Iowa women’s basketball ‘champing at the bit’ to return to the court for NCAA Tournament
The Hawkeyes will play for the first time in 12 days on Friday when they take on the Illinois State Redbirds in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Iowa warms up during the 2022 NCAA First Round women’s pre-game open practices at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Thursday, March 17, 2022. The arena will host a sellout for both First Round games Friday.
March 17, 2022
The Hawkeyes said they may need some sleep aids when they go to bed on Thursday night.
Because on Friday, Iowa women’s basketball will kick off the NCAA Tournament in Iowa City.
“This is the time every basketball player dreams for, and we’ve been dreaming all season and offseason,” senior center Monika Czinano said. “I think, more than anything, it’s just excitement for what’s to come and knowing what our team is capable of. Definitely going to have to take a melatonin, I’m going to be very wired. But I’m so excited.”
Iowa hasn’t played since March 6, when it won the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Hawkeyes climbed the ladder after they beat the Indiana Hoosiers, 74-67, for their second title in seven days.
Second-seeded Iowa will play for the first time in 12 days when it takes on 15th-seeded Illinois State on Friday at 3 p.m. In NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament history, No. 2 seeds have a perfect 108-0 record against No. 15 seeds.
“I think our team is champing at the bit to get back on the court,” head coach Lisa Bluder said on Thursday. ”I think the break was well deserved and needed, but you’re right, there’s the highs and then you have to come down from that and then build back up again.”
The second-seeded Hawkeyes earned a hosting spot for the first two games of the national tournament at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The top 16 overall seeds host the first two rounds of the tournament at campus sites, and Iowa is the fifth overall seed.
No. 7 seed Colorado and No. 10 seed Creighton are also in Iowa City for the first two rounds of the tournament, and will compete on Friday at 12:30 p.m.
The winner of Colorado-Creighton and Iowa-Illinois State will then face off on Sunday before heading to Greensboro, North Carolina for the Sweet 16.
“I’m super excited,” sophomore point guard Caitlin Clark said. “We get to sleep in our own beds tonight, which is really nice. A lot of teams don’t get to do that, and we get to play in front of our sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena tomorrow. I might be in the same boat as Monika, might be a few melatonin gummies. I’m excited, it’ll be good.”
But the Hawkeyes’ excitement can turn into jittery mistakes.
The Hawkeyes had a slow start in each of their three Big Ten Tournament games because of early mistakes. Iowa led Northwestern by just one point, 32-31, before ultimately beating the Wildcats, 72-59.
In the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament, Nebraska led, 20-17, at the end of the first quarter. Iowa accumulated six turnovers in the first 10 minutes, with Clark contributing five of them.
Now, the stakes are higher for the Hawkeyes in the national tournament. But Bluder doesn’t expect her players to change any time soon.
When the Hawkeyes walk out into Carver-Hawkeye Arena in front of a sellout crowd of 14,382 fans, she said she wants them to be a little jittery.
“You want them to have that little bit of excitement, a little bit of nerves,” Bluder said. “If you don’t have a little bit of butterflies in your stomach, it doesn’t mean a lot to you. So, I want them to have a little bit of that, and I’m sure they’ll come out in those first five minutes and maybe perform like that, but then they’ll settle down.”