Caitlin Clark: Balanced stat line, witty one-liners vs. Iowa State

IOWA CITY — A good, balanced stat-liner.

Some fun, witty one-liners.

That was Caitlin Clark on Wednesday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The All-America junior guard proved once again that Iowa women’s basketball is better when the points come from a variety of places.

“Probably a lot better,” she said.

Clark scored 45 points in the Hawkeyes’ most-recent Carver appearance, a 94-81 loss to North Carolina State. Wednesday, it was 19 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals and a 70-57 victory over Iowa State.

“We’re hard to beat when I do that,” Clark said. “If I have a lot of assists, it means that my teammates are making baskets and we’re hard to guard.”

Clark recovered from a 2-for-14 first-half shooting display, and No. 16 Iowa (7-3) rallied from a 28-23 halftime deficit. The Hawkeyes jolted No. 10 Iowa State (6-2) with a 27-8 third quarter.

“The first half wasn’t great, but I was getting to good spots and taking good shots,” Clark said. “Sometimes, they don’t go in.”

Eventually, they did.

With Iowa trailing 32-28 at the 6:30 mark of the third quarter, Clark hit a 3-pointer and a 22-4 blitz was underway.

Another Clark trey gave Iowa the lead, 36-34. Another made it 43-36. Kate Martin got rolling. Addison O’Grady had three baskets. It was 50-36 by the end of the third quarter.

“They made a lot of baskets at the end of the shot clock,” ISU Coach Bill Fennelly said. “That was a very unique part of the game. They finished possessions, and we didn’t.”

Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder was asked about Fennelly’s comment.

“You know, we're not usually patient on offense. I wouldn't call us that,” Bluder said. “But we really felt like we needed to work for good shots.

“We just wanted to work the offense a little bit longer because the longer you work, the more tired they're going to get, and we have an opportunity to get to the free-throw line more.”

Meanwhile, the Hawkeyes held Iowa State 27 points under its scoring average of 84 points per game.

“I think we sent a message to teams across the country of what we can do on the defensive end,” Clark said. “It’s fun getting stops, forcing 5-second calls, forcing turnovers.”

“You hear that?” Bluder said. “It’s on tape. It’s fun to play defense.”

“Yeah, it’s Opposite Day,” Clark said.

The win didn’t come without its mishaps. Gabbie Marshall lost a tooth late in the game and Martin turned an ankle as she was walking off the court following the postgame celebration.

“She plays for 36 minutes without an injury, and then walking off the court she twisted her ankle,” Bluder said.

Again, Clark answered:

“She was celebrating too hard.”

The Hawkeyes host Minnesota at 8 p.m. Saturday, then have a chance to breathe before a home encounter with Northern Iowa on Dec. 18.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com