Iowa (5-0) picked up a signature early season win over Baylor in the WBCA Showcase at State Farm Fieldhouse in Orlando, Florida, on Thursday night.
Led by sophomore center Ava Heiden’s 18 points and 11 rebounds, No. 20 Iowa topped No. 10 Baylor, 57-52. But the Hawkeyes lost sophomore guard Chit-Chat Wright to injury early in the second half.
Wright was fouled as she attempted a shot early in the third quarter and landed hard on the court. The 5-foot-4 guard was tended by trainers for several minutes before standing up. She was carried off the court by two Hawkeye staffers.
Afterward, Iowa women’s basketball coach Jan Jensen updated Wright’s injury status, telling the Hawkeye Radio Network in her postgame interview that Iowa will be without Wright in its upcoming game against Miami on Saturday night.
“Miami, they do about six different presses, so it’ll be a lot different team than this, and so we’ll really be tested with our press breaker. Unfortunately, it’s without Chit-Chat, so now that’s become a lot more ominous. Not that it wasn’t before, but breaking a press with Chit-Chat makes me sleep a lot better at night.
“Now, breaking it without Chit-Chat, we’re really going to have to depend on our cuts and our angles. So, we don’t have a whole lot of time to work with that, but I’m sure I’ll get lots of minutes tomorrow to practice that. Our coaches will be up late tonight watching this one and making sure we’ve got all our I’s dotted and T’s crossed for the prep for Miami,” Jensen said.
Jensen didn’t specify what injury Wright is dealing with or what timeline might exist for Wright’s return. But, Jensen was encouraged by the way her Iowa team responded after it lost Wright to injury against Baylor.
“I think what I was just the most proud of was when we lost Chat, because she’s been so good for us. That was beginning (second half) really. Have everybody step up. And we lost Hannah (Stuelke) for a little bit.
“Like, Journey’s minutes, it won’t look like a lot. Six minutes, but she came in there and held serve. Had one big assist, that was really fun. Got a rebound. She made the offense go, so I was really, really pleased with that. We just gutted it out. I talk a lot about wanting to be blue collar. Blue-collar blue bloods,” Jensen said.
Iowa shot 34% against Baylor, but the Hawkeyes’ defense limited Baylor to 29% shooting. Iowa closed the game on a 9-1 run.
“It was one of those games that it just wasn’t easy or pretty. You just knew you were going to have to grit it out. Baylor always plays really good defense. I think our defense is pretty solid. We weren’t hitting and they made it hard. We’re still learning pieces, we’re still learning who I want to put in at different times, so it’s a little herky-jerky.
“And then when you’ve got two teams that I think both teams really wanted it. I thought they were both battling really hard,” Jensen said.
Iowa returns to action at State Farm Fieldhouse against Miami (4-0) on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT in a game that will stream on ESPN+.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa women’s basketball updates Chit-Chat Wright injury
Reporting by Josh Helmer, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
