No. 21 Hawkeyes drive past No. 20 Ohio State, 89-76

Samantha Prahalis heard the wrath of an unusually large, unusually loud crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Jantel Lavender felt the congestion of a swarming Iowa defense.

And Jaime Printy put on what Lisa Bluder described “a penetrating clinic.”

Printy connected on 8 of 10 shots from the field, including back-to-back 3-pointers at the end of the first half that put 21st-ranked Iowa ahead for good, and scored a game-high 25 points as the Hawkeyes bumped No. 20 Ohio State, 89-76, in a Big Ten women's basketball game in front of 9,865 Saturday afternoon.

It didn't completely erase the sting of last year's loss to the Buckeyes in the Big Ten tournament final, but for the Hawkeyes (14-3 overall, 2-2 Big Ten), it sure felt good.

“I'm still wrapped up in how excited everyone was in the locker room,” Kachine Alexander said afterward. “The team is really embracing it. But we've got to keep pushing.”

Printy and pals drove to the basket at will all afternoon. That created easy baskets, which opened up the outside.

“We weren't very smart defensively,” said Ohio State Coach Jim Foster. “On the offensive end, we need to make 3-pointers. That's the only (statistical) line that jumps out at me - 4-for-22.”

That included 1-for-9 for Prahalis, who drew boos virtually every time she touched the ball.

“I just tried to ignore it,” said Prahalis, who still managed 22 points. “I could hear it. It's part of the game.”

The Buckeyes' inaccuracies from distance allowed Iowa to collapse on Lavender - the three-time Big Ten player of the year. Lavender finished with 14 points, matching a season low, and 17 rebounds.

“There wasn't a lot of room in there. They had it packed in pretty tight,” Lavender said.

The four-possession sequence at the end of the first half was key. Ohio State (10-5, 1-2) had rallied from a seven-point deficit to take a 40-39 advantage.

And then …

Printy 3-pointer. Lavender second foul (moving screen). Printy 3-pointer. Lavender third foul (charge).

Iowa took a 45-40 lead into the locker room, and maintained the upper hand the rest of the way.

Kamille Wahlin added 18 points, Alexander registered 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Morgan Johnson scored 10 points. Johnson scored two straight baskets, including a reverse layup around Lavender, in a 30-second span as Iowa's lead swelled to 77-68 with 5 minutes left.

Johnson was the major player in boxing in Lavender on OSU's offensive end.

“I tried not to let her have as many touches as she usually gets,” Johnson said.

While Ohio State suffered from long range, Iowa scored from a variety of angles. The Hawkeyes were robust with their 3-pointers (8 of 19).

And there was all that driving going on.

“They tried to take away (the 3-pointers), and that opened the lane a lot,” Printy said. “We did a good job with spacing on offense, and that opened up some gaps.”

A week ago, the Hawkeyes were slumping. Now, after a comeback at Minnesota and a measure of redemption against the Buckeyes, the good feelings have returned.

“It's definitely a lot different (from last Sunday),” Printy said. “It's good to remember what it's like to win.”

The Hawkeyes travel to No. 11 Michigan State - the Big Ten leader - Thursday, then return home next Sunday for a date with Indiana.

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