Hawkeyes’ bus ride home from Champaign was quiet, yet productive

IOWA CITY -- The 3 1/2-hour bus ride home from Champaign, Ill., Thursday night was “quiet,” according to assistant coach Raina Harmon.

Quiet, yet productive.

In the back of the bus, players had a civil discourse into what went wrong in a 62-57 loss to Illinois.

“They were having conversations about what they could do better,” Harmon observed.

In the front of the bus, staff resumed discussion about combinations and chemistry.

“We tried to figure out what our best lineups are, how we want to start, and how to finish,” Harmon said.

No. 23 Iowa (12-4 overall, 2-3 Big Ten) has lost consecutive conference games for the first time since February 2021. The Hawkeyes face another could-go-either-way contest Sunday against Indiana (11-4, 3-1).

Tipoff is 2 p.m. at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“There’s a lot of season left,” head coach Jan Jensen said in the aftermath of Thursday’s defeat. “I can’t afford to compare this team with what happened in the past.

“I do believe in our team. We saw some glimpses early. But we’re freezing a little in the harder moments. I’m hoping this is one of the lower points. There are a lot of big games left.”

This is another.

Iowa suffered through a scoreless stretch of 7-plus minutes midway through the game, a drought that turned a 29-20 lead into a 32-29 deficit, and the Hawkeyes never led again.

Key was an 8-for-17 mess at the free-throw line, including 3-of-10 in the fourth quarter.

Traditionally a reliable foul-shooting outfit, Iowa is 10th in the Big Ten in that category this season at 71.1 percent. That’s the lowest the program has been since 2004-05, when it shot 70.4 percent.

“I think everyone will be in the gym practicing free throws (Friday),” Lucy Olsen said postgame. “This won’t happen again.”

Freshman Aaliyah Guyton earned her first career start Thursday, in place of Addison O’Grady, in an effort to trade size for speed.

Guyton posted two points and four turnovers, and O’Grady -- the Big Ten’s most accurate field-goal shooter -- had three points and five rebounds off the bench.

“Aaliyah is a hooper,” Harmon said. “There’s a learning curve for any freshman.”

Midway through the season, Jensen still is listening for a voice from her veterans.

“We’ve got to develop leadership from our upperclassmen,” she said. “That’s what we’re missing.”

Olsen was named to the Wooden Award top-25 list Friday.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com