Nov. 22, 2000
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Niele Ivey scored 17 of her 22 points in the first half as fifth-ranked Notre Dame beat No. 19 Wisconsin 83-56 Wednesday night in the first round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge.
Kelley Siemon added 21 points on 7-of-8 shooting for Notre Dame (3-0), which advances to play sixth-ranked Georgia in Friday’s championship. Georgia beat No. 12 Oklahoma 94-70 earlier Wednesday.
Ivey also had nine rebounds and seven assists.
LaTonya Sims scored 20 points to pace Wisconsin (1-2), which will play Oklahoma in Friday’s third-place game.
Notre Dame took a 23-13 lead thanks to three 3-pointers from Ivey. Wisconsin pulled to 29-24, but the Irish ended the half on a 12-2 run to take a 41-26 lead.
Wisconsin got as close as 43-33 early in the second half before Siemon scored eight points in a 10-1 Notre Dame spurt.
Two straight 3-pointers by Jeneka Joyce gave Notre Dame a 57-34 lead with just over 14 minutes to play.
Wisconsin committed 22 turnovers, including 13 in the first half.
Dating back to the 1998-99 season, Wisconsin has lost 16 of its last 17 games against ranked opponents. Last Saturday, the Badgers lost 71-57 to then-No. 24 Oregon.