Badgers Rout Cleveland State
November 27, 2001 | Women's Basketball
The University of Wisconsin improved to 3-1 on the season with a dominating 97-55 victory over Cleveland State this evening. The Badgers used their superior inside play and a stifling half-court defense to down the visiting Vikings, who drop to 0-3 on the year.
The Badgers, led by senior tri-captain Jessie Stomski, controlled the inside game all night, outscoring Cleveland State 60-20 in the paint and outrebounding CSU by 19 boards, 50-31. Stomski, who scored 18 points in only 12 minutes of action in the first half, finished with a game-high 27 points, on 12-15 shooting, and ten rebounds.
Defensively, Wisconsin harassed the Vikings all over the court and never let them establish an offensive rhythm. The Badgers limited Cleveland State to a mere 35% shooting from the floor and forced 27 Viking turnovers. Point guard and tri-captain Tamara Moore grabbed five of the Badgers' 18 steals, and, on the offensive end, Moore scored 22 points and dished out six assists.
'Stomski and Moore are the real deal,' praised Cleveland State Head Coach Duffy Burns. 'We knew that watching them on film, but they really showed us how good they are as individual players tonight.'
Wisconsin started the game firing on all cylinders and never looked back. The Badgers jumped out to a quick 20-10 lead after the first seven minutes of play, as Stomski took control of the game, scoring 12 of UW's points during the run.
Cleveland State was never able to get any closer, and Coach Jane Albright experimented with different combinations for the rest of the game, getting extended looks at several freshmen and reserve players.
Forward Sarah Jirovec took advantage of her extra playing time to score a career-high 14 points, and freshman guard Stephanie Rich came off of the bench to knock down two three-point baskets and finish with eight points. Leah Hefte also notched eight points, and freshman forward Ebba Gebisa grabbed five rebounds and four steals in only 15 minutes on the court. Back-up point guard Candas Smith distributed a career-high seven assists and notched five steals in running the Badger floor plan for much of the second half.
Sun Prairie native, Tonya Crum led Cleveland State with 12 points and four rebounds, and guard Maria Richards added 11 points. Nikki Perkins made a pair of three-point baskets to finish with 10 points.
Wisconsin travels back to warmer climes this weekend for the Arizona Basketball Classic where they take on the University of Pittsburgh in first-round action on Friday, November 30 at 6:00 PM.
