Sunday, February 25
Ann Arbor, Mich.
2:00 PM
Michigan
10-19, 3-13Big
58
vs
72
Ohio State
26-2, 15-1Big T
1
2
F
Ohio State
38
34
72
Michigan
22
36
58
Michigan Falls to Ohio State in Regular-Season Finale
2/25/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team closed the regular season with a 72-58 loss to Ohio State (No. 5 AP/No. 6 ESPN/USA TODAY) Sunday afternoon (Feb. 25) in Crisler Arena. The Wolverines (10-19, 3-13 Big Ten) could not recover from a 16-point halftime deficit, but U-M did put forth a strong effort after the break. Jessica Davenport scored 15 of her game-high 25 points in the final 20 minutes to help the Buckeyes (26-2, 15-1 Big Ten) secure the win and the outright Big Ten regular season championship.
Sophomore Carly Benson (Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School) led Michigan in scoring for the fourth time in the last six games, finishing with 16 points and five rebounds. Benson was a prime contributor on offense in the closing minutes of the game, canning three of her career-best tying four triples in the final four minutes of the contest. Freshman LeQuisha Whitfield (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King HS) recorded 13 points and four boards in 22 minutes off the bench, while sophomores Jessica Minnfield (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic HS) and Stephany Skrba (Toronto, Ontario/Langstaff Secondary School) chipped in eight points and six boards apiece.
Benson knocked down a pair of free throws on the game's opening possession, but those would be the only Michigan points for 8:40 as the Wolverines missed their first 13 attempts from the field. Meanwhile, Ohio State hit six of its first 10 shots to build a 17-2 lead with 11:52 left in the first half.
Freshman Krista Phillips' (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate HS) lay-up at 11:08 broke the field-goal drought, jumpstarting a 7-2 U-M run that cut the Buckeye lead to 19-9 at 8:46. Ohio State's post play kept the Wolverines at bay, with Davenport scoring six of the team's next 12 points to help extend the OSU lead to 31-15 with 3:20 to until the break.
Whitfield recorded back-to-back hoops before sophomore Melinda Queen (Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg HS) nailed a triple from the top, helping send Michigan into halftime trailing 38-22.
The Buckeyes scored the first five points of the second half to push their lead to 19 points, but Minnfield provided the Maize and Blue with the momentum by converting a huge four-point play at 18:37. The big play sparked a 13-2 Michigan run that trimmed the OSU lead to 45-35 with 13:21 remaining in the game.
Ohio State would not let its lead dip into single digits, however, as Davenport scored 11 of the Buckeyes' next 17 points over a span of 8:32. The result was a 62-45 OSU advantage with 4:34 to go on the clock.
Despite Benson's hot shooting in the final minutes, hitting three triples in a span of 3:03, the Wolverines were unable to draw closer than 14 points of the Ohio State lead the rest of the way.
Michigan enters the Big Ten Conference Tournament as the No. 10 seed; U-M will face No. 7 seed Wisconsin in the opening round on Thursday (March 1) at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. The 3 p.m. game will be televised by Comcast SportsNet Chicago. The tournament will be played March 1-5.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Sophomore Carly Benson (Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School) led Michigan in scoring for the fourth time in the last six games, finishing with 16 points and five rebounds. Benson was a prime contributor on offense in the closing minutes of the game, canning three of her career-best tying four triples in the final four minutes of the contest. Freshman LeQuisha Whitfield (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King HS) recorded 13 points and four boards in 22 minutes off the bench, while sophomores Jessica Minnfield (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic HS) and Stephany Skrba (Toronto, Ontario/Langstaff Secondary School) chipped in eight points and six boards apiece.
Benson knocked down a pair of free throws on the game's opening possession, but those would be the only Michigan points for 8:40 as the Wolverines missed their first 13 attempts from the field. Meanwhile, Ohio State hit six of its first 10 shots to build a 17-2 lead with 11:52 left in the first half.
Freshman Krista Phillips' (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate HS) lay-up at 11:08 broke the field-goal drought, jumpstarting a 7-2 U-M run that cut the Buckeye lead to 19-9 at 8:46. Ohio State's post play kept the Wolverines at bay, with Davenport scoring six of the team's next 12 points to help extend the OSU lead to 31-15 with 3:20 to until the break.
Whitfield recorded back-to-back hoops before sophomore Melinda Queen (Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg HS) nailed a triple from the top, helping send Michigan into halftime trailing 38-22.
The Buckeyes scored the first five points of the second half to push their lead to 19 points, but Minnfield provided the Maize and Blue with the momentum by converting a huge four-point play at 18:37. The big play sparked a 13-2 Michigan run that trimmed the OSU lead to 45-35 with 13:21 remaining in the game.
Ohio State would not let its lead dip into single digits, however, as Davenport scored 11 of the Buckeyes' next 17 points over a span of 8:32. The result was a 62-45 OSU advantage with 4:34 to go on the clock.
Despite Benson's hot shooting in the final minutes, hitting three triples in a span of 3:03, the Wolverines were unable to draw closer than 14 points of the Ohio State lead the rest of the way.
Michigan enters the Big Ten Conference Tournament as the No. 10 seed; U-M will face No. 7 seed Wisconsin in the opening round on Thursday (March 1) at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. The 3 p.m. game will be televised by Comcast SportsNet Chicago. The tournament will be played March 1-5.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Team Stats
OSU
MICH
FG%
.438
.333
3FG%
.200
.240
FT%
.824
.727
RB
43
35
TO
18
16
STL
13
7
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
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