Hawkeyes dig deep, manufacture comeback win against Iowa State
On the back of freshman Caitlin Clark, Iowa is now 4-0 on the season following its 82-80 win Wednesday night.
Iowa Guards Kate Martin (left), Caitlin Clark (middle), and Monika Czinano signal to their teammates during a women’s basketball game between Iowa and Iowa State at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday, Dec. 9,2020. The Hawkeyes defeated the Cyclones in a close game, 82-80.
December 9, 2020
Through the first 30 minutes of the annual Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk game, Iowa women’s basketball was trailing, 73-56, and things looked bleak for the Hawkeyes
But then, Iowa found its fire in the fourth quarter.
The Hawkeyes went on a rampage in the fourth, outscoring Iowa State, 26-7. With just over three minutes left in the game, Iowa tied the Cyclones at 75. With 22 seconds left, freshman point guard Caitlin Clark hit a game-winning, 3-point shot, propelling Iowa to an 82-80 win to advance to 4-0 on the season. The victory serves as the Hawkeyes’ fifth-straight over the Cyclones and 39th-straight at home.
With the win, the Hawkeyes also secured a clean sweep of in-state foes as head coach Lisa Bluder’s bunch downed Northern Iowa and Drake to open the season.
“You don’t get to hang a banner for being state champions, but it sure means a lot as far as your pride,” Bluder said. “I think we only led in this game for one minute, but at least we picked the right minute.”
According to Bluder’s team, relentless belief and intense focus on winning is what allowed it to come out on top Wednesday night.
“I think the second you believe that you’re gonna lose, you’re gonna lose,” junior center Monika Czinano said.
“I think our mentality really just changed [in the fourth quarter],” sophomore guard Kate Martin said. “Everyone started locking down on defense and was moving with a purpose. We just told each other, ‘We’re not going to let them score.’”
Bluder said she noticed a shift in confidence in the fourth quarter too, especially on the defensive end as Martin suggested. Bluder also believes her team’s comeback win on the road against Drake gave it the wisdom to win Wednesday.
The Iowa defense, which had been struggling throughout Wednesday’s game, came to life in the last ten minutes. The Hawkeyes held Iowa State to just seven points, and Martin tallied three of her five rebounds in the fourth.
Clark said associate head coach Jan Jensen helped motivate the team heading into the game’s final act.
“Coach [Jensen] just came over and was like ‘Believe in yourself, believe in yourself, we believe in you. Empty the tank and give it everything you’ve got,’” Clark said. “I think every single player did that. Whether it was getting stops on defense in the fourth quarter, our defense was phenomenal, whether it was zone or man… That’s honestly what won us the game. Our offense was there the entire game, it was just, we couldn’t find a way to get a stop on defense. In the fourth quarter, that’s what we did.”
“Coach [Jensen] is probably the best I’ve ever met giving speeches,” Czinano said. “You want to run through a wall after coach J talks.”
Iowa State junior guard Ashley Joens was the biggest threat to the Hawkeyes Wednesday. Joens posted a double-double, with 35 points and 13 rebounds. Clark played with Joens in high school, in AAU basketball, and on the U.S. junior team.
“She’s just so strong, stronger than almost everyone on the court,” Clark said. “You could just see that by the way she goes down there and bodies people down and makes layups… she’s a heck of a player and she’s going to be a pro someday.”
Iowa will take its show on the road this Saturday, traveling to East Lansing for a matchup with Michigan State.
