Michigan
10-17, 3-13Big
Iowa
18-9, 11-5Big T
Michigan Rally Falls Short in Loss to Iowa
2/22/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Score: Iowa 68, Michigan 64
Records: Michigan (10-17, 3-13 Big Ten), Iowa (19-9, 11-5 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Thursday, Feb. 26 -- at Purdue, 7 p.m. (West Lafayette, Ind.)
Boxscore | Postgame Notes | Photo Gallery | Video Report
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- In the home finale, Iowa's Kachine Alexander hit three critical free throws late in the game to help the Hawkeyes pull out a 68-64 win over the University of Michigan women's basketball team on Sunday afternoon (Feb. 22) in Crisler Arena.
U-M pulled within one possession in the final 12 seconds of the game with a three-pointer from Michigan's leading scorer, senior forward Carly Benson(Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School). Benson posted a team-high 17 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the floor and 3-of- 9 shooting from long range, while sophomore guard Veronica Hicks (Chicago, Ill./Thornwood) and senior forward Melinda Queen(Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg) also scored in double figures with 16 and 11 points, respectively. Hicks also tied her career high in rebounds with a team-high seven.
Michigan, which trailed by as much as 16 points in the second half, cut the lead to single digits for the first time since early in the first half with a basket from Hicks, starting a 12-4 run that cut the Hawkeye lead all the way down to eight points at the 7:13 mark. Michigan was able to chip away at Iowa's lead down the stretch, but Alexander's late free throws sealed the Hawkeye win.
Wendy Ausdemore led the Hawkeyes with a game-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor, including a trio of three-pointers. Kristi Smith was also in double figures with 13 points and added two of Iowa's seven three-pointers.
Benson hit the first two baskets out of the halftime break to cut the Iowa lead to 31-25 within the first three minutes of the second half, but an 8-2 Iowa run extended its lead to 41-27 with just under 15 minutes remaining. Senior guard Jessica Minnfield(Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic) hit some key baskets late in the game, including her first three-point basket of the afternoon, to cut the Iowa lead to 49-38 midway through the half.
Iowa jumped out to a 10-2 lead to start the game, but the Wolverines were able to start their offense on the defensive side of the floor and, with three consecutive blocks from senior forward Stephany Skrba(Toronto, Ontario/Langstaff Secondary School), Queen and Benson, went on a 5-0 run to cut the Iowa lead to 10-7 at the 14:14 mark.
That was as close as U-M got for the remainder of the half as the Hawkeyes outscored U-M 21-13 the rest of the half to take a 31-20 lead into the halftime intermission. Iowa dominated the Wolverines on the glass, outrebounding U-M 31-17, but the Wolverines held a 5-0 advantage in the blocks category.
The Wolverines begin a two-game road swing on Thursday (Feb. 26) when they head to West Lafayette, Ind., to take on the Purdue Boilermakers. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in Mackey Arena. Fans can catch the action live on BigTenNetwork.com and on WLBY AM 1290 with Wolverine play-by-play announcer Matt Park on the call.
Contact: Jessica Poole (734) 763-4423
