IU's Tyra Buss was on fire against No. 23/21 Miami on Sunday night in Florida.
The sophomore guard tallied 28 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the floor, just one point shy of her career-high of 29 points against IPFW in late November.
28 points from one of the Big Ten’s top scorers was not enough for the Hoosiers, however. IU allowed Miami to score 30 points in the third quarter as the Hurricanes prevailed, 89-75 at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla.
“Tyra was great tonight,” IU Coach Teri Moren said. “You had a sense in shootaround that she looked really comfortable shooting the ball. That’s one of the adjustments that Miami made, to eliminate her from our offense entirely. Our other guards have to adjust to that. That’s the great lesson that we learned tonight.”
The Hoosiers (7-3) played strong on both sides of the ball against the Hurricanes (11-1) in the first half, taking a one-point lead into halftime. Buss, along with junior guard Alexis Gassion, combined for 25 of IU’s 40 first-half points. Moren, who has been frustrated with her team’s turnovers, saw her team commit just five turnovers in the opening twenty minutes.
The tide turned after the break, however. The Hurricanes opened the second half with nine unanswered points to take an eight-point lead within the first 90 seconds of the third quarter. IU recovered momentarily with three straight baskets before Miami sparked a 17-7 spurt to end the third quarter with a 69-55 lead.
“The third quarter really got us,” Moren said. “They really came out and torched us. I love the way we fought back and how we got off to an early lead. That’s all you can ask for, I’m pleased with their fight.”
Buss was helped by 19 points from Alexis Gassion, while sophomore forward Amanda Cahill tallied 15 points and six rebounds,; Cahill also accounted for half of IU’s turnovers in the loss. Freshman forward Emese Hof paced Miami in the winning effort, scoring 26 points and corralling 14 rebounds, both game-highs. Five Hurricane players finished in double-figure scoring, including 15 points from junior guard Adrienne Motley.
Moren and the Hoosiers will not have much time dwell over a loss to one of the nation’s best teams, as IU will face West Virginia on Tuesday night at 7:15pm in Winter Park, Fla.
“Miami made some really good adjustments at halftime and made us uncomfortable,” Moren said. “What's nice about being uncomfortable, is that we’ve got to get comfortable. We’re going to see adjustments like that in the Big Ten."
The Mountaineers will enter with a record of 9-2, riding a seven-game winning streak. West Virginia has not defeated a power-conference team yet this season.
"You play these games for that reason," Moren said. "To prepare for the great Big Ten season that’s ahead of us. We have another challenge tomorrow in a short turnaround.”
