The Hawkeyes had some struggles from the field in their last game against Northern Iowa when they only shot 35.4 percent from the field. On Wednesday, it looked like that type of shooting would continue in their game against Princeton.

In the first half, the Hawkeyes only shot 29 percent from the field, including going 4-of-14 on 3-pointers. They also had nine turnovers and only three points were scored from players off the bench.

The second half was a different story. In the third quarter, the team shot 53.8 percent from the field, and in the fourth quarter they shot 58.3 percent. That type of second-half production propelled the Hawkeyes to a 77-75 win in overtime.

The Hawkeyes were able to come back from a six-point deficit in overtime with a strong resurgence from their offense. Senior captain and guard Makenzie Meyer made a 3-pointer with just over two minutes to go, starting the comeback.

“Well we’ve been down the whole night, so I think we were ready to throw another punch,” Meyer said. “We drew up a play, executed it perfectly, and Kathleen gave me the pass for the wide open three so that’s exactly what we were looking for and luckily I was able to knock it down.”

Meyer was one of the most important players in this comeback. After scoring only three points in the first half, she finished the night with 19, with her last point being the one that gave the Hawkeyes the lead for good in the last minute of overtime.

“Well I think it was just knocking down shots,” Meyer said in response to her second half performance. “I was getting good looks the whole game, I had a couple wide open threes, so just having the confidence knocking down.”

Senior captain and guard Kathleen Doyle was also a key contributor in overtime, as she scored three points and helped the team regroup after the Tigers tied the game on a three at the buzzer.

“I think we did a great job in the huddle right away saying ‘this isn’t over, we’re on the home court, five more minutes to play, we have the momentum,’” Doyle said. “And I’m really proud of how this group refocused and had confidence in ourselves.”

Doyle continued to lead the offense, as she had 21 points and nine assists.

The improved field goal percentage in the second half by the Hawkeyes also included a limitation in turnovers by them as well. They had nine in the first half – including six in the first quarter – but by game’s end had only 15 the entire game.

“They do a great job of helping,” head coach Lisa Bluder said of her team, going on to say that the players got used to and understood where the help was coming from on their team after a sloppy start.

With the offense showing much improved signs since their last game when it shot 35.4 percent in its loss against Northern Iowa, it looks to continue that in the Puerto Rico Clasico, which starts on Nov. 27 against Cincinnati.

“That was just a big momentum boost,” Meyer said. “Obviously, this was a big win for us after a loss on Sunday, so I think it’s just going give us more momentum when we’re in Puerto Rico and have three games in four days.”