Indiana Women's Basketball
3/13/1998 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Indiana Women's Basketball
National Invitation Tournament
Indiana Hoosiers Basketball (19-11, 10-6 Big Ten - Third Place/tie)
1998 National Invitation Tournament - First Round
March 13, 1998 - Bloomington, Ind.
Indiana University Women's Basketball team will host Xavier (17-11 overall, 11-5 Atlantic 10 Conference) in the first round of the 1998 Postseason National Invitation Tournament Friday, March 13 at 7:30 p.m., in Assembly Hall (17, 357). Should the Hoosiers advance, they will host the winner of the Toledo/Cincinnati game in second round action Sunday, March 15 at 2 p.m. Indiana is one of 16 teams to be selected to the inaugural Postseason WNIT which is controlled, supervised and directed by the Triple Crown Women's Intercollegiate Basketball Association (TCWIBA).
MEDIA INFORMATION - IU Assistant Media Relations Director Shelli Stewart handles all requests regarding the Hoosiers' coaches and players. Interview requests should be made through Stewart who can be reached courtside during Indiana's games, or at (812) 855-4770.
OVER THE AIRWAVES - Indiana Women's NIT games can be heard live via radio broadcast on WGCT-FM (105.1). Broadcasts are handled by play-by-play announcer Mike Scott and feature scouting reports by Coach Jim Izard, a halftime show and a postgame wrap-up with Assistant Coaches Susan Dixon and Keila Whittington.
ABOUT THE HOOSIERS - Indiana finished the regular season 19-11 overall, 10-6 in Big Ten play and tied with Michigan and Purdue for third-place in the final conference standings. IU's third-place showing was its best in league play since the 1983 squad went 15-3 and was crowned Co-Big Ten Champions. The Hoosiers opened the 1998 season with three-straight wins before losing their next three games to nationally ranked Hawaii, Alabama and Western Kentucky. Indiana entered Big Ten play with an 8-4 record and preceded to win its first three league games which marked the best Big Ten start in school history. The Hoosiers longest winning streak of the season was seven games while its longest losing streak was three games. IU has been tough to play on its home court with a 13-2 record, but has found inconsistency on the road with a 6-9 mark.
INDIANA INFO - Senior Quacy Barnes has led the Hoosiers all season, averaging 18.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. She is followed by junior Kristi Green who averages 11.2 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. As a team, Indiana is averaging 72.0 points and 36.5 rebounds per game while shooting 45 percent from the field, 35 percent from the 3-point arc and a blistering 75 percent from the free throw line.
The Hoosiers vs. the 1998 Postseason NIT field - Indiana has played only one of the 15 other NIT participants this season. The Hoosiers split play with Penn State in Big Ten play, losing 75-62 in University Park, Penn., before defeating the Nittany Lions 58-55 in Bloomington. In its 26-year basketball history, Indiana has met 8 of the 15 teams in the field and is 14-13 all-time against the field. The Hoosiers have all-time series leads against Boise State (1-0), Bowling Green State (3-0), Butler (1-0), Cincinnati (3-2), Mississippi State (2-0) and Rice (1-0). IU is 1-1 vs. Toledo and 2-10 against Penn State.
On XAVIER - Xavier enters the first round of NIT action with a 17-11 overall, 11-5 mark in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Musketeers advanced to the semifinal round of the Atlantic 1chus0 tournament last week before falling to Massaetts 49-44. Xavier has had a banner season, flip-flopping their record from 10-17 in 1996-97 to 17-11 this year. The Musketeers concluded the regular season tied for second place with Virginia Tech in the Atlantic 10 West Division. Xavier is led by 6-3 freshman center Taru Tuukkanen who averages 11.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Third-team Atlantic 10 All-Conference selection Connie Hamberg averages 10.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. Junior point guard Nikki Kremer was also named third-team all-conference and averages 8.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. As a team, the Musketeers average 71.3 points, 37.7 rebounds per game while shooting 44 percent from the field. Xavier is coached by Melanie Balcomb who is in her third season with the program and carries a 42-41 school record and a 70-67 five-year career total. The Series: Friday's meeting will be the first between the two schools.
Common Opponents - Indiana and Xavier shared four common opponents during the 1997-98 season. Both teams defeated Valparaiso and La Salle while both teams lost to Western Kentucky and Ohio State.
INDIANA PROBABLE STARTERS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F | #44 | Rachael Honegger, | 5-11, | So. |
| F | #45 | Cindy Kerns, | 6-2, | Jr. |
| C | #42 | Quacy Barnes, | 6-5, | Sr. |
| G | #4 | Dani Thrush, | 5-9, | Jr. |
| G | #21 | Kristi Green, | 5-2, | Jr. |
Xavier | ||||
| F | #4 | Susanna Stromberg, | 6-0, | Jr. |
| F | #22 | Connie Hamberg, | 5-11, | Sr. |
| C | #20 | Jennifer Phillips, | 6-3, | Fr. |
| G | #40 | Nicole Levandusky, | 5-9, | Fr. |
| G | #11 | Nikki Kremer, | 5-9, | Jr. |
SECOND ROUND - If the Hoosiers defeat Xavier, they would host Sunday's second round game against the Cincinnati/Toledo winner. Tipoff will be at 2 p.m., in Assembly Hall.
HISTORY 101 - Although this is the inaugural TCWIBA Women's National Invitation Tournament, the Hoosiers have made a previous appearance in postseason NIT play. In 1991, Coach Izard led the Hoosiers to a runner-up finish in the now extinct National Invitation Tournament in Amarillo, Texas. Indiana defeated UAB and Houston en route to the finals where they lost to Santa Clara 71-68.
HEAD COACH JIM IZARD - Head Coach Jim Izard is in his 10th season at the helm of the Indiana program where he owns a 163-122 (.574) overall school record and a 77-97 (.445) mark in the Big Ten Conference. As Indiana's all-time winningest coach, Izard has guided his teams to eight winning seasons and two NCAA post-season tournament appearances. His 16-year career record stands at 326-171 (.657) and he is just three games away from coaching his 500th career game.
LAST TIME OUT - As the No. 4 seed, Indiana lost to No. 5 seeded Purdue 65-56 in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament Feb. 28. Indiana led 34-30 at the half but only managed six field goals on 29 percent shooting in the second half. Quacy Barnes led all scorers with 22 points while also collecting seven rebounds. Rachael Honegger netted 11 points and Kristi Green added 10.
20/20 VISION - The Hoosiers are currently one victory shy of 20 wins. Not since the 1980-81 season, when IU went 21-16 and advanced to the Midwest AIAW Regional Championship, has an Indiana squad posted 20 wins. The 20 wins would also be the most for Coach Izard since his 1987-88 DePaul team went 27-4. Only two Hoosiers squads (1978-79 and 1980-81) have ever won 20 games in a season.
HIND SIGHT - The Hoosiers proved their critics wrong when they ended the league season tied for third place in the conference standings. Last November, the Big Ten coaches tabbed Indiana to finish ninth in the final standings.
ALL-BIG TEN - Both Quacy Barnes and Kristi Green were named to the 1997-98 All-Big Ten first and second teams. Barnes was voted to the eight-member first-team by both the coaches and the media while Green was selected to the second-team by both the coaches and media.
LAST HURRAH - Quacy Barnes saved her best for last Feb. 22 when she exploded for 29 points in the Hoosiers final regular season game at Michigan State. Not only did she equal her career high for points scored, but she broke the school record for field goal percentage in a game. Barnes went 12-13 from the field, shooting 92 percent.
SMARTY PANTS - Junior Kristi Green was named to the 1998 GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-District V team and is now in consideration for Academic All-America honors. Green's selection marks the fourth-straight year that an IU player has landed a spot on the elite five-member team.
NOT IN OUR HOUSE - With 13 home victories, the Hoosiers set a new Assembly Hall record for home court wins in a season. Indiana lost just two games on its own turf, to Colorado State (75-63) and to Michigan (78-73). Only the 1972-73 team has won more times at home with 15 victories in the old Men's Gym.
FAN FANCY - The 22,243 fans passing through the Assembly Hall turnstiles this season shattered the old school season attendance record of 16,204 set in 1994-95. Playing 15 games at home, the Hoosiers averaged 1,483 fans per game overall, and 2,311 enthusiasts per game for Big Ten play.
BEHIND THE ARC - The Hoosiers currently hold the school record for 3-point field goals made in a season with 189 treys. Indiana broke last year's season mark of 148 3-pointers Jan. 31, vs. Ohio State. IU currently ranks first among Big Ten schools for 3-point baskets and is 12th nationally. IU averages 6.3 3-point field goals per game overall and 6.7 in league play.
BARNSTORMING - In the Hoosiers final regular season game vs. Michigan State, Quacy Barnes became the first IU player in 10 years and just the sixth ever to score 500 points in a season. Barnes has scored 543 points this year.
STINGY DEFENSE - According to Big Ten stats released Feb. 2, the Hoosiers ranked third in the league in scoring defense, allowing an average of just 66.3 points per game. Purdue led the league by holding its opponents to 63.8 points per game.
KAY FROM TREY - Of Kay Morgan's 268 points this season, 162 of those have been scored from 3-point baskets (60 percent). Currently, Morgan is 54-135 (.400) from long distance.
ON THE NATIONAL FRONT - After having led the nation in free throw percentage most of the season, junior Kristi Green fell out of the NCAA's number one spot to second with a .913 free throw percentage. The 5-2 point guard has connected on 94-103 free throws this season.
BLOCK PARTY - Senior Quacy Barnes currently is second in the league for blocked shots with 1.8 swipes per game. The school record holder for blocks, she boasts a 263 career total and is just six blocks away from moving into second place all-time in the Big Ten record books.
HALFTIME TALES - When Indiana is leading or tied at the half its record stands at 18-2, but when the Hoosiers must come from behind, they are 1-9.
TIDBITS - The Hoosiers are 13-2 when scoring more than 70 points...6-9 when scoring less than 70...IU is 14-4 when outrebounding its opponents...6-6 when being outrebounded... Indiana was 9-4 in the month of December...5-5 in January and 5-2 in February.
IMPROVEMENT AT THE CHARITY STRIPE - After starting off the year shooting just 63 percent from the charity stripe, IU steadily improved to lead the league and rank eighth nationally at 75 percent. Unshakable at the line are Kristi Green (91 percent), Kay Morgan (92 percent), Rachael Honegger (85 percent) and Dani Thrush (76 percent).
LITTLE GREEN MACHINE - Kristi Green continues to rack up playing time, averaging 38.2 minutes of action per game. The 5-2 point guard has played 40 minutes in 15 games and went to the bench just a total of 14 minutes through 17 Big Ten games.
SETTING RECORDS - The Hoosiers broke four Big Ten Conference team season records, including three in three-point shooting. IU made 107 three-point field goals, a Big Ten mark. The average of 6.7 made per game along with 18.6 attempted per contest were also Conference games only records. The Hoosiers' .777 free throw percentage also set a new Big Ten mark.
"Q" SCHOOL - Indiana's 6-5 center Quacy Barnes has led the team in scoring in 20 games and has scored in double digits in every game. Currently, she is averaging 18.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 57 percent from the field. In addition, Barnes has collected six double-doubles this season and has scored 20-plus points in 10 games.
INJURY UPDATE - Freshman Tara Jones is out for the rest of the season after tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in practice Feb. 5. The 5-11 guard underwent surgery to repair the tear Feb. 17. Frshman Melissa Yuska is out idefinitely after suffering ena concussion Feb. 20 when she collided with a teammate in practice.
BARNES COLLECTS 1,000th - Senior Quacy Barnes became just the 13th player in Hoosier history to score 1,000 career points Dec. 8, when IU defeated Evansville. Barnes currently has 1,388 career points to rank seventh all-time in scoring.
BIG TEN STATS - Several Hoosiers have placed themselves among the league's statistical leaders in the latest Big Ten Conference weekly release (includes all games).
| Quacy Barnes | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2nd | Blocked Shots | 1.80 |
| 3rd | Field Goal Percentage | 56.7 |
| 6th | Scoring | 18.1 |
| 11th | Rebounding | 6.5 |
| Kristi Green | ||
| 1st | Free Throw Percentage | 91.3 |
| 6th | 3-point FG Percentage | 37.1 |
| 3rd | 3-point FG Made | 1.97 |
| 3rd | Assist/Turnover Ratio | 1.52 |
| Kay Morgan | ||
| 2nd | 3-point FG Percentage | 40.0 |
| 5th | 3-point FG Made | 1.86 |
| Dani Thrush | ||
| 7th | Assists | 4.07 |
| 8th | Assist/Turnover Ratio | 1.34M |
TRIPLE PLAY - Junior Dani Thrush narrowly missed collecting a triple-double twice this season. Against Northwestern, Jan. 4, Thrush scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out a career-high 10 assists. In the Hoosiers season opener versus Ball State Nov. 16, Thrush had 10 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. Through five league contests, Thrush is averaging 5.4 assists per game.
SINGING IN THE HALL - Sophomore Lisa Wube regularly sings the National Anthem before home volleyball and women's basketball games but received a unique chance to sing it to a crowd of 17, 357 Jan. 18, before Indiana's men's game versus Purdue. How did she do? Well, let's just say that she received an appreciative handshake at halftime from famed rocker John Mellencamp.
GREEN RECOGNIZED - Point guard Kristi Green was named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week twice in the month of January. Most recently, Green was named Jan. 26 after she helped lead IU to upsets over No. 6 Illinois and No. 23 Purdue, averaging 16.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game for the week. Against the Illini, she collected 20 points and eight rebounds while against Purdue, she scored a team-high 18 points, earning MVP of the annual Barn Burner/Purdue series. Green was also named Jan. 5 following a three-game performance which helped lead the Hoosiers to a 3-0 league start. Green shared the honor with Illinois' Ashley Berggren. For the week, Green averaged 17 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game while shooting 48 percent from the field, 47 percent from the 3-point arc and 88 percent from the charity stripe. Against Minnesota, Green scored a career-high 26 points while shooting 64 percent from the field.
QUICK RECOVERY - After undergoing surgery to correct a tachacardia problem (rapid beating heart) Nov. 13, sophomore Rachael Honegger returned to the court just three days later to play 13 minutes in IU's win over Ball State.
THE TALL AND SHORT OF IT - Co-captains Kristi Green and Quacy Barnes hold the distinction of being the shortest and tallest players in the Big Ten Conference. Point guard Green stands 5-2, while post player Barnes measures in at 6-5.
THE SMART OF IT - Kristi Green also holds the honor of having the highest grade point average among Big Ten women's basketball players. The junior business major boasts a 3.86 GPA.
HOOSIERS INK CLASS OF 2002 - The Hoosiers have announced the signing of Jill Chapman, Heather Cassady and Yasmina (Yasi) Radmanovich to national letters of intent to play basketball for Indiana next season. Chapman, a 6-5 center out of Blackford High School in Monpelier, Ind., is a three-time all-conference and all-sectional honoree. As a junior, she averaged 19.5 points, 15 rebounds and six blocked shots per game. Cassady, a 5-7 point guard from Peoria, Ill., led Dunlap high school to the elite eight in the Illinois state tournament as a junior while averaging 16 points and eight assists per game. A NIKE All-American, she boasts 1,315 career points and 646 career assists heading into her final season. Radmanovich is a 6-2 forward out of Vacaville, Calif., who plays at Will C. Wood High School. Last season, she averaged 16 points and 15 rebounds per game. A two-time team MVP, she was named all-league as a junior while guiding her team to a 24-6 record.
