Husker women’s defense stifles Bengals

Four minutes into the Nebraska women’s basketball game Thursday night, the Huskers trailed Idaho State 6-4 and had made just one shot in six attempts.

Then, NU’s bench struck.

The next four possessions consisted of a corner three from Yvonne Turner, a Catheryn Redmon offensive rebound and put-back, a Nicole Neals missed three, and a Redmon layup, assisted by Turner. Two free throws from starter Dominique Kelley on the next possession gave the Huskers a 12-11 lead, an advantage NU would not relinquish during the 88-41 victory.

The bench continued to play key role for the rest of the first half, accounting for 23 of the team’s 42 points. The reserves had four steals and blocked two shots while shooting more than 50 percent from the field before halftime.

“I think our style is kind of a wearing style. We’re going to bring a lot of kids in and maintain that pressure,” NU coach Connie Yori said. “We have to have good bench play. We’ve got to get production out of nine or 10 players night in and night out.”

The bench was led by Turner, who finished with 14 points, five rebounds and three steals.

“I thought Yvonne gave us a real spark of the bench, particularly defensively,” Yori said. “I think she’s been one of our best offensive guards throughout the season. I thought tonight she really got after the ball. We don’t get caught up in who’s starting.”

Turner, a senior who started every game during her sophomore and junior seasons, said coming off the bench allows her to get a feel for the game.

“I’m not really worried about starting or anything,” Turner said. “Coming off the bench is really helping me because I can see what the opposition’s point guard’s strengths and weaknesses are. Anytime I can get into a player’s bubble, that’s a great feeling. I just have to be ready to play at any given time.”

Despite the bench’s success. NU’s starters were far from silent.

Cory Montgomery scored 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for her ninth career double-double. Kelsey Griffin added 14 points, and Kelley finished with 12 points and seven rebounds.

The Bengals spent most of the game doubling Griffin and Montgomery when NU got the ball in the post.

“We utilized our inside-outside game, and our posts did a good job finding the cutter or someone open for a three,” Yori said. “I thought our execution was pretty good.”

Montgomery acknowledged that part of she and Griffin’s job is kicking the ball out.

“Teams will sometimes double Kelsey and I, and we need to be able to find the open guard,” Montgomery said. “I think our inside-out game is a strength of ours.”

Turner was on the receiving end of the kick-outs, taking advantage of the open looks and hitting four of her seven 3-point attempts.

“We have to get ready for our posts to get double-teamed, and when they get double-teamed we need to knock down those shots,” Turner said.

NU’s stifling defense held the Bengals to 31.6 percent shooting, including just one 3-pointer.

“We just beared down and tried to play our defensive system,” Montgomery said. “I think our pressure got to them, and we were able to force them to take some tough shots.”

Yori said she expects a strong defensive effort every game, and she got what she wanted Thursday night.

“Our players play hard,” Yori said. “We’re a pressure team and we’re going to get after it defensively.”

danhoppen@dailynebraskan.com