Feb. 4, 2007
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -Jessica Davenport took advantage of an injury to Iowa’s tallest player to score 22 points to lead No. 5 Ohio State past the Hawkeyes 85-49 on Sunday.
The win was the Buckeyes’ 26th in a row at home to tie a school record. It was also Ohio State’s 14th straight win since falling 75-51 at No. 9 LSU on Dec. 10, and 27th in a row against Big Ten teams.
Davenport, the conference’s top scorer and rebounder, also became only the second Big Ten player with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
The 6-foot-5 center hit 6 of 7 shots from the field, 10 of 11 free throws and also had five rebounds, four blocked shots and three steals in 29 minutes.
Brandie Hoskins added 16 points, six assists and four rebounds, Star Allen had 11 points and Marscilla Packer 10 for the Buckeyes (21-1, 10-0 Big Ten), off to their best start ever. They have won 36 of their past 37 regular-season games.
Wendy Ausdemore had 12 points and Lindsey Nyenhuis 11 for the Hawkeyes (11-12, 3-7), who have lost five in a row.
The Hawkeyes were without their leading scorer, 6-6 center Megan Skouby, who is one of the few post players in the Big Ten who can match up physically with Davenport. Skouby sustained a broken left (non-shooting) hand during practice on Saturday that could sideline her for up to a month. She was replaced in the starting lineup by 6-2 Stacy Schlapkohl.
The Hawkeyes scored first but the Buckeyes then ran off the next 16 points – Davenport taking over inside to score seven points.
Iowa recovered from that early drought of nearly 6 minutes to pull to 25-18 before Blanton hit a 3 from the right corner and Allen made a short shot off an assist from Maria Moeller.
The Buckeyes led 45-32 at the half, shooting 62 percent from the field. Davenport had 13 points and Hoskins added 10 points with five assists.
Ohio State then went on a 14-0 run to start the second half with Davenport scoring five points and four teammates also scoring.
Davenport grabbed her fifth rebound of the game – and 1,000th of her career – midway through the second half to become only the second Big Ten player with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. The only previous player was Minnesota’s Laura Coenen (1981-85).
Ohio State’s senior class of Davenport, Hoskins and Stephanie Blanton ran its record to 101-19.
The Buckeyes’ home winning streak matches a school record set from Jan. 5, 1987, to Dec. 3, 1988. The streak equals the nation’s second-longest home winning streak, tying Bowling Green at 26 behind LSU’s 42-game streak.