Hawkeyes gain 'redemption' against Illinois

IOWA CITY — The theme, Megan Gustafson said, was 'redemption.'

The Iowa Hawkeyes got it, and then some.

Iowa jolted Illinois with an 18-4 start, and was never seriously threatened in a 78-58 Big Ten women's basketball victory in front of 3,834 Wednesday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

'That feels a lot better,' Coach Lisa Bluder said, referring to the Hawkeyes' 70-65 loss to the Fighting Illini two weeks earlier in Champaign. 'We took control from the start. Our offensive and defensive intensity was great on both ends.'

With No. 3 Maryland looming on Saturday, this was a game the Hawkeyes needed to get to avoid getting pushed deeper down the Big Ten well. And they got it.

Gustafson notched her ninth double-double of the season — 20 points and 15 rebounds. It would be a triple-double if you count floor burns.

'Yeah, it was physical,' said Gustafson, who was on the floor repeatedly. 'I tried to open things up for my teammates and get them involved.'

Kathleen Doyle added 18 points, Ally Disterhoft registered 14 and Makenzie Meyer tallied 12 as the Hawkeyes improved to 11-6 overall, 2-2 Big Ten.

Disterhoft wore a support on her right wrist, but said it was no big deal.

'I just tweaked it in practice,' she said. 'It's nothing major.'

Iowa made 10 of 13 shots in the first quarter and led, 25-10. With one brief exception, the margin remained in double figures the rest of the way.

The Illini (7-10, 2-2) got within 50-42 near the end of the third quarter, but Doyle swished a 3-pointer at the buzzer to push the margin back to 11.

It wasn't Doyle's first big buzzer-beating play of the night.

At the end of the first half, she intercepted a pass at midcourt and flung it toward the rim while drawing a foul.

'I saw a long pass and tried to throw it back,' she said. 'I didn't think I was going to get three free throws, but I'm not complaining.'

She made all three, giving the Hawkeyes a 39-24 advantage at halftime.

Gustafson, who entered the game ranked sixth in the nation in field-goal percentage, was out of the gate fast with nine points and five rebounds in the first quarter. She had a double-double early in the third quarter, and her boardwork staked the Hawkeyes to a 45-29 advantage on the glass.

'Nothing fazes her,' Bluder said.

Gustafson's three-point play ignited a 12-0 run that made it 18-4. Meyer nailed a 3-pointer, Doyle followed with a basket, Gustafson scored inside, then Hannah Stewart concluded the surge with an offensive rebound for a bucket.

Meyer replaced Christina Buttenham in the starting lineup Wednesday and hit 4 of 5 shots, all from long range.

Alex Wittinger paced the Illini with 17 points. Brandi Beasley and Kennedy Cattenhead added 12 apiece.

Courtney Joens, a freshman from Iowa City High, tallied seven points in 19 minutes off the bench.

Illinois still had life at 56-46 with just over 8 minutes left, but Gustafson turned an offensive rebound into a three-point play, then Meyer followed with a triple.

IOWA 78, ILLINOIS 58

At Iowa City

ILLINOIS (58): Alex Wittinger 8-13 1-2 17, Brandi Beasley 6-14 0-2 12, Petra Holesinska 0-8 0-0 0, Jaelyne Kirkpatrick 1-6 0-0 2, Kennedy Cattenhead 5-7 2-4 12, Ashley McConnell 0-0 0-0 0, Sarah Overcash 0-0 0-0 0, Courtney Joens 2-7 2-2 7, Ali Andrews 3-4 0-0 8. Totals 25-59 5-10 58.

IOWA (78): Megan Gustafson 8-13 4-6 20, Ally Disterhoft 5-10 4-5 14, Makenzie Meyer 4-5 0-0 12, Tania Davis 2-6 3-3 7, Kathleen Doyle 6-15 4-7 18, Alexa Kastanek 0-1 0-0 0, Chase Coley 0-3 0-0 0, Hannah Stewart 2-2 0-0 4, Christina Buttenham 0-4 0-0 0, Carly Mohns 0-0 0-0 0, Bre Cera 0-1 0-0 0, Hailey Schneden 0-0 0-0 0, Amanda Ollinger 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 28-61 15-21 78.

Halftime: Iowa 39, Illinois 24. 3-point goals: Illinois 3-14 (Holesinska 0-4, Kirkpatrick 0-3, Joens 1-4, Andrews 2-3), Iowa 7-22 (Disterhoft 0-4, Meyer 4-5, Davis 0-4, Doyle 2-4, Kastanek 0-1, Buttenham 0-2, Cera 0-1, Ollinger 1-1). Team fouls: Illinois 23, Iowa 16. Fouled out: Cattenhead. Rebounds: Illinois 29 (Wittinger 7), Iowa 45 (Gustafson 15). Assists: Illinois 6 (Beasley, Kirkpatrick 2), Iowa 17 (Meyer, Davis, Doyle 4). Steals: Illinois 7 (Beasley 4), Iowa 6 (Doyle 2). Turnovers: Illinois 15, Iowa 16.

Attendance: 3,834.

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