Miami University
Indiana
Osborn Leads Miami to Win Over Indiana
12/9/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 9, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - A great team defensive effort and 26 points from sophomore guard Courtney Osborn led Miami to its fourth straight win, a 67-61 victory over Indiana Thursday. The RedHawks improve to 5-3 overall, while the Hoosiers fall to 5-4.
Miami kept the Indiana offense in check for the whole game, holding the Hoosiers to 32 percent shooting (19-for-59). That included contesting the three-point attempts as Indiana only hit 1-for-20 from behind the arc (five percent). The Hoosiers' All-America candidate Jori Davis had 31 points, including 15 from the free throw line, but the RedHawks did not allow a single other player to reach 10 points.
It was a defensive struggle early on as each team came out focused on defense. Rachael Hencke, Lillian Pitts and Maggie Boyer each hit jumpers to give Miami an early 6-4 lead. A 9-2 run by Indiana put the Hoosiers in front, 13-8, with 10:06 remaining in the half. That is when Osborn began to get hot.
Osborn's run began with a three-pointer that pulled the RedHawks to within two. After two Hoosier free throws, a Pitts layup and another Osborn three-pointer gave Miami the advantage back at 16-15. She would go on to hit a jumper, another three-pointer and finish it with a fastbreak layup to put the RedHawks ahead, 25-19. Indiana hit a layup at the buzzer to send Miami into the break up four at 25-21.
Osborn finished the half with 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting. The RedHawks outrebounded the Hoosiers, 21-15 during the period. They shot 41.7 percent (10-for-24), while holding Indiana to only 31 percent shooting (9-for-29).
Miami built the lead back up to five at 35-30 thanks to two jumpers from Osborn, along with made baskets from Boyer and Kristin Judson. A 6-0 run by the Hoosiers put Indiana back in front, 36-35, with 13:06 remaining, but a layup by Kirsten Olowinski gave Miami the lead back. The teams would go on to trade the lead seven more times over the next seven minutes.
Trailing 51-50, Osborn hit a jumper and Hencke followed with a three-pointer to put Miami up, 54-51. The teams traded baskets until it was 59-55 with 3:18 to go. A 6-2 run by the Hoosiers tied the score at 61 with less than a minute to go, but Boyer was fouled and hit both free throws to give the advantage back to the RedHawks. Miami forced Indiana into a missed layup on its next possession and hit four more free throws to seal a 67-61 win.
In addition to her 26 points, Osborn finished with a career-high seven rebounds. Boyer finished with 14 points, while Olowinski had eight points and eight rebounds. Miami shot 42.1 percent (24-for-57) for the game, and outrebounded the Hoosiers, 46-35.
The RedHawks return to action Saturday when they host Cal State Bakersfield at 2 p.m. It is part of a doubleheader that will see the men's basketball team take on Troy at 4:30 p.m.
