Laying it out

Junior guard Jori Davis only hit two shots the entire second half against Michigan, but she hit the one shot that mattered.

After Michigan took its first lead, the Hoosiers looked like they would be defeated after dominating for 35 minutes. But a quick layup by Davis put the Hoosiers up by one point with just 40 seconds left and gave them the confidence to regain control of the game.

The Wolverines still had a chance, but they came one brick short of a comeback win. Senior center Krista Phillips had a wide-open layup with one second left, and she
missed, securing a nail-biting 62-60 win for IU.

“I almost had a heart attack, cause I was like, ‘that’s a wide-open layup,’” senior guard Jamie Braun said. “But we’ll take whatever we can get for a victory.”

The Hoosiers came close to squandering their victory numerous times in the final minutes by missing six of their last nine free throws. But ultimately, the win came down to tough defense by the Hoosiers and superb play by junior forward Hope Elam.
Elam, who averages just under 11 points a game, put up 24 against the Wolverines and had a career high 10 rebounds.

“We had to step up our rebounding because she (Sasha Chaplin) was our leading rebounder,” Elam said.  “So I knew tonight that’s what I had to do.”

Elam also shot 3-5 from the 3-point range. But similar to the rest of her squad, she did not shoot well from the free-throw line, only hitting on one of her five attempts.

Coach Felisha Legette-Jack acknowledged that her team made mistakes, including poor shooting from the foul line, but that her team continued to fight and get back on defense.

“We’re trying to create a team that’s unbeatable,” Legette-Jack said.

The Hoosiers began strong, especially to Michigan coach Kevin Borseth.

“We didn’t do anything to stop them in the first half,” Borseth said. “They just ran through us like Swiss cheese.”

The Wolverines also allowed the Hoosiers to dominate from the arc for much of the game, particularly when Elam had the ball in her hands. The Hoosiers only went 7-22 from the 3-point line overall, but hit five of those 3-pointers in the first half. 

Unfortunately for the Wolverines, this has become a commonality for their season.

“We were everybody’s answer to 3-point shooting,” Borseth said. “People know to beat Michigan: that’s who you are supposed to beat, that’s an accepted practice around here.

“Everybody seems to go off against us.”

The rowdy crowd helped motivate the Hoosiers when the Wolverines looked like they were going to take over the game. While the attendance wasn’t overwhelming or shocking, those in attendance were very much involved.

“The adrenaline rush you feel, the enthusiasm Hoosier Nation gives you, it was almost deafening,” Legette-Jack said. “We had 3,000 fans today, and it seemed liked 10,000.
“They get into it, so it means everything.”