Hoosiers bounce Bonnies in home opener

The IU women’s basketball team was able to slip past a scrappy St. Bonaventure team Monday.

After IU gained its largest lead of 14 points with 5:36 remaining in the game, the Bonnies ultimately cut the deficit to fall by just six as the Hoosiers claimed a 50-44 victory at Assembly Hall.

“We’ll take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said.

The Hoosiers found themselves down early as St. Bonaventure pulled out to a 15-14 lead with 7:52 remaining in the first half.

However, a Jori Davis field goal and a subsequent Bonnies shot clock violation provided enough of a spark to give the Hoosiers momentum.

A 19-3 run to close the first half proved to be enough to give the Hoosiers a 2-0 start to
the season.

“They’re a very scrappy team; this was a big stage for them, and they really wanted to perform well,” Davis said. “They continued to fight. They never gave up. We went up by over 10 points at one point, and they never gave up.”

Senior forward Hope Elam struggled to find her jump shot early but finished the game strong, leading all Hoosier scorers with 15 points.

A day after her birthday, sophomore forward Aulani Sinclair got a belated present, shooting 4-of-6 from the field and 2-of-3 from 3-point range on her way to 10 points and four rebounds.

“In practice the last couple days, we’ve been focusing on looking for the open shot and not being hesitant if I’m open to take it,” Sinclair said. “So tonight in our offense, I just worked on what we’ve been working on in practice, and if I had an open shot, I was going to take it.

“Coach Jack and the team have given me the OK to be great, so I’m just trying to fill that role and support the team as best as I can.”

However, the Hoosiers struggled in the paint.

Still without sophomore center Sasha Chaplin, Legette-Jack’s squad was outrebounded 40-30. St. Bonaventure’s only starting forward, junior Megan Van Tatenhove, led all players with 18 points and 13 rebounds.
 
On offense, the Hoosiers were unable to find easy looks, shooting 35 percent from the field and scoring 18 of their 50 points in the paint.

“We’re a little disappointed we got outrebounded,” Legette-Jack said. “Those are the hustle and heart plays. What won us this game was our staying power.”