Thursday was Caitlin Clark’s 24th birthday, and the Iowa women’s basketball team gave one of their former stars a great gift.
The 10th-ranked Hawkeyes went on the road for a massive top-15 showdown with the 13th-ranked Maryland Terrapins. The winner of this game would cement itself firmly as a contender to UCLA in the Big Ten. For most of the night, it looked like Iowa was going to cruise to a marquee victory. That seemed even more apparent when Ava Heiden scored to give the Hawkeyes a 66-49 lead with 3:15 left in the fourth quarter. Then, everything changed.
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The Terrapins came to life, capitalizing on a boatload of Iowa turnovers and mistakes to end the quarter on a 24-7 run to force overtime. The Hawkeyes suffered a complete collapse, entering the overtime period with no momentum. Iowa’s character was tested, and they passed the test, outscoring Maryland 12-5 in overtime to secure an 85-78 win.
It wasn’t pretty, but the Hawkeyes found a way to win one of the biggest games on their schedule and improve to 8-0 in conference play for the first time in 30 years. Here are the biggest takeaways from the thrilling win.
Journey Houston is the real deal
Journey Houston didn’t play a ton on Thursday, but she made the most of her time on the court. The freshman forward played just 13 minutes, but had ten points and six rebounds on 5-8 shooting during that time. That included a personal 6-0 run to start the fourth quarter to give the Hawkeyes some breathing room. Houston didn’t look phased at all by the moment and rose to the occasion when called upon.
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Houston is already one of Iowa’s best options off the bench, allowing the other post players to get a breather while still supplying great production. She has all the tools to be the next great forward at Iowa, and her flashes of brilliance this season have sparked the Hawkeyes. Houston is going to a good one in Iowa City for a long time.
Chit-Chat slammed the door late
After Iowa blew a late lead to allow the game to go to overtime, they needed someone to step up and get them over the hump in the extra frame. The player who stepped up was sophomore point guard Chit-Chat Wright, who scored eight of Iowa’s 12 overtime points. She hit an early jumper to tie the game after Maryland scored first, and then was nails at the free throw line the rest of the way to help the Hawkeyes pull away.
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Wright finished the night with 18 points and five assists, and also went 3-6 from behind the arc. When the chips were down and Iowa desperately needed some production, Wright stepped up. She’s been a great find out of the transfer portal for Jan Jensen’s staff, and will be an integral part of Iowa’s run in the Big Ten and NCAA Tournament.
Iowa showed a ton of resolve
Blowing a 17-point lead with three minutes to play should be a deathnail for a team. It should lead to a frustrating loss in overtime that makes the team question how good they truly are. This Iowa team isn’t like most teams. They showed some real resolve on Thursday. Despite blowing a big lead late, they came out and attacked the overtime period like it was a brand new game. They wiped the slate clean and won the final five minutes to get the victory.
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While there’s definately things that need to be worked on, and blowing big late leads is not a trend you want to continue, Iowa gained a ton of confidence from this game. On the verge of a historic collapse, on the road against a great team, the Hawkeyes buckled down and fought. That kind of resolve can’t be taught and will be an important trait for this team to carry into March.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Takeaways as Iowa women’s basketball takes down Maryland in wild game
