Hoosiers triumph

GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - Coach Kathi Bennett didn't want her team to play on the Big Ten Tournament's first day. \nAgainst Minnesota Thursday, they really didn't have to.\nBennett's starters sat much of the second half and the seventh-seeded Hoosiers cruised to a 78-56 win against No. 10 seed Minnesota.\nEven Bennett took a break, much of her patented screaming and pacing stopped with seven minutes left.\n"We are limited (in our depth) and hopefully this rest will give all of us help," Bennett said.\nJunior guard Heather Cassady, who played 38 or more minutes seven times in the Hoosiers last 10 games, played only 33 in the runaway win. She'll need the rest tonight when IU battles No. 2 seed Iowa 6 p.m. at Van Andel Arena.\n"Any rest we could give Heather tonight will help us tomorrow," Bennett said, adding the decision to sit Cassady was a conscious effort. "She's so used to playing 40 minutes a game. This must be the least amount of time she's played in a while."\nJunior forward Jill Chapman usually gets plenty of rest. With foul problems as her Achilles heel, Chapman, a first team All-Big Ten pick, has played 30 minutes or more in only 33 percent of her games.\nWhen Chapman plays 32 minutes or more -- only five times this season -- the Hoosiers are a perfect 5-0. Chapman played 33 minutes Thursday, scoring a season-high 29 points. Chapman added 11 rebounds, tallying her seventh double-double of the season.\n"I think our guards penetrated and kicked the ball very well," Chapman said. "The guards also did a very good job of hitting shots early, which made them have to guard us honestly and could not cheat as much."\nThe Hoosiers (19-9, 9-7 Big Ten) had 21 assists Thursday, four off their high set early in the season against Furman.\nWith the Hoosiers up 29-20 at halftime, Chapman had been contained by 6-foot-7 Gopher center Kim Bell. Chapman managed just six points on 3-of-9 shooting through the first half. But when Bell picked up her fourth foul three minutes into the second half, Chapman went to work, exploiting the Gophers' small inside.\nDuring the next 13 minutes, Chapman scored 24 points on torrid 9-of-10 shooting. \n "It was 'The Jill Chapman Show' in the second half" Minnesota coach Cheryl Littlejohn said. "She's a stabilizer down low for them." \nBut Chapman didn't limit her efforts to the offensive end. The 6-5 Montpelier, Ind., native pulled 11 boards, clearing the glass and holding Minnesota to one shot each trip. It was that defense that helped Chapman on offense, as she got moving up the floor. \n"It comes from our defense," Chapman said. "When we can get up and defend and deny passing lanes, it gives us the opportunity to run the floor more."\nThat defense smothered Minnesota (8-20, 1-15), the Big Ten's ninth-best scoring offense. The Gophers, who average 68.4 points a game, could only manage 16 field goals Thursday.\nMinnesota had two six-minute stretches in the first half without a field goal. The Gophers backed that up with two more six-minute droughts in the final 20 minutes. It was a team defensive effort, Bennett said.\n"We limited them to 16 field goals for the whole game," Bennett said. "We did a very good job defending the ball extremely well. Every decision (Cassady) made was the right one. She's been so consistent defensively"