No bye for IU in Big Tens

With a Big Ten Tournament seed on the line, the IU women's basketball team fell at Iowa 79-70 Sunday afternoon in its regular season finale.\nHeading into the game, the Hoosiers and the Hawkeyes were deadlocked in fifth place in the Big Ten with identical 9-6 records. The IU loss drops the Hoosiers to sixth place in conference while Iowa remains in fifth and receives a first-round bye in the Big Ten tourney.\nIU reversed its recent habit of falling behind early, taking an initial 8-4 lead Sunday, but the Hawkeyes exploded to score 18 straight points.\n"Those first four minutes we came out really flat," said senior guard Cyndi Valentin. "They went on that run, and we never recovered."\nDown 22-8, the cream and crimson slowly clawed back into the game, drawing within five points at the half. \nWith her team down, Valentin took over the game offensively in the second half, scoring 21 points. She would finish with 30 for the game, shooting 10-21 from the field and hitting all nine of her free throw attempts.\nValentin's Herculean effort was not enough for IU against Iowa. The Hawkeyes shot 49 percent from the field and hit 29 of 36 free throws.\n"In the end, we just fouled them too much," Valentin said. "The intensity of the game was pretty high, and we battled the whole way."\nThe Hoosiers entered Sunday's contest with a 35 percent clip from long range on the season, but IU was only able to knock down four of 20 three-point attempts.\nIU cut Iowa's lead to as little as five points, 56-51, but it was too little as the Hawkeyes hit their free throws late, clinching the victory and the fifth seed.\nSupporting Valentin in the loss was fellow senior Jenny DeMuth who chipped in with 19 points and 11 rebounds. When IU fell behind early, DeMuth led the charge back into the game, scoring 14 first-half points.\nWith the regular season now behind them, the Hoosiers will begin to prepare for the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, which begins Thursday. Sixth-seeded IU will face off against 11th-seed Michigan Thursday night at Conseco Fieldhouse.\n"We have no pressure, no stress," said IU coach Sharon Versyp prior to this weekend's games. "You just have to worry about controlling your own destiny. We're just hoping for postseason right now, whether it is NIT or NCAA"