Purdue’s defense and free throws down the stretch proved to be the determining factors in a close win against the Indiana women’s basketball team 55-50 Sunday afternoon.
By getting out to an early lead at Assembly Hall, the Boilermaker defense was able to put the needed pressure on the Hoosiers’ high-powered offense for much of the game. Purdue’s guards were successful in shutting down IU’s All-American Candidate Jori Davis, keeping her to 12 points, well under her 18.9 average.
Neither team was giving the other much chance to run an offense, but Purdue was able to seize a 19-11 lead six minutes into the game. Soon after, the momentum seemed to have shifted as the Hoosiers started playing much tougher defense, resulting in easier shots and fast break opportunities.
Purdue’s offense did not score for more than 10 minutes, allowing the Hoosiers to gain their first lead of the day at 22-19 after Jr. Aulani Sinclair hit three free throws. Purdue’s Chelsea Jones was able to end their shooting drought by converting two free throws, making the score 22-21 at the end of the half.
“We knew it was going to be a tough battle,” said Purdue’s coach Sharon Versyp. “Defense was the thing that was going to be the big key.”
Going into the game, Indiana was leading the Big Ten in conference scoring with with 72 points per game, but had trouble hitting shots against Purdue.
The Boilermakers quickly regained the lead after the break when Courtney Moses hit a 3-pointer to make the score 24-22, Purdue. By continuing their strong defense, the Boilers were able to hold on to their lead for much of the second half, but could not seem to silence Indiana’s Whitney Lindsay. Lindsay led all scorers with 18 points, and gave the Hoosiers a needed boost on offense throughout much of the game.
After cutting Purdue’s lead to one with 1:46 left in the game, the Hoosiers missed two important shots, which allowed the Boilers to take more than a minute off of the clock. With 33 seconds left, Courtney Moses made two free throws for a 53-50 advantage after Jori Davis was called for the foul.
IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack quickly called timeout. Once play resumed, the Hoosiers tried to find an open shot, but Purdue’s defense was suffocating as IU wasted 20 seconds before Aulani Sinclair missed a 3-point shot.
“We were supposed to execute the play,” Lindsay said. “But we didn’t. It shouldn’t have come down to the last shot, we had opportunities throughout the game.”
After a quick IU foul, there was 10 seconds left in the game with Moses again heading to the line. After draining both free throws, Purdue had a 55-50 lead and the victory.
“We were determined to get our defense going,” Purdue’s Brittany Rayburn said. “We knew it was a big key, and when we started we didn’t quit.”
Indiana played strong defense throughout, but could not come up with key plays down the stretch.
“We did a great job defensively, we certainly did not take advantage of it offensively,” said a frustrated Legette-Jack after the game. “It was great that we played defense, but at the end of the day you have to score.”
Purdue improved its record to 11-5, 2-2, while Indiana fell to 8-8, 2-2 Big Ten.
The Hoosiers will look to bounce back as the Fighting Illini visit Bloomington Thursday, January 13.
