Jan 10, 2002
By DAN GELSTON
Associated Press Writer
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) - Minnesota couldn't handle the pressure from Kelly Komara and Purdue.
Shereka Wright scored 23 points and Mary Jo Noon and Komara each added 15 as No. 13 Purdue beat Minnesota 84-61 Thursday night.
The Boilermakers (12-3, 3-2 Big Ten) couldn't shake the Gophers until late in the second half when they closed the game with a 29-10 run.
Wright converted a three-point play to give Purdue a 53-45 lead. But Minnesota's Lindsey Lieser connected on two 3-pointers - around a basket by Noon - to make it a four-point game.
Wright put back her own miss, Beth Jones hit a 3 and Lindsey Hicks added a basket to push Purdue's lead to 11 points.
Lieser, who scored 12 for Minnesota (12-3, 2-2), hit her fourth 3-pointer of the game to make it 62-54, but the Gophers wouldn't get closer, largely because of a four-minute span where it committed five turnovers. Minnesota finished with 23 turnovers.
"We take pride in our defense," Komara said. "It starts on the defensive end. If you get that spark early, if one steal turns into two or three then it just inspires the rest of the team."
Purdue coach Kristy Curry said Komara, who had seven steals, did a good job of putting pressure on the Gophers' perimeter players.
"When we understand that everything defensively starts up top, and we pressure the basketball, it can really make it tougher," Curry said. "I think we made some adjustments at halftime and we were better."
Janel McCarville led the Gophers with 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Minnesota coach Brenda Oldfield said the Boilermakers took away good looks at the basket.
The Gophers shot 52 percent in the second half, but had eight fewer attempts than in the first half. They were sloppy with their passing as Purdue had 16 steals to Minnesota's four.
"I really thought in the second half they took us out of so many things offensively," Oldfield said. "We got a little impatient on offense and we got frustrated at the end."
Wright said the Boilermakers came out more focused on defense after letting Iowa shoot 59 percent in a loss.
"I thought the defensive pressure was the key point," Wright said. "They were sticking with us for a while because we weren't playing the aggressive defense that we needed to. Once we got that going, it sparked our offense."
Laura Meadows added nine points and eight rebounds for Purdue, which has won 19 straight games at Mackey Arena and 17 straight Big Ten home games.
Komara had Purdue's final steal and hit a 3 just past halfcourt to end the game.
Wright scored 13 points in the second half and fell three points shy of her career high.
Purdue used a 9-0 run to turn a one-point deficit into a 27-19 lead it wouldn't relinquish. The Boilermakers converted three straight Minnesota turnovers into five points during the run. Purdue led 34-28 at halftime.
All three of Minnesota's losses have come against ranked teams. The Gophers also lost to Stanford and Penn State.