WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Hoosiers fall to Wildcats

BLOOMINGTON

Villanova defeated Indiana University 69-57 on Sunday in the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament.

The first quarter proved a back-and-forth affair between the two sides.

While a 7-0 lead propelled the Hoosiers to a 7-3 advantage with 7:57 in the first quarter, the Wildcats answered with hot shooting.

Nova hit 7 of 11 3-point attempts to build a 25-21 at the end of the first quarter.

With 11 points in the first quarter, the Hoosiers’ Tyra Buss became the first player in school history with back-to-back 600-point seasons.

IU continued to struggle guarding the Wildcats in the second quarter, as the visitors constructed a 9-2 run by the 6:25-mark.

At half, the Wildcats held a 41-30 advantage on 54 percent shooting with 10 made 3-pointers.

The Wildcats cooled off in the third quarter, and the Hoosiers stepped up the defensive intensity.

Holding Nova to just six points in the third quarter, the Hoosiers chipped-away as they trailed 47-40 going into the fourth.

In the final 10 minutes, the teams battled down the stretch on both ends.

A basket from Amanda Cahill cut the Hoosiers’ deficit to 49-45 with 7:25 left.

At the final official break, with 4:05 left, the Hoosiers trailed 56-50.

The Wildcats extended their lead to 61-52 until the Hoosiers’ Amber Deane drained a 3-pointer with 49 seconds left.

Hitting all eight of their free throw attempts in the final ticks of the game, the Wildcats escaped with the win.

Buss topped the Hoosiers with 21 points, Amber Deane scored 12 and Cahill added 10.

Jannah Tucker led the Wildcats with 19 points and Alex Louin chipped in 18.

With the win, the Wildcats — who have played all of their postseason games on the road — will play Michigan in the WNIT semifinals.

The Hoosiers finished their season at 23-11, with the most wins in a single season in school history.

IU also set a new single season record for points scored with 2,547 for 2016-17.