Big start, big finish propel No. 1 Notre Dame to 73-58 win at Iowa

IOWA CITY — The Iowa Hawkeyes played nearly 30 minutes of competitive basketball with the No. 1 team in the nation.

But those 30 minutes were sandwiched on both sides by Notre Dame dominance, and the Fighting Irish left Carver-Hawkeye Arena with a 73-58 victory in a Big Ten-ACC Challenge encounter in front of 3,809 Wednesday night.

'I wish we could take back the first five minutes and the last five minutes,' Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said after the Hawkeyes slipped to 5-3. 'The middle was pretty good.'

Notre Dame (7-0) raced to a 21-7 lead to start the game. Then, after the Hawkeyes pulled within two points on a pair of occasions in the third quarter, the Fighting Irish pulled away again.

'Our defense got some turnovers right off the bat,' Notre Dame Coach Muffet McGraw said. 'Then pretty much everything, I don't think we were doing anything well.'

The Hawkeyes were hosting a top-ranked team for the first time since 1999. They got within 43-41 after six straight points by Megan Gustafson, then Chase Coley's bank shot made it 50-48 with 2:33 left in the third quarter.

But Iowa didn't make enough free throws (6 of 16) or enough 3-pointers (4 of 19) to make a serious run at a shocker. And 23 turnovers sure didn't help.

Notre Dame extended the margin to 57-49 by the end of the third quarter, and that's as close as it got the rest of the way.

'I can't speak for everybody, but I don't think there was any fatigue there,' Iowa senior Ally Disterhoft said. 'My legs felt rested. They just answered our runs.'

Notre Dame led from opening tip to final horn. The Irish scored the first six points, and Marina Mabrey tallied nine points in the first seven minutes, propelling the Irish to that 21-7 advantage.

'Too many turnovers,' Bluder said. 'Too many easy points for them. We've got to value the basketball better.'

At one point, Iowa had nine turnovers and seven points, but the Hawkeyes concluded the quarter with an 8-2 burst to close within 23-15.

The second quarter was a stalemate, and Notre Dame took a 41-33 advantage into the locker room.

Disterhoft led all scorers with 18 points. Gustafson tacked on 16 points and 11 rebounds, and her surge to start the second half put the Hawkeyes' right on Notre Dame's tail.

She converted from inside, then put back her own miss, then added another basket to make it 43-41 and force McGraw to call timeout.

'We stuck with them for most of the game,' said Gustafson, who made 7 of 9 shots from the floor. 'It will give us confidence.'

Brianna Turner paced Notre Dame with 15 points. Arike Ogunbowale added 14 points, and Lindsay Allen posted 11 points, six rebounds, eight assists and five steals.

The Hawkeyes begin their Big Four circuit Sunday with a 2 p.m. matchup with Northern Iowa.

NOTRE DAME 73, IOWA 58

At Iowa City

NOTRE DAME (73): Brianna Turner 6-11 3-5 15, Kathryn Westbeld 4-5 0-1 8, Marina Mabrey 4-10 0-0 9, Lindsay Allen 5-13 0-0 11, Arike Ogunbowale 5-13 3-4 14, Jackie Young 2-7 1-1 5, Mychal Johnson 0-1 2-2 2, Kristina Nelson 2-3 0-0 4, Erin Boley 2-4 0-0 5. Totals 30-67 9-13 73.

IOWA (58): Megan Gustafson 7-9 2-4 16, Ally Disterhoft 7-12 1-2 18, Tania Davis 2-8 1-2 5, Kathleen Doyle 3-7 0-2 6, Bre Cera 0-2 1-2 1, Alexa Kastanek 0-1 0-0 0, Makenzie Meyer 1-4 0-0 2, Chase Coley 2-4 0-2 4, Hannah Stewart 1-1 0-0 2, Christina Buttenham 1-4 0-0 3, Amanda Ollinger 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 24-53 6-16 58.

Halftime: Notre Dame 41, Iowa 33. 3-point goals: Notre Dame 4-11 (Mabrey 1-3, Allen 1-2, Ogunbowale 1-2, Johnson 0-1, Boley 1-3), Iowa 4-19 (Disterhoft 3-5, Davis 0-3, Doyle 0-3, Cera 0-1, Kastanek 0-1, Meyer 0-2, Buttenham 1-3, Ollinger 0-1). Team fouls: Notre Dame 22, Iowa 14. Fouled out: none. Rebounds: Notre Dame 35 (Allen 6), Iowa 39 (Gustafson 11). Assists: Notre Dame 12 (Allen 8), Iowa 17 (Disterhoft 5). Steals: Notre Dame 15 (Mabrey, Allen 5), Iowa 6 (six with 1). Turnovers: Notre Dame 15, Iowa 23.

Attendance: 3,809.

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com