Team comes home after 19 days away from IU

The IU women's basketball team (4-2) will finally get to see some action on its home hardwood when it faces Maine (4-2) at 7 p.m. tonight in Assembly Hall. The game will end a 19-day absence for the Hoosiers from their home court. \n"It feels good," junior guard Jenny DeMuth said. "We have been on the road for a long time, and the traveling just gets to you. We're just happy to be back home."\nIU's homecoming does not last long, however, as the team will depart tomorrow for a Sunday match-up with North Carolina State.\nThe Hoosiers are coming off a 2-2 road swing that included a trip to the Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam Tournament over Thanksgiving break. Last weekend they had two wins on the road, highlighted by their comeback win against Georgetown Sunday. \nIn that game, IU erased a 14-point first half deficit to come back and dominate the Hoyas in the second half, outscoring them 44-27 in the final frame. \nFreshman guard Leah Enterline notched a career high 17 points in the contest and played great at critical times in the game, said IU coach Kathi Bennett.\n"I was able to get more time in the second half because (sophomore guard) Kali (Kullberg) went down with a knee injury," Enterline said. "I just tried to go out and distribute the ball as best I could to try and create scoring opportunities for my team." \nKullberg is expected back for this weekend's action. Enterline is averaging about 20 minutes per game this season, and she will continue to see playing time, according to Bennett. \n"Leah did a nice job at Georgetown," Bennett said. "More importantly, she has been a difference-maker defensively. I am excited to watch her develop."\nDeMuth is also playing well for the Hoosiers, Bennett said. The Highland, Ind., native leads the team in scoring average with 19.7 points per game. She has also grabbed 7.3 rebounds per contest. \n"Jenny is playing great," Bennett said. "She makes a huge difference every game. She's a special player."\nBoth coaches and players have echoed the need for better defense, specifically boxing-out and getting to the ball. \n"Our transition defense has gotten better, but we have to improve our box-outs," Enterline said. "We box-out fine, but then our opponents beat us to the ball, and we can't let that happen."\nBennett has preached defense all year and said they will have to play better defensively this weekend, especially against Maine.\n"Maine is a very good team," Bennett said. "It returns all five starters to a team that went 16-0 in its conference last season. We have to play with a sense of urgency."\n-- Contact staff writer Ryan J. Cost at rjcost@indiana.edu.