Legends in sports don’t come by often. On Sunday, the latest Hawkeye to earn that rare distinction was immortalized in Iowa history forever.

After Iowa defeated Michigan State, 74-57, center Megan Gustafson’s number 10 was retired in a ceremony in front of 13,420 people, the second highest in the Lisa Bluder era, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Her gold banner was raised to the rafters as the crowd roared along.

“This is a place that’s so special to my heart, to come back here today to see what a great crowd that came out for our girls today,” Gustafson said during the ceremony. “I’m just so proud to be a Hawk. Once a Hawk, always a Hawk.”

Gustafson played for the program from 2015-19 and holds six Hawkeye single-season records, six career records, five Big Ten single-season records, and three career Big Ten records. Statistical highlights include her 1,001 points during her senior season, 1,460 rebounds in her career, and a 65.6 percent career field goal percentage — all of which are Big Ten records.

In total, Gustafson scored 2,804 points over her illustrious career, a program record.

At the end of her senior year, she was named the first Consensus National Player of the Year in conference history,

Awards and statistics only mean so much, however. Experience is a big part of any college athletes playing experience, and, at Iowa, Gustafson felt her greatest impact was something else.

“I don’t play the game of basketball just because of the game,” Gustafson said. “I play it for so much more. I play it to inspire other people, to inspire other girls and boys, just to know that they can play, and they can realize their own dreams, and thankfully the University of Iowa has given me an amazing platform to do just that.”

RELATED: Doyle excels in multiple phases for Iowa

While watching the greatest player she has ever coached be honored in front of the crowded audience in Carver, Bluder got emotional.

“Megan represented our program,” Bluder said. “She was the epitome of the women’s basketball player that we want in our program.”

In a postgame press conference, Bluder applauded Gustafson’s hard work, humbleness, and niceness, the latter she said is a lost art in today’s society.

Gustafson is only the second player in Hawkeye women’s basketball history to have her number retired. Michelle Edwards’ No. 30 was retired in 1988.

Gusatfson sat across from the Hawkeye bench during the game. Though she wasn’t acting like a crazy fan, she was attentively watching, cheering whenever the Hawkeyes, whenever someone in the Black and Gold made a play. It was a roller-coaster throughout most of the game, but the Hawkeyes did come up on top.

Toward the end of the game, as both freshman McKenna Warnock and senior Kathleen Doyle made and-one layups, Gustafson emphatically stood up and celebrated.

“It was really fun to be just up and close and hearing what’s going on, and I really wanted to go out there and suit up to be honest,” Gustafson said. “But it was just incredible just to be around there. My family was with me you know right there. Just to be up close and personal with the Hawk fans from a different perspective, you know, because I’ve always been playing. It was really cool.”