Feb. 3, 2013
- Iowa-Northwestern Game Highlights
- Read the February issue of Hawk Talk Monthly
- IowaWomensBasketball.com
- 2013 NCAA 1st and 2nd Round Information
- Order Iowa Women’s Basketball Tickets Online
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPhone/ipad app!
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye Android app!
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
- 2013 Big Ten Tournament Information
By ERIC CLARK
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Northwestern sophomore Karly Roser’s layup as time expired handed the No. 24/25 University of Iowa women’s basketball team a 67-65 setback Sunday afternoon on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Down 65-63, UI sophomore Melissa Dixon drained a jump shot from the wing with 6.9 seconds left to even the game at 65, but the Wildcats quickly inbounded the ball and Roser’s lay-up stunned the 4,697 fans in attendance.
“It was a great college basketball game,” said Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown. “We were fortunate enough to make one more play at the end.”
The Hawkeyes handled Northwestern in the first half, as they entered halftime with an 11-point lead while holding the Wildcats to 29.6 percent shooting from the field.
“In the first half, our defense was excellent,” said UI head coach Lisa Bluder.
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The Wildcats turned the tables on the Hawkeyes in the second half, shooting 59.4 percent from the field, and scoring 49 points. Senior Morgan Johnson picked up her fifth foul with 8:51 remaining, and her absence hurt the squad.
“They definitely have a size advantage to begin with at all positions, so without Morgan, it was even tougher,” Bluder said. “It hurt our height and experience inside, and that was unfortunate.”
Sunday’s home loss to Northwestern comes less than a week after the Hawkeyes cracked both the Associated Press and USA Today polls, ranking No. 24 and No. 25, respectively.
Melissa Dixon paced the Hawkeyes off the bench, scoring 21 points, 18 of which came from beyond the 3-point line. Her six 3-pointers match the Carver Hawkeye Arena record and her career high.
“My teammates did a good job driving and drawing my defender, so I was pretty wide open on a couple of the 3-pointers,” Dixon said. “After the first couple, it gave me a lot of confidence that the next one was going in.”
Bluder lauded Dixon’s performance off the bench.
“She’s a great spark, and you want that spark coming off the bench,” she said. “We have the perfect person in that role. Melissa is playing it beautifully for us.”
Sophomore Samantha Logic posted a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, with six coming on the offensive and defensive end.
While Logic and Dixon had impressive performances, the Hawkeyes struggled shooting the ball as a whole.
“We definitely have to start running our offense and start working together,” Bluder said. “It’s really odd to me that we are not doing it, because it’s worked so well for us in the past.”
Senior Jaime Printy finished with 12 points and went 8-of-8 from the charity stripe.
“You can’t focus too much on the negatives,” Printy said. “We’ve got to get ready for the next game.”
Northwestern senior Kendall Hackney led the comeback for the Wildcats, finishing with 18 points, 16 of which came in the second half. All but one of the Northwestern starters scored in double figures.
“We have dug ourselves a big hole, that’s for certain,” said Bluder. “We have to put the pressure back on ourselves.”
Iowa (16-7, 5-4) returns to action Thursday night at Minnesota beginning at 7:30 p.m. (CT).