IU in good position for tournament play

Michigan and IU were fighting for their postseason lives Sunday in front of 1,832 fans at Assembly Hall.\nWith IU's convincing 73-51 win, the Hoosiers (17-8, 8-6 Big Ten) are one step closer to the NCAA tournament. The Wolverines (16-10, 9-6) are on life support.\n"We knew we had to get them to continue our dream of getting to the NCAA tournament," coach Kathi Bennett said. "Again, we took one step towards that."\nThe Hoosiers never trailed in the game and led by as many as 23 points midway through the second half. After scoring 52 points in the second half of its upset win against No. 25 Iowa Thursday, Michigan scored 51 points Sunday against IU, the Wolverines' lowest output of the season. \nMichigan shot 23 percent on nine-of-39 shooting in the second half and never threatened the Hoosier lead. After the loss, Michigan coach Sue Guevara said she knew her team's NCAA tournament hopes are in jeopardy.\n"Both teams are on the bubble with the NCAA tournament," Guevara said. "We're fighting for our lives. And right now, we're on a respirator."\nThe win ensures IU will finish the Big Ten season with at least a .500 record and gives the Hoosiers a tiebreaker over the Wolverines in the Big Ten standings.\nIf both teams won their remaining conference games, they would finish tied in fifth place at 10-6. But IU would be seeded ahead of Michigan as a result of Sunday's game. The difference between the No. 5 and No. 6 seeds at the Big Ten tournament is large because the sixth seed would have to play on the tournament's opening day, while the No. 5 team gets the first day off.\n"We're guaranteed of being .500 in the Big Ten, and that's huge," Bennett said. "Now, we have two games left and a shot to get to the NCAA tournament and we're very motivated to do that."\nIU finishes the season at home Thursday against Illinois (13-13, 8-6), and then on the road Sunday at Northwestern (4-20, 0-14).\nIU's win has serious NCAA tournament implications. The Hoosiers sit 33rd in Sunday's Ratings Percentage Index, which mathematically ranks Division-I teams. The win against Michigan, the RPI's No. 44 team, could boost IU on the NCAA projection lists.\nAfter Michigan's upset win Thursday against Iowa, the Wolverines had an advantage in making the NCAA tournament. But Michigan must beat Penn State in its last regular-season game to have a serious chance of an NCAA berth, Guevara said.\n"I told the girls, we have to win that game," Guevara said. "You can look at it two ways: It's a lot of pressure, and you choke or you really embrace the challenge you know have."\nIllinois, who beat Michigan State 52-50 Sunday, still has an outside shot at the NCAA tournament. The Illini must win its last two games, the first Thursday against IU in Bloomington. Even with two wins, the Illini are still a long shot for the NCAA tournament.\nBennett said she thinks the Big Ten is a strong enough conference to send both IU and Michigan to the tournament along with Purdue, Penn State, Wisconsin and Iowa. Those six teams will finish the conference season with above-.500 records.\nJunior forward Erin McGinnis, who had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting Sunday, including 3-of-4 from three-point range, said the Hoosiers needed to win against Michigan.\n"We knew that we had to prove ourselves," McGinnis said. "This is a big win for our tournament standings. This was a very huge game"