By the numbers | Iowa women’s basketball heading into the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament
Iowa takes on Rutgers, a team it defeated in the regular season, in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament Thursday night.
Iowa Head Coach Lisa Bluder meets with her team at a time out during a second round game of the Big 10 women’s basketball tournament. Iowa, ranked #6, took on #11 Purdue in Indianapolis at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse Wednesday night. The Hawkeyes beat the Boilermakers, 83-72, advancing the Hawks to take on Rutgers Thursday night in the Big 10 quarterfinals.
March 11, 2021
INDIANAPOLIS — Iowa women’s basketball notched its first win of the 2020-21 postseason on Wednesday night, taking down the Purdue Boilermakers at Bankers Life Stadium, 83-72.
No. 6 seeded Iowa will now take on No. 3 seed Rutgers in the quarterfinal match at Bankers Life Fieldhouse Thursday night.
Here’s how the numbers stack up for the Hawkeyes ahead of their battle with the Scarlet Knights:
89 — Czinano’s field goal percentage Wednesday night
Junior center Monika Czinano has been the most effective shooter for the Hawkeyes in the past two seasons.
In the 2019-20 season, Czinano ranked first in the Big Ten and No. 2 in NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball with a 67.9 percent field goal percentage.
This season, Czinano ranks first nationally with a field goal percentage of 67.1 percent.
On Wednesday, Czinano lived up to that No. 1 ranking, only missing her first shot on her tenth attempt, and going 16-of-18 from the field for a career-high 38 points.
Czinano’s 89 percent single-game field goal percentage is good for second all-time in the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament.
Three — Points by Clark in the first quarter Wednesday night
Caitlin Clark, the 2021 Big Ten Freshman of the Year was uncharacteristically quiet in the first quarter of Iowa’s game against Purdue, starting her night 0-of-6 from the field.
Clark didn’t tally any points until the final seconds of the first quarter, when she dropped an off-balance 3-point shot at the buzzer to give Iowa the lead, 17-15.
She did pick herself up in the next three quarters, ending the night with 27 points, nine assists, and seven rebounds.
Six — Iowa’s margin of victory over Rutgers in the regular season
Although they were scheduled to play twice, Iowa and Rutgers only met once in the regular season, on New Year’s Eve at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
After the Iowa City matchup, the Scarlet Knights ran into COVID-19 issues within the program, forcing a full stop of activities and canceling over a month’s worth of games — including the Hawkeyes’ Jan. 24 game in Piscataway.
Despite the physicality of the Rutgers defense on Dec. 31, the Hawkeyes kept their composure to post a close, six-point victory over the Scarlet Knights.
The Hawkeyes will need to surpass Rutgers’ stout defense again in order to claim a win in the quarterfinals.
No. 19 — Rutgers ranking at the end of the season
The Scarlet Knights came back strong in February, after its month-long COVID-19 pause.
Rutgers won its past nine games to end the regular season and finished the 2020-21 campaign at No. 19 in the AP women’s basketball poll.
Iowa only has one ranked win on the season — the Hawkeyes defeated No. 12 Michigan on Feb. 25 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, 89-67.
9 p.m. EST — Expected start time
The Hawkeyes got the late time slot in this year’s Big Ten Tournament.
On Wednesday, the matchup between Iowa and Purdue started at 9:04 EST. Tonight, the Hawkeyes are set to play the Scarlet Knights 25 minutes after the conclusion of the Michigan State-Indiana game, which is slated to start at 6:30 p.m. EST.
Despite the late games, the Hawkeyes are waking up early on Thursday for COVID-19 testing at 8:30 a.m. and a shootaround before heading back to the hotel and waiting for game time.
The Hawkeyes will tip off against the Scarlet Knights around 8 p.m. CST. The game will be televised on FS2.
