Back on track: Hawkeyes blow past Rutgers
“Hawks by a million” is a pretty common phrase amongst Iowa fans when talking about their Hawkeye sports teams on gameday. As Taylor McCabe knocked down three-pointer after three-pointer late in the third quarter, it felt like Iowa might actually beat Rutgers by a million. The bench loved it, the crowd loved it and Lisa Bluder loved it. The Hawkeyes bounced back after a tough loss at Indiana and blasted the Scarlet Knights 111-57.
“It was pretty fun. I can’t lie. My teammates and my coaches see that from me pretty frequently, so I don’t think anybody was too surprised,” said McCabe. “I could hear (the bench reacting). Pretty cool…it was a nice introduction (to the crowd) to me as a shooter here.”
Iowa got off to a good start in the first quarter, using a 17-8 run to go up 29-18. They never looked back from there. They outscored Rutgers 31-10 in the second quarter and their 60-28 lead set a school record for most points in a first half against a Big Ten team.
“It had to do a lot with our defense. We were getting stops on the defensive end and we were able to run in transition and you know how good we are in transition,” said Molly Davis. Iowa outscored Rutgers 35-8 in transition for the game.
After struggling from the floor shooting over her last few games, Molly Davis stepped up and used a season-high 17 points to pace the Iowa offense. She hit a couple of three-pointers in the first quarter and got a friendly roll on the rim at the buzzer for an eight point opening quarter.
“I actually came into this game just trying not to think about it too much,” said Davis. “(I) struggled the past few games, so just trying to get out of my head a little bit and once I saw that first shot go in, I had a lot of confidence.”
The onslaught continued in the second half with Iowa reaching the 90 point mark late in the third quarter. Their 111 points for the game set a school record for most against a Big Ten opponent, breaking the previous record of 108 against Illinois in 2019. The Hawkeyes assisted on 29 of 39 made field goals and turned it over just 12 times, including just three in the first half. Lisa Bluder said today’s win wasn’t about the win itself, but how they won.
“It’s how we won the game to me. That’s what’s important. You want to get these to build your confidence back certainly, but also to execute. You can come out here and play sloppy and maybe still win and we didn’t do that.”
“We shot the ball well, we shared the ball well, so it’s like nobody just took it upon themselves. It was just really nice team basketball and I enjoy watching that.”
Another nice moment in the game was Hannah Stuelke at the free throw line. She went 0/8 at the line in their loss to Indiana and missed her first two today, but was able to go 2/2 at the line in the third quarter. The crowd let out a big cheer for that.
“I don’t know who breathed the bigger sigh of relief with that, her or me or the bench or I guess the whole crowd,” said Bluder. “There’s no reason why she can’t be a 70% free throw shooter and she works at it and she will continue to work at it. We will get there.”
Caitlin Clark was on the floor for just 20 minutes, but she was still able to pick up another double-double with 15 points and ten assists. Monika Czinano had 14 points on 4/7 shooting, while Hannah Stuelke added ten points and five rebounds. Kate Martin and Sydney Affolter combined for 12 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists, while Gabbie Marshall knocked down a pair of three-pointers.
What they did well…
1. Shared the wealth. In a game where Iowa scored 111 points, nobody attempted more than seven shots and no one made more than five shots. Five players scored in double figures and all 14 Hawkeyes scored a point. Lisa Bluder mentioned how special it is for everyone to get on the floor in their pink uniforms.
“For everybody to get in, in their pink uniform with somebody’s name on the back, honoring somebody that either fought cancer or passed from cancer, that’s important to us. It’s meaningful that everyone got in and everyone scored.”
2. Shot the ball well. Iowa shot 39/62 (62.9%) from the floor and 12/22 (54.5%) from three-point range. That will win you a lot of games. The Hawkeyes lead the country in 2pt field goal percentage.
3. Everyone rebounded. The Hawkeyes outrebounded Rutgers 44-20 and no player finished with more than five rebounds. It was a team effort on the glass. They grabbed 82.5% of available defensive rebounds and 45.8% of offensive rebounds. They outscored Rutgers 19-8 on second chance points.
Up next for the Hawkeyes…
With the win, the Hawkeyes move to 20-5 on the season and 12-2 in Big Ten play. Up next, Iowa will welcome Wisconsin to town for a home game on Wednesday night. The Badgers are 8-18 on the season and just 3-11 in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes defeated Wisconsin in Madison 102-71 back on December 4th. The game is set to tip off at 6:30pm and will be streamed on BTN+.
