The women’s Big Ten tournament has another jam-packed day on Friday, with four games on the slate. Opening day didn’t provide much drama, as the four games were decided by an average margin of 27 points. The last three games were won by 32, 32, and 29 points. Ugh.
All games are on the Big Ten Network (and BTN2Go).
Now it’s day two and we hope for some competitive games.
No. 2 Ohio St 57, No. 8 Michigan 48.
In what was by far the best (and closest) game of the tournament, so far, Ohio St got by rival-Michigan 57-48.
[Click here for the box score.]
Nobody was particular spectacular in the low-scoring contest. Michigan played a slower tempo style that kept it primarily a half-court game.
The Buckeyes’ Tayler Hill scored a game-high 19 points and also added four rebounds and four steals. Neither team shot very well, Ohio State at 38-percent and Michigan had a 35-percent clip. Coach Foster said postagme that there wasn’t much significance to the win other than it meant they advance to the semi-finals. Also of note, All-American Samantha Prahalis became Ohio State’s all-time leader in assists in today’s game after contributing to five buckets.
For the tournament and Indianapolis’ sake, it’s great for Ohio State to stay alive and remain in contention. They clearly brought the most fans of any team. They will now play Nebraska, who beat Iowa, tomorrow at 5:00 p.m.
No. 6 Nebraska 80, No. 3 Iowa 68.
Finally, our first upset, well — on paper at least. Playing in their first Big Ten tourney, Nebraska is making some noise. The game was very tight in the first half but controlled by Iowa, who took a three point lead into the break. The Hawkeyes made turned it over in the final seconds of the first half, giving Nebraska time for another opportunity and they converted.
[Click here for the box score.]
Nebraska’s Lindsey Moore knocked in a three-point heave to beat the buzzer and cut the deficit to three. They then came out firing in the second half, and outscored Iowa 47 to 32. The Hawkeyes got in foul trouble, four players have four fouls. And they were without their star, Jamie Printy, who was out with a season-ending injury.
Moore tallied 26 points, shooting an impressive 10-of-15 from the field and 4-of-5 from outside. Jordan Hooper, who has one of the best names in basketball, registered a double-double (15 and 10) in just 21 minutes of play because she got in early foul trouble.
The Huskers will battle No. 2 Ohio State Saturday at 5:00 p.m.
No. 1 Penn State 78, No. 8 Minnesota 74
To open the second session Friday, top-seeded Penn State edged No. 8 Minnesota 78-74. Like the previous game, the loser led at halftime but was outscored by double-digits in the final 20 minutes.
[Click here for the box score.]
Sharpshooter Maggie Lucas led the Nittany Lions with 24 points (9-9 at the charity stripe) and she grabbed seven rebounds. Indianapolis-native Alex Bentley chipped in 12 points, dished out five assists and seven steals.
When Penn State went ahead by 13, Minnesota didn’t give up and cut the lead down to four. They then were forced to foul in the final minute but couldn’t quite complete the comeback.
Rachel Banham scored a game-high 25 points and finished one rebound shy of a double-double. Jackie Voigt made a nice contribution off the bench, adding 10 points and three assists.
Minnesota wasn’t happy about the officiating, both their bench and fans made that clear. They were called for seven more fouls in the game and at one point in the second half, they had 10 fouls to three. While on this note, is there anything more annoying than a fan harassing an official. They were in my ear all night.
No. 4 Purdue 73, No. 5 Michigan State 64.
Michigan State was coming off a 29-point win over Indiana on Thursday, but Purdue was too much handle. The Boilers shot a blazing 63-percent from outside, led by Brittany Rayburn who made her first seven three-pointers. Rayburn finished with 29 points and was one of three Purdue players in double-figures. In addition to Rayburn’s efficiency from downtown, Purdue as a team connected on 15-of-16 shots at the line. A sign of a quality team.
[Click here for the box score.]
Michigan State played well in spurts, with Lykendra Johnson carrying the load as she had a double-double (23 and 11). Purdue was very productive, scoring 18 points off 12 Spartan turnovers.
Saturday, its Ohio State versus Nebraska at 5 p.m. and Penn State against Purdue to follow, both on the Big Ten Network.