the final 13:22 of the game after securing her second straight double-double to open the season. Illinois nearly broke the school record of 63.8 percent shooting for a game set in 1986, but two misses in the final 30 seconds left the Illini at 62.5 percent, equaling the fourth-best single game shooting performance in school history. It marked the first time Illinois shot over 60 percent from the field since shooting 60.8 percent against UCLA on Dec. 19, 2004. The Illini's 34 forced turnovers marks the most since forcing 36 against Loyola on Nov. 18, 2005. Maja Gerlyng led Siena with 13 points, while Champaign native Allie Lindemann had seven points on 3-of-6 shooting.

Iowa tops Illinois St., wins Hawkeye Challenge

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 18:42:00 +0000

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Kachine Alexander doesn't just talk about "hustle plays," she lives them. The University of Iowa junior had four steals and many other aggressive contributions that don't always show up in a box score to lead the Hawkeyes to the championship and earn most valuable player honors at the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge on Sunday. "What do you say about Kachine?" UI head coach Lisa Bluder said. "If people don't want to come watch her play, they're just silly. They're missing an opportunity to see a player that is so good at crashing and keeping the ball alive and continuing to persevere." Alexander scored 21 points with 12 rebounds, four steals, four assists and two blocked shots as Iowa defeated Illinois State, 75-67, in the tournament final. The Hawkeyes are off to a 2-0 start for the third time in the last four seasons. The Redbirds, favorite to win the Missouri Valley Conference, fall to 1-1. Alexander was joined on the all-tournament team by sophomore point guard Kamille Wahlin. Wahlin was the second of four Hawkeyes to score in double figures with 15. Her three-point field goal with 3 minutes, 51 seconds remaining gave Iowa the lead for good at 64-63. On the preceding Hawkeye series, Wahlin fed the ball inside to center Morgan Johnson, who was fouled and made 1 of 2 free throws to pull Iowa within 63-61. Seven straight Hawkeye points came from the free throw line from 10:04 until Wahlin's trey. "Sometimes your shots fall and sometimes they don't," Wahlin said. "When I got my feet set on the one three-pointer, it felt good and it went in. Your focus has to be on finishing the game." Did the Hawkeyes ever finish the game. Illinois State was stuck on 63 points from the 6:18 mark until Maggie Krick converted a layup with 1:05 left, cutting Iowa's advantage to 68-65. The Redbirds led by five points twice during the second half, including a 56-51 edge with 10:20 left. "I'm really proud of our players for this win," Bluder said. "This is a great victory for us. It shows how much character these women have to be able to hold their heads high after what they've been through. Losing four players in one week's time is tough for any team to handle." The injured list for the Hawkeyes includes senior JoAnn Hamlin (blood clot in her leg), sophomore Hannah Draxten (disc in back), and freshmen Gabby Machado (ankle) and Theairra Taylor (facial injury). Iowa attempted 26 three-point field goals (making nine) against Illinois State and the Hawkeyes were 22 of 30 from the free throw line. Sophomore Kelly Krei, known for her speed and athleticism, dialed long distance four times in the first half and shared game-high scoring honors with 12 points at the break. "Kelly hits four three-pointers in the first half and that was just tremendous," Bluder said. "She took advantage of what they were giving her." Krei finished with 15 points. The other Hawkeye in double figures was freshman Jaime Printy, who totaled 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists. "Jaime's maturity showed out there," Bluder said. "She didn't look like a freshman. She didn't get nervous down the stretch." Printy scored 11 points in the second half. She sank a three-pointer with just over 10 minutes remaining to cut into a five-point Illinois State lead. One of her most impressive plays was with 65 seconds remaining. Printy drove the lane, challenged Redbird 6-foot-5 center Nicolle Lewis, and made a field goal that extended Iowa's lead to five points. Only six Iowa players were on the court for 16 or more minutes. The lone bench points for the Hawkeyes came on a first-half three-pointer by Kelsey Cermak. So without depth, Iowa relied on hustle. So what was Alexander's favorite "hustle play" in a game full of them? "Probably running into my coaches," Alexander said with a laugh. "I guess the last one. It was at the end of the game -- the off-the-leg one." Even with just 3.1 seconds remaining and the Hawkeyes holding an insurmountable eight-point lead, Alexander was still searching for hustle plays. She batted a ball off the leg of an Illinois State player, who helplessly watched it roll out-of-bounds and over to the victorious Hawkeyes. Iowa returns to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 18, to play Kansas with a 7 p.m. tip. Paraphrasing the words of Bluder, it's more than silly to not want to watch Alexander and the Hawkeyes in action. It's a shame.