On Thursday night, Iowa women’s basketball was defeated by No. 23 Northwestern for the second time this season, 87-80.

Just as she was the first time the Hawkeyes and Wildcats met this season, center Monika Czinano was a force on the offensive end of the floor, shooting 17-of-19 from the field and finishing the game with 34 points and 11 rebounds. 

While the Hawkeyes did do a good job feeding Czinano the ball consistently and making the most of a size advantage inside the paint, Czinano still made some incredibly tough shots down low.

“It was having that mentality, just knowing that I would need to do a little more,” Czinano said. “It would not have been possible without all the passes my teammates made. You can only make that field goal percentage when your teammates are finding you when you’re wide open.”

Czinano was a big reason for Iowa’s success inside, as the Hawkeyes finished the game with 50 points in the paint compared to Northwestern’s 30. 

Freshman guard Caitlin Clark finished the game with a commendable 23 points and eight assists, but she had to claw her way to that final statline from opening horn to final buzzer.

Clark picked up two early fouls and only played eight minutes in the first half, much to her frustration. However, the freshmen showed her maturity by playing level-headed basketball in the second half, scoring an efficient 14 points in the third quarter.

Although she was less effective in the final quarter, she managed to put up seven more points and make some key passes to keep Iowa in the game.

“I got a lot more easier looks for sure, and I think we just moved the ball better,” Clark said. “When Monika makes inside shots, it opens things up, and we did good at hitting the extra pass.”

Sophomore Kate Martin helped Iowa get up and running on offense too, with eight of her 10 points coming in the first quarter. Forward Mckenna Warnock also played an important role in today’s game, contributing a team-high 14 rebounds and seven assists. 

However, all the good work the Hawkeyes put in was negated by 23 turnovers that yielded 28 Wildcat points. Iowa only scored six points off of turnovers on the night.

“Turnovers continue to plague our team,” head coach Lisa Bluder said. “When you give them 14 more opportunities to shoot than you have because of the turnovers, it’s hard to win games.”

When Iowa limited its turnovers in the third quarter, it raced out to a nine point lead. But that lead would not last as Northwestern began to regain momentum late in the third period and early in the fourth.

The Hawkeyes were also at a major disadvantage at the charity stripe – earning just eight free throw attempts compared to Northwestern’s 34 foul shots.

Both teams shot under 50 percent from the free-throw line, but the disparity in attempts ended up being a deciding factor in the game, according to head coach Lisa Bluder.

“We’re not even in the bonus in the fourth quarter, and they shoot 26 free throws in the fourth quarter,” Bluder said. I’ve never seen anything like it, and it will be interesting to watch the film.” 

The Hawkeyes now face a quick turnaround as they will play Minnesota in Minneapolis at 4 p.m. on Sunday. The game will be streamed on BTN+.