Iowa women roll behind Megan Gustafson, Ally Disterhoft

INDIANAPOLIS — Ally Disterhoft thinks she may have earned herself the nickname 'super nerd.'

Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder simply labels the junior guard a leader.

The Hawkeyes had a horrendous start against Michigan in the second round of the Big Ten Conference tournament on Thursday in Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Then a timeout turned everything around. The coaches said a few words. Disterhoft gave some encouragement to a starting lineup that includes two sophomores and two freshmen.

One of Iowa's best offensive performances of the season followed in a 97-85 win.

Megan Gustafson led Iowa with 25 points, Disterhoft added 22 and Chase Coley had 20. Combined, the trio shot 76 percent from the field.

Three players had double-doubles. Tania Davis had 10 points and 10 assists, Gustafson and Coley each added 10 rebounds.

Not a bad finish, especially considering the beginning. Iowa trailed by 16 points with three minutes left in the first quarter.

'I think we kind of came out on our heels a little bit,' Disterhoft said. 'We huddled together and said, 'Look, that was pretty bad basketball for the few minutes and we know that's not us. We wanted to go out and show what Iowa basketball is all about.'

Disterhoft was announced as the Academic All-American of the Year earlier on Thursday, prompting her to say she 'has earned the super nerd status from the team.'

Bluder noted Disterhoft is the only current Hawkeye who played on the court here two years ago when Iowa advanced to the title game of the tournament. Aside from the vocal leadership, Disterhoft provided key outside shooting to spark Iowa's rally.

'We didn't really change a lot of what we were doing from quarter to quarter,' Bluder said. 'We just did it better. We got some really high percentage shots. And shooting is contagious and Ally hit some big shots.'

Iowa (19-12) took its first lead of the game on a five-point trip with six minutes left in the first half. Gustafson scored inside and was fouled. She missed the free throw, but an offensive rebound led to a Disterhoft 3-pointer and 38-36 lead.

'I think we did a great job of reading and taking what they were giving us,' Disterhoft said. 'They were kind of huddled in the middle and then we found our 3-point shooters. Then when they were in that zone we pounded it inside.'

Michigan took a brief lead two possessions later, but Iowa finished the first half on an 11-0 run to take a 52-42 lead.

The Wolverines (17-13) cut the Hawkeyes' lead to two points early in the fourth quarter, but Iowa answered with an 8-0 run to regain a comfortable lead and were never threatened again.

'You hope by this time of year that your freshmen and sophomores are playing like upperclassmen,' Bluder said. 'They just have to be reminded to finish the game. I think we're finally learning how to do that.'

Michigan's freshman center Hallie Thome looked unstoppable early, scoring 10 points in the first four minutes. But she only scored five points over the remainder of the game.

'I thought early she was catching it two feet away from the basket,' Bluder said. 'And you can't give her the basket because she's so good. We just tried to contest every shot and nudge her off the block.'

Wolverines sophomore Katelynn Flaherty finished with a game-high 31 points, but scored more than half of those points after Iowa built a 10-point halftime lead.

Iowa advances to play regular-season champion Maryland in Friday's 11 a.m. quarterfinal. The Terrapins beat the Hawkeyes by 20 points in the team's only previous meeting this season, Jan. 10 in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

'We've definitely improved,' Bluder said. 'You have to believe you can do it or otherwise don't even show up. ... We have absolutely nothing to lose. I could take a survey right here and nobody expects us to win, so there's no pressure on us.'

Iowa sophomore Whitney Jennings, a former Indiana Miss Basketball from Logansport, Ind., finished with 11 points and five assists.