IU routs Northwestern in tournament opener

INDIANAPOLIS – The IU women’s basketball team has a lot to play for in the Big Ten Tournament, and it showed in its dominating 74-52 first-round win over Northwestern on Thursday at Conseco Fieldhouse. \nThe Hoosiers finished the regular season 17-13 overall and 10-8 in the Big Ten, and will likely need a strong showing in the Big Ten Tournament to earn an NCAA Tournament bid.\n“It feels good to see our team peaking at the right time,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said after the game. “We’ve finally gotten rid of some of our nagging injuries. We’re finally playing inside-out, and I’m really excited about what the future holds for our program.”\nIn the team’s tournament opener, the Hoosiers controlled the game from the outset, scoring the first seven points of the game and establishing a 38-24 advantage by halftime. \nJunior forward Amber Jackson scored a game-high 15 points after scoring the first 11 points for IU. Junior forward Whitney Thomas, who joined Jackson in the post, stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and two blocked shots. \n“It’s just my role for this team,” Thomas said of her performance. “I just step up when I need to and do what I’m supposed to do for the team.”\nNorthwestern struggled to control the Hoosiers’ inside combo of Jackson and Thomas, as IU scored 36 points in the paint and outrebounded the Wildcats 44-37. \n“All season long, we’ve struggled with boxing out,” Northwestern forward Amy Jaeschke said. “It’s a common theme for us. Once again, we didn’t step up and box out. That’s what has been killing us all year and it killed us again in this game.”\nSophomore guard Jamie Braun, IU’s leading scorer at 15.3 points per game, failed to score in the game but contributed with five assists and three steals in her 20 minutes of play. \n“Jamie was a major factor in our success today,” Legette-Jack said. “Her role just keeps stretching. We all know she can score, now we know she can distribute the ball and now we know she can push the ball a little bit. She probably had five or six deflections, so she’s doing some other things on the court that don’t get as recognized as scoring or rebounding.”\nThe Hoosiers harassed Northwestern on defense, forcing 19 turnovers in the game and limiting the Wildcats to 36.4 percent shooting from the field. \n“Their defense was really good,” Northwestern guard Jenny Eckhart said. “They were hedging the screens and got into the passing lanes.”\nLegette-Jack said IU will need to continue the good defense in order to make a run in the Big Ten Tournament. \n“I’m one of those old-time coaches,” she said. “I think defense creates your offense. I believe to win a championship you need great defense.”\nIU will play defending Big Ten tournament champion and No. 3 seed Purdue Friday afternoon. IU split its matchups against the Boilermakers this year, losing 55-49 at Assembly Hall on Jan. 3 and winning 66-54 at Mackey Arena on Jan. 14. \n“It’s a great in-state rivalry,” Legette-Jack said. “It’s just about us doing what we do. It’s not anything about Purdue. It’s about Indiana. We’re trying to accomplish something they’ve done already. We’re trying to get to where they are.”