IU drops 7th straight in loss at Purdue

This isn’t the season that IU head coach Felisha Legette-Jack had in mind for her senior class, the players that made up her first recruiting class when she arrived in Bloomington.

Point guard Whitney Lindsay is injured, while fellow seniors Jori Davis and Hope Elam find themselves carrying a team that is now 8-13 on the season and 2-7 in the Big Ten.

The Hoosiers continued to struggle Sunday as they lost 71-57 at Purdue, completing a series sweep for the Boilermakers this season. The defeat marks IU’s seventh straight loss.

The senior duo of Elam and Davis led the Hoosiers, scoring 18 and 17 points, respectively. But their scoring effort was not enough, as the seven remaining Hoosiers scored a combined 22 points and could not seem to come up with defensive stops when it was needed.

After three consecutive 3-pointers by Hope Elam, the Hoosiers cut the lead to 52-43 and forced Purdue to call a timeout with 8:11 remaining. However, back-to-back 3-pointers from guard Courtney Moses gave Purdue a run of its own, ultimately giving the Boilermakers their largest lead of the game at 20 points with 4:21 left.

Four of Purdue’s starters scored in double figures, with Moses leading all scorers with 23 points on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.  The Boilermakers felt comfortable from the perimeter all game, making 8-of-17 3-pointers, in a game in which they never trailed.

Purdue coach Sharon Versyp said the absence of injured Lindsay was a big difference.

“I think she’s the key to their defense,” Versyp said about the IU defense without Lindsay. “When you have a player that sets the tone, as a point guard, defensively, I think that hurts a little bit.”

Legette-Jack agreed with Versyp.

“She’s been our point guard, the head of the body,” Legette-Jack said. “It’s very difficult to play without your head. It’s unfortunate we’re having this kind of year her senior year, she’s a special player. The entourage we have because of injuries has really made it a challenge to showcase what she can do and what we can do as a team. Yes, Whitney Lindsay was really missed today.”

Looking back on the season as a whole, Legette-Jack said despite not giving her seniors the ideal final year, her team has to continue with persistence.

“It’s one of those years we’re just going to have to continue to show resiliency and not ask for anybody to feel sorry for us,” Legette-Jack said. “We’re just going to have to continue to fight and find our way and learn the lessons as we go on.”