Junior guard Ali Patberg broke Michigan’s zone defense and disrupted its offense Sunday in a 78-60 victory for No. 22 IU women’s basketball.
“I thought Ali Patberg remained aggressive like she has been,” IU head coach Teri Moren said. “When she’s aggressive, as I’ve said, everybody around her is more confident.”
With her team down six early in the first quarter, Patberg drew extra defenders while driving to the basket and passed it out to senior forward Brenna Wise for a 3-pointer. Patberg stole the ball on the next play and helped her defense keep Michigan scoreless for the remainder of the opening quarter.
While the Wolverines struggled to score, Patberg continued to find open teammates.
After IU took its first lead of the game, Patberg weaved through the zone, brought a Michigan forward close to the basket and found sophomore forward Aleksa Gulbe for a 3-pointer.
The Wolverines tried running a fastbreak on the other end of the floor, but Patberg read the offense. Patberg ran toward Michigan's freshman guard Maddie Nolan and contested her corner 3-pointer with 1:31 left in the first quarter.
IU had a 15-6 run by the end of the quarter, and its star point guard took command of the game in the second quarter.
Patberg worked with junior guard Jaelynn Penn through back-and-forth passing that left Michigan on its toes and unable to stop IU's offense.
Penn found Patberg for an open shot behind the arc. Then on the other end, Patberg blocked a Michigan layup, secured the rebound and passed the ball to Penn for an open jump shot eight seconds later.
After a couple minutes, Patberg’s passing increased the pace of the offense and put Gulbe back to work beneath the basket.
With the shot clock winding down, Patberg crossed over her defender and found Gulbe for an easy finish. Following a Michigan basket, Patberg ran it up the floor, passed the ball through a defender and Gulbe scored again.
The Wolverines’ senior guard Akienreh Johnson tried keeping up with the Hoosiers with quick baskets, but Patberg was quicker. Patberg sprinted down the middle of the court and hit a floating jump shot. Minutes later, she collected another steal and found Penn on the right side in transition.
Michigan had a combined 11 minutes without a field goal in the first half. And Patberg had six of IU’s eight assists that kept the program ahead 34-31 at the half.
IU’s offense pulled away in the third quarter, and once again, Patberg supervised the floor. She made a tough layup and drew a foul on the right side of the basket and completed a 3-point play with a free throw.
As the third quarter developed, Patberg directed her guards to cut through the paint and hit catch-and-shoot jump shots that padded IU’s lead.
Patberg and the Hoosier defense cut off passes intended for the Wolverines’ post players and turned those defensive stops into points on the other end of the floor.
IU held Michigan to 34% shooting on the afternoon in Michigan and got one final nudge from its point guard in the fourth quarter.
The junior added more shots of her own, beating defenders off the dribble and taking advantage of mismatches created by her ball handling. She finished with 21 points, seven assists, three steals, three rebounds and two blocks in her 33 minutes inside Crisler Center.
