Of all the ways this Iowa women’s basketball swing through Florida could’ve gone, what actually unfolded is among the most productive outcomes.
Short of dominant victories where everything clicks, slogging and surviving through two grueling wins is exactly what this young Hawkeyes team needed early in the season. Although the offense was far from reliable in WBCA Showcase wins over No. 10 Baylor and Miami — the second of which saw Iowa endure an eight-minute fourth-quarter scoring drought before prevailing — these Hawkeyes worked around that and all other adversity.
“I think we got a lot better down here,” senior Taylor McCabe said on postgame radio after the Miami win. “So that’s really exciting.”
Two days after winning a seesawing affair with big buckets late versus Baylor, Iowa attacked the fourth quarter much differently against Miami on Nov. 22. The Hawkeyes’ 64-61 victory gave an up-close look at what can happen when late tension builds, even if the first three quarters are largely filled with positives.
Following Hannah Stuelke’s layup with 8:30 left, which handed Iowa a seemingly comfortable 61-49 cushion, the Hawkeyes didn’t connect from the field again. Three Kylie Feuerbach free throws were Iowa’s only points over the final eight minutes as Miami slowly chiseled away.
To the Hawkeyes’ credit, they never coughed up the lead. And it’s not like Miami lit it up offensively to climb back within range. Iowa still held the Hurricanes to just 10 points during its scoring drought. The Hawkeyes’ ability to remain locked in defensively saved them from an unsettling end to their Orlando stay.
Up to that point, Iowa’s offense flowed much better than it did in its 57-52 win over Baylor. Strong interior work from Ava Heiden (20 points) and Hannah Stuelke (17 points, 12 rebounds) gave Iowa a steady stream of production, while McCabe (11 points, eight rebounds) supplied enough outside contributions on a night when not many fell. McCabe finished 3-for-7 from deep. The remaining Hawkeyes went 0-for-14.
Some of that was understandable with Chit-Chat Wright out after suffering an upper-body injury early in the second half against Baylor. Sophomore Taylor Stremlow started in her place and delivered seven points, eight rebounds and five assists despite a 3-for-10 shooting. Point guard is far from her natural position, yet Stremlow still thrived with the sudden change.
“We found a way to win,” Iowa coach Jan Jensen said, “and we didn’t have Chat the entire game. We beat a Baylor team when she was out for half the game, and then we had a one-day prep for a team with a lot of (defensive) pressure. And we didn’t have our greatest ball-handlers. So it was going to look a little bit different anyway.”
Other young players went through more turbulence than they’re used to — and still managed to find productive moments. Emely Rodriguez had six turnovers against the Bears and played just four minutes versus Miami. However, it was Rodriguez who combined with McCabe for the biggest sequence of the week late in the Baylor game.
Addie Deal, after playing six minutes in the first game, was Jensen’s main bench piece in the second. Deal’s four points in 15 minutes helped spell Stremlow with Iowa playing short-handed. Layla Hays fought through a rolled ankle against Miami in what was far from a clean weekend on the health front.
Holding serve withot Wright, and also Stuelke and Hays for extended stretches, should add another layer of confidence to this budding group. Nothing was perfect, and there’s plenty of work ahead. But the Hawkeyes head back to Iowa City more cemented than when they left.
“With so many new people, this trip was great for us,” McCabe said. “We’ve all been kind of saying that we just need to be stuffed on a bus together and eating meals together and spending a lot of time together. So that was really special and something we really got to experience on this trip.”
Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What to make of Iowa women’s basketball’s WBCA Showcase sweep
Reporting by Dargan Southard, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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