Zach and I are here at Assembly Hall as the Hoosiers take on the No. 20 Buckeyes. IU is in need of a win after a 30 point road loss to Wisconsin last week. The Hoosiers need every win possible to boost their NCAA tournament resume. The starting lineup tonight for IU is Jamie Braun, Nikki Smith, Amber Jackson, Whitney Thomas and Whitney Lindsay. Kim Roberson will start out on the bench tonight. Jori Davis is dressed and on the bench. We'll see if she is able to play.
15:40 to play in 1st half: OSU leads 7-6 Amber Jackson scored the first two baskets for IU. She is really calling for the ball down low early in the game. It looks like it will be a good battle inside between IU's Jackson and Whitney Thomas and Ohio State's Jantel Lavender and Tamarah Riley. 11:57 to play: Tied 11-11 Jori Davis checked in after the TV timeout and didn't miss a beat. She hit a 3-pointer on her first shot attempt since returning from a stress fracture to her foot. Lavender looks good inside for Ohio State. She has four early points and is really controlling the glass.
7:57 to play: IU leads 18-14 Whitney Thomas just took a charge but paid the price as Brittany Johnson came flying in from the left baseline. Jamie Braun also hit her first 3-pointer of the game and followed with a nice lefty runner in the lane. Tamarah Riley made a great up and under move for a 3-point play. 3:16 to play: IU leads 22-20 Kim Roberson scores on a nice pass from Jori Davis and Whitney Thomas on a nice move inside. The Hoosiers are really doing a good job on the defensive end. They are frustrating Ohio State and aren't allowing any open looks for the Buckeyes. Amber Jackson is starting to struggle after her quick start. She's now 3-10 from the floor. Halftime: OSU leads 26-25 Ohio State made a run to close the half, but IU responded nicely. OSU had the ball with 2 seconds separating the game clock and the shot clock. Kim Roberson played great defense on the ball and forced OSU into a shot clock violation. Then Roberson missed a desperation shot to close the half. All in all it was a good half for the Hoosiers. Should be an entertaining second half.
