Hawkeyes Move On; Overwhelm Hoosiers

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Jan. 16, 2011

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PARDON OUR PROGRESS! As friends of the UI and fans of the Hawkeyes know, the UI Athletics Department is well into a multi-million dollar revitalization of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. This important and exciting project has reduced for this season the number of ticket windows that are operational on game nights. Fans attending the home events of the 2010-11 UI men’s basketball, women’s basketball and wrestling teams are invited to avoid game night delays by purchasing their event tickets online or in advance of game day. If your schedule doesn’t allow for an advance purchase, we recommend you consider arriving at the Arena a little earlier than originally planned. Go Hawks!

By ADAM MEIER

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Bouncing back from a heart-breaking defeat is never an easy thing to do, but the Hawkeyes clearly put Thursday’s last second loss to Michigan State in the rear-view mirror.

Iowa controlled the entire game, cruising to a 71-51 victory over Indiana on Sunday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“Every loss is tough, especially when you lose at the buzzer,” said sophomore Jamie Printy of Thursday’s loss at Michigan State. “Tonight we came out and showed that we can bounce back and we always do.”

Iowa came out blazing, starting the game with a 6-0 run and holding a double-digit lead for much of the first half.

Leading 27-10, the Hawkeyes allowed an 8-0 Indiana run, which cut the lead to single-digits. Trisha Nesbitt then drilled a three pointer out of a timeout, pushing the lead back up to 11 with just over five minutes to play in the first half. Freshman Jade Rogers followed with back-to-back buckets to keep Iowa comfortably ahead, and the first half ended with the Hawkeyes leading 38-26.

Iowa started the second half just as furious as first, scoring the first five points sparked by a Kachine Alexander breakaway layup.

“We did not hang our heads on that loss (to Michigan State),” said Alexander. “You have to keep looking forward and I’m very proud of our team for coming out with this win.”

Iowa’s defense was suffocating as Indiana was held without a field goal for the first seven minutes of the second half. A big reason for the Hoosiers’ struggles on offense was the defensive play of Alexander and Kelly Krei on IU’s leading scorer, Jori Davis. Davis, who entered the game averaging over 18 points per contest, was limited to just 10 points on 2-of-11 shooting.

“I thought Kash did a nice job on Davis,” said UI head coach Lisa Bluder. “She’s a player that could have 30 easily, and I like it that she held her well below her average.”

The Hawkeye defense held the Hoosiers to 26 percent shooting (14-55) overall from the field, while Iowa shot better than 36 percent (20-55), which included seven three-point field goals.

Midway through the second half, Indiana used an 8-0 run to trim the deficit to single-digits, but a three-pointer and two free throws by Printy quickly gave the momentum back to the Hawkeyes. Printy lead the team with 18 points, while Alexander recorded her fifth double-double of the season, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds, on top of her seven steals.

A Kamille Wahlin driving layup with 7:27 remaining brought the lead to 17 and from there, the Hawkeyes didn’t look back. Iowa then grabbed its largest lead of the contest (65-42) courtesy of a pair of Kalli Hansen free throw with 1:44 remaining.

Good teams put tough losses behind them, and on Sunday that is exactly what Iowa did.

The Hawkeyes now have a week to prepare for a rematch with the Buckeyes, as they head to Columbus on Jan. 24.