Printy on the verge of cracking Iowa's top 10

IOWA CITY -- She's a shooter. She's a slasher.

She's a scorer.

Though only halfway through her junior season, Jaime Printy is poised to enter the top 10 on the University of Iowa women's basketball career scoring chart. She currently ranks 12th with 1,324 points, 19 away from the No. 10 slot held by Wendy Ausdemore.

"Think of the tradition of this program and to be on the verge of the top 10, that's an amazing statistic," Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said Wednesday at her weekly press conference.

"There have been a lot of great players that have gone through here, and (Printy) could really rise in that list with a year and a half left to go."

When informed of the milestone-to-be, Printy reacted with a shrug and barely a glimpse of a smile.

"I don't pay attention to it. It would be a great honor to be with those great players," she said. "Whatever happens, happens. I'm not going to think about it."

A former all-stater at Linn-Mar, Printy has started -- and starred -- at Iowa from the start. She averaged 14.7 points per game as a freshman, 16.8 per game as a sophomore.

This year, even though her shooting accuracy is down (36.7 percent from the floor, 30.2 percent from long distance), Printy is averaging 17.8 points per game.

One reason, she has become physically stronger, enabling her to drive and to reach the free throw line, where she's deadly at 89.6 percent.

Printy has shot a team-high 106 free throws in 17 games, making 95.

"She's just very difficult to defend," teammate Kamille Wahlin said. "You have to defend the 3-point shot, and you have to defend the drive.

"She's such a good slasher, and she has the length and the ability to make moves anywhere on the court."

Printy is on track to make a serious push at Cindy Haugejorde's school record for points in a career. Haugejorde scored 2,059 between 1976 and 1980.

Again, Printy isn't keeping track. It's winning, not scoring, that matters more.

"To be honest, I'd rather get a Big Ten championship," she said.

Printy is undeterred by her low shooting rate.

"I keep believing the next one is going to go in," she said. I've gone against some really tough defenders this year, and that makes it harder to get shots off. I need to hit the open shots when they come."

Bluder said, "I know she hasn't been shooting the ball as well from three-point range this year, but I honestly believe -- every time she shoots the ball, I think it's in. I feel like it's a good shot."

The Hawkeyes (10-7 overall, 2-2 Big Ten) play at 17th-ranked Purdue on Sunday.

Iowa's career scoring leaders:

11. Lisa Becker (1983-87), 1,335; 12. Jaime Printy (2009-present), 1,324; 15. Kamille Wahlin (2009-present), 1,265.

Player

Years

Points

1. Cindy Haugejorde

1976-80

2,059

2. Lindsey Meder

1998-2002

1,906

3. Michelle Edwards

1984-88

1,821

4. Jennie Lillis

2000-04

1,762

5. Franthea Price

1986-90

1,742

6. Toni Foster

1989-93

1,606

7. Tangela Smith

1994-98

1,598

8. Kristi Smith

2005-09

1,455

9. Megan Skouby

2005-09

1,439

10. Wendy Ausdemore

2005-09

1,343