The No. 19 Iowa women’s basketball team began its trip to Orlando, Florida, with a statement 57-52 win over No. 7 Baylor Thursday night. The Hawkeyes remain undefeated with their fifth consecutive win despite shooting a season-low 34.4 percent from the floor.
Iowa second-year center Ava Heiden scored a team-high 18 points and posted her third double-double of the year with 11 boards. She was followed by fellow second-year guard Taylor Stremlow with a career-high 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and senior forward Hannah Stuelke with 10 points.
Iowa second-year guard Chit-Chat Wright left the game with a little more than nine minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Hawkeyes’ starting point guard attempted a layup but suffered an awkward fall and hit the hardwood below the basket. She would be helped off the court by trainers and did not return.
Baylor second-year guard Taliah Scott led both squads with a season-high 32 points, continuing her torrid scoring pace. Through four games, the Auburn transfer ranks seventh in Division I in scoring with 24.5 points per game. Scott’s flourishing moment arrived in the fourth quarter with Iowa ahead, 44-42.
Stuelke connected on a layup off a great touch-pass assist from Stremlow, who led the team with four dimes. Scott immediately answered with a triple and the wing, and the pattern of Stuelke two, Scott three, repeated on the ensuing possessions. Scott then pressed her luck with another three-point attempt but drew a shooting foul and knocked down all three free throws for Baylor to take a 51-48 lead. From that point on, Iowa would allow just one more point as Heiden took advantage in the paint.
After an Iowa offensive rebound, Heiden scored a layup, then another before first-year Emely Rodriguez chipped in another two-point basket. Taylor McCabe’s layup established the Hawkeyes’ eighth point in the paint during the stretch, part of their 26 on the night.
Iowa opened the game on a 7-0 run, but Baylor tied the contest at 16 and led by as many as seven before Wright’s free throws made it a one-possession game. Baylor led. 28-25, at the break as Iowa shot below 30 percent from the floor. The Hawkeyes improved their mark in the second half, eliminating what would’ve been the first time since February 2013 when they shot below that level.
Up Next
Iowa stays in Orlando for a matchup against Miami on Saturday, Nov. 22. The contest against the Hurricanes will begin at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Miami is 4-0 on the season and is led in scoring by senior Ra Shaya Kyle at 15 points per game. The 6-foot-6 Kyle notched her second double-double of the year with 17 points and 11 rebounds in Miami’s win over Davidson on Thursday.