The Iowa Hawkeyes are back off to the Sweet 16. Thanks to one final Caitlin Clark 30-piece inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena, some timely defensive plays and a late scoring spurt, top-seeded Iowa (31-4, 15-3 Big Ten) managed to squeak past No. 8 seed West Virginia (25-8, 12-6 Big 12), 64-54.
Clark knocked down five 3-pointers and sank 11-of-12 free throws to pour in 32 points. The 6-foot senior guard grabbed eight rebounds, but she finished with just three assists.
Junior guard Sydney Affolter provided a much-needed scoring spark, chipping in with 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting. That included Affolter’s and-1 layup with 2:03 remaining to break a 52-52 deadlock.
Sophomore forward Hannah Stuelke was Iowa’s other double-figure scorer with 12 points on 3-of-6 shooting. She also knocked down 6-of-9 free throws to help ice the victory.
Tested late into the night, Iowa managed to close with a 12-2 run to advance to the program’s 10th all-time Sweet 16.
Any victory in the NCAA Tournament is a great one. Let’s dive into some key takeaways from Iowa’s nerve-racking W.
The refs allowed for a physical game
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Fouls and free throws were at a premium early. Seriously, the officiating crew let Iowa and West Virginia get after one another.
And while there were times Hawkeye fans were left howling for a whistle, Iowa got to get rough and tumble with West Virginia on the interior, too. The refs let these teams play early.
It was probably advantage WVU, but it’s not the worst thing that Iowa was able to face this type of night and come out the other side all the same. Great teams in March Madness need to be able to win games in different ways. Iowa proved it could do that with its win tonight.
Iowa didn’t get off to the fast start it wanted to
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With a raucous crowd in attendance for the final home game of Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall’s careers, the Carver faithful was ready to erupt at the drop of a hat.
After Iowa fell behind 5-0, Clark sent the sellout Carver crowd’s decibels soaring when she sank her first 3-pointer of the night to even Iowa with West Virginia at five apiece.
But, West Virginia was successful in taking Iowa out of what it wanted to accomplish early. The Mountaineers jumped out in front 11-5 before the Hawkeyes closed the first quarter on a 15-4 run.
It was the second quarter that had Hawkeye fans scratching their heads. Iowa was limited to just six points. West Virginia forced nine first half turnovers and held Iowa to its fewest points in a half this season as the Hawkeyes led just 26-24 at halftime.
Caitlin Clark delivered a great performance
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In a game that wound up as a rock fight, Caitlin Clark was as advertised. Don’t take that for granted.
Iowa needed every last bit of scoring from Clark and she delivered. Though she had stretches where she couldn’t find a bucket, ultimately, Clark did just enough to get Iowa into the win column.
Clark’s work on the defensive glass was pivotal in this victory, too. She had reeled down eight defensive boards.
Gabbie Marshall had two of the biggest plays of the game
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Thanks to her clutch shooting over the last several seasons, fifth-year guard Gabbie Marshall has garnered the nickname Gabbie March-all. In this contest, Marshall couldn’t buy a bucket.
She finished 0-for-4 from the field and 0-for-3 from 3-point distance. And yet, Marshall had two of the biggest plays in this basketball game to help will Iowa to victory.
Marshall drew a charge on West Virginia’s Jordan Harrison with Iowa nursing a five-point lead at 48-43 and 8:05 left to play. Then, with the game tied at 52 apiece and 2:15 remaining in regulation, Marshall blocked JJ Quinerly’s 3-point shot.
That set up a 12-2 close for Iowa.
Sydney Affolter was huge
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Affolter was money for Iowa. On a night where Martin and Marshall combined for just seven points on 2-for-11 shooting, Affolter stepped up and provided some desperately needed scoring punch.
Back in the starting lineup with fifth-year guard Molly Davis still sidelined, Affolter finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and a pair of assists.
Caitlin Clark was the only Hawkeye to net a 3-pointer
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For the nation’s top scoring offense and its top 3-point shooting team, this game did not play out according to plan.
Iowa came in averaging 92.8 points and 11.3 made 3-pointers per game. The Hawkeyes finished with 64 points and five made 3-pointers.
Clark had all five of those. The rest of Iowa’s roster combined to shoot 0-for-8 from behind the arc.
Again, not the ideal recipe for Iowa going forward. But, survive and advance.
