Despite 28 points from senior guard Jori Davis, Indiana fell to Iowa 93-79 Sunday at Assembly Hall.
Iowa sophomore Jaime Printy finished the game with 28 points as she shot lights-out from the free-throw line, finishing the day 10-10.
It was National Girls and Women in Sports Day, and Assembly Hall was ready for some quality women’s basketball. The band played loud and the fans cheered wildly as the four seniors were introduced for the last time at Assembly Hall.
Fans got to witness history as Jori Davis moved into eighth place on the all-time scoring list with 1,565 points.
“I am proud of my seniors,” Indiana Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “They set the stage for Indiana University Women’s Basketball.”
Both teams struggled maintaining control of the ball the first five minutes of the game, exchanging turnovers. Once the teams settled down, they both started to get into rhythm and the shoot-out began.
Jaime Printy of the Hawkeyes (22-7, 10-6) was a dominant force throughout the entire game. She shot a perfect 5 for 5 from the floor during the first half, and continued to make her presence felt in the second.
The Hoosiers (9-19, 3-13) had an effective team offensive and defensive strategy, as they came out scoring at will and lead the Hawkeyes by eight with 11:10 remaining in the first half. The Hoosiers held the Hawkeyes to just four points in the paint during the first half, while they dominated with 18.
With 7:32 left in the first half, the Hoosiers held a two-point lead before the Hawkeyes went on a 9-0 run to recapture the lead, 31-24. The Hoosiers knew they had to make a statement at the end of the first, and they did just that.
The Hoosiers cut the Hawkeye lead to just a point with 26 seconds left before Kamille Wahlin nailed a 3-pointer to put the Hawkeyes up 38-34 with seven seconds remaining.
While the Hoosiers dominated the points in the paint, the Hawkeyes did the same at the free-throw line, getting there 16 times compared to IU’s three in the first half.
The Hawkeyes led by double digits throughout most of the second half before IU pulled within three with 13:26 left. They were a rebound and basket away from narrowing the margin even more, but they could not capitalize when it meant the most.
The Hawkeyes kept giving the Hoosiers opportunities to get back into the game, but nobody rose to the occasion. The Hawkeyes then went on a 12-0 run to totally nullify any comeback by the Hoosiers.
The Hoosiers never got it back to a single-digit deficit after that. Despite contributing 76 percent of the team’s total offense (60 of 79), the Hoosier seniors could not get it done at their last outing in Assembly Hall.
“It was a tough year when talking about wins and losses, but it was a great year when it comes to the characteristics of my seniors,” Leggette-Jack said. “They always held their head high no matter what adversity they were put through.”
