The Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team didn’t let their Senior Day opportunity in front of a sold-out Carver-Hawkeye Arena pass them by. They handled their business with an 81-66 win over the Wisconsin Badgers to get to 20-9 on the year.
After a bit of a slow start that saw things tied up at 36-36 heading into halftime, Iowa used a strong second half to pull away and not mess around any longer. They were led by their usual suspects and did what they needed to do with the Big Ten Tournament next week.
As Iowa gets a few days of rest before heading into postseason play, here are the takeaways from their regular season finale.
Hannah Stuelke was phenomenal
Hannah Stuelke, the junior forward for Iowa, was the star of the show today despite it being Senior Day. Her performance gave Iowa the jolts they needed as she dominated the paint offensively and defensively today.
Stuelke registered 21 points today, but more impressively, she reeled in 15 rebounds, six of which were offensive boards. Going 7-12 on the day was stellar, and her 7-7 performance from the free-throw line is extremely important for her confidence.
Lucy Olsen was a bulldog
After a slow start in this one, Lucy Olsen came alive in the second half and was able to be Iowa’s go-to scorer when they needed a bucket. She kept coming at Wisconsin downhill like Kaleb Johnson taking a handoff and got to the basket when needed.
On her Senior Day, Olsen tallied 22 points on a 9-16 shooting performance to go out the right way in front of an Iowa crowd that wishes she could spend many more gamedays inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Iowa responded at halftime
This game was hanging in the balance at halftime. Sitting at 36-36, Wisconsin, and kudos to them, were hanging tough, giving Iowa all they wanted in their regular season finale.
The credit goes to Jan Jensen and the staff in this one. They were able to get Iowa locked in during the second half and take care of business like they should be doing against a team that they are better than. This second half was what good teams do and is a great sign as Iowa enters postseason play.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Takeaways from Iowa women’s basketball winning over Wisconsin
