No. 20 Ohio St. 69, Iowa 56

2/21/2008 9:23 PM

By RUSTY MILLER
AP Sports Writer

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -Ashlee Trebilcock and Jantel Lavender each scored 18 points to lead No. 20 Ohio State past Iowa 69-56 Thursday night, drawing the Buckeyes closer to their fourth straight Big Ten title.

Marscilla Packer added 12 points for the Buckeyes (20-6, 11-4).

Kristi Smith had 17 points, Wendy Ausdemore 13 and Johanna Solverson 10 for Iowa (18-9, 11-5), which had won nine of its past 10. The loss was the Hawkeyes' 10th in a row to Ohio State.

After turning the ball over 13 times in the first half, the Hawkeyes settled down in the second, relying on the outside shooting of Smith to stay within reach.

They cut a double-digit deficit to 44-35 on Smith's 3-pointer with 15:54 left before the Buckeyes ran off 12 of the next 14 points to pull away. Iowa never got closer than nine points again.

Ohio State entered the game tied in the loss column in the Big Ten with Iowa and a game ahead of Purdue.

The Buckeyes lead with three games remaining: at Indiana and Penn State and home against Northwestern. They are seeking to become only the third team to win at least four titles in a row. Ohio State won at least a share of the first five conference crowns 1983-87 and Iowa won four in a row 1987-90.

The keys against Iowa were Lavender's play inside and the perimeter shooting of Trebilcock, who had scored a career-high 25 points in Ohio State's 73-65 win at Iowa on Jan. 6, and Packer.

The Buckeyes shot 48 percent from the field to just 36 percent for the Hawkeyes.

Ohio State's 39-25 lead at the break was built on the Buckeyes' speed and the Hawkeyes' inability to control the ball. Ohio State turned the Hawkeyes' turnovers into 16 points - usually on quick turnaround baskets in transition.

The Buckeyes went on a 10-0 run to take the lead for good, holding the Hawkeyes scoreless for more than 3 1/2 minutes. They led by 16 points before Iowa ran off seven points in a row to cut it to a manageable 34-25 with time running out.

But then reserve center Andrea Walker had a three-point play with 15.3 seconds left - banking in a left-handed scoop shot as she fell to the floor - before Maria Moeller turned yet another turnover into a fast-break layup.

The Buckeyes stretched their home winning streak to 75 in a row against unranked opponents. They are 64-3 at home over the past three-plus seasons.

Ohio State has won 61 of its past 69 Big Ten regular-season games.