No. 3 Hawkeyes Cruise, Advance To B1G Semis

MINNEAPOLIS — The second-seeded and third-ranked University of Iowa women’s basketball team defeated No. 7 seed Penn State, 95-62, inside a sold-out Target Center on Friday night to advance to the Big Ten Tournament Semifinals for the fourth consecutive season.

Five Hawkeyes finished in double digits, with All-American Caitlin Clark having the game-high 24 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Eight of Clark’s 10 first-half points came at the charity stripe. Sydney Affolter finished with a career-high 18 points, going 3-of-4 from beyond the 3-point line. Gabbie Marshall contributed 15 points, going 4-of-7 from the long distance. Kate Martin finished with a near-double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds. Taylor McCabe netted all 12 of her points in the second half via the 3-ball, going 4-of-8 from 3-point territory.

After missing her first 11 3-point attempts of the game, Clark finally got one to drop, her 163rd of her decorated career to surpass Stephen Curry for the most 3-point field goals made in a single season (Division I – men or woman).

CAITLIN 👏 CLARK 👏 @CaitlinClark22 x @IowaWBB pic.twitter.com/BX08zn7Ne4

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) March 9, 2024

Martin made a three in the first 10 seconds of the game to spark a 10-0 spurt for the Hawkeyes. Affolter, Martin, Marshall, and Feuerbach all made threes in the first, and Affolter led the quarter with eight points.

The Lady Lions left the Hawkeyes scoreless in the first five minutes of the second quarter. Clark ended the drought with a step-back jumper. The Hawkeyes kept the momentum going with a 13-2 run to close out the last 3:52 of the half.

It was a back-and-forth battle in the third with Penn State outscoring Iowa 22-19. Taylor McCabe made back-to-back triples in the midst of the third quarter to extend the Hawkeye lead to 19.

Clark scored 11 points in the fourth period. The Hawkeyes take advantage of their trips to the free-throw line, making 26-of-30 (.867) to seal the deal and give Iowa its second win over Penn State this season.

The Hawkeyes (15-of-44) made eight more triples than the Lady Lions (7-of-33). The 44 attempts from behind the 3-point line is a new school record besting 40 attempts against Maryland in the same building last season at the Big Ten Tournament.          

POSTGAME NOTES
– Iowa (27-4) bounced Penn State (19-12), 95-62, in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
– Clark posted her 62nd career double-double; she is fourth on the Big Ten’s all-time list.
– In addition to her career high in points, Sydney Affloter registered nine rebounds and five assists.
– Iowa has won its last 10 contests against PSU, dating back to 2018.
– Iowa has won its opening round game of the BTT the last four consecutive seasons.
– Iowa has won its first game in the BTT five out of the last six seasons.
– It was the first time in Big Ten women’s basketball tournament history that it has sold out all sessions.
– Gabbie Marshall is now sixth on Iowa’s all-time list for steals.
– Marshall is 12-of-21 in her last three games from 3-point range. She has recorded three straight games with four triples.
– Among active players who didn’t transfer, Marshall (122) and Martin (119) are third and fourth nationally for most active wins in a career.
– Clark leads the country in 20+ point games this season with 31.
– Clark is the only player in the country with 900+ points, 225+ assists, and 175+ rebounds this season.
– Since the start of the 2020-21 season, Iowa leads the nation with 102 games of 80+ points.
– Iowa has scored 80 or more points 25 times this season.
– Iowa leads the Big Ten with 22 games of 90+ points this season.
– The country’s best offense has record 90+ points in 11 out of the last 13 games.
– Clark has scored 20+ points in 116-of-131 career games which is the most in program history.
– Clark kept her streak alive of 88 consecutive games making a 3-point basket. (NCAA best).
– Clark is the first Division-I men’s or women’s player to record 3,700+ points, 1,000+ assists, and 850+ rebounds in a career.