IU gets roster boost before Northwestern

Northwestern center Amy Jaeschke has scored 152 points in her last eight games, putting her easily into a double-digit average per game.

She hasn’t scored under double digits since the Wildcats played Purdue on Jan. 10 and only four times this season.  

The former McDonald’s All-American also led the Wildcats with 17 points when the team played the Hoosiers on Jan. 21.

But even though the center is a dominating force, IU will not focus on her when it meets again at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill.  

“Sometimes you just can’t stop great players, and I think that she’s one of the great ones in our conference,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “But if we can contain the other people, we’ve got a chance to be successful. But you’re not going to keep Jaeschke down.”

However, the Hoosiers will have some additional help this time around, as freshman forward Sasha Chaplin is back from an injury.

“Having Sasha back is obviously a blessing to us,” junior forward Hope Elam said. “She brings so much to our post presence. She can score the ball. She can play defense. She can do everything.

“It’s a plus for us, and obviously it will be a negative for the other team.”  

Senior guard Jamie Braun said having Chaplin back will make the team more aggressive, give it additional height and help its rebounding game.

With sophomore guard Ashlee Mells also returning from suspension, Saturday will mark the first time IU has had nine healthy players since a Dec. 22 matchup with Toledo. The Hoosiers have gone 5-8 in that time span.  

Although, the Hoosiers lead the all-time series with Northwestern 34-28 and have won 13 of the last 15 meetings.  

“Right now we’re just a young team trying to find our way, and we don’t have any referent power against any team,” Legette-Jack said. “I think Joe McKeown is one of the best coaches in the country, and they’re very hard to beat at home, so we’re not going there with the mindset that we beat them a certain amount of times.”

Rather, the Hoosiers will go out with a defensive mindset as they face a team that sinks almost six 3-point shots per game and shoots better than 35 percent from downtown in their prior matchup.

“We just have to be there when they catch the ball,” Braun said. “We just have to get on their shooting hand as soon as they catch it to not let them get open 3s to give them confidence.”