The Hawkeyes turned a close game at halftime into a rout, securing the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament.
No. 9 Iowa women's basketball continued its hot streak with an 81-52 win over the struggling Wisconsin Badgers at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin on Sunday.
Sophomore star Ava Heiden led the way with a team-high 16 points on 8/11 shooting. Chit-Chat Wright followed close behind with 14 points on 4/7 shooting from distance - her first game reaching double figures since Feb. 16.
The Hawkeyes (24-5, 15-3) clinch the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten tournament with the victory, while the Badgers (13-16, 5-13) secured their 15th consecutive losing season with the loss.
First Half
It's been nearly 20 years since Wisconsin has defeated Iowa in women's basketball, and the Badgers came out determined to end that drought on Senior Day. Graduate senior Destiny Howell opened the game with five quick points for Wisconsin, but the Badgers forgot to defend the Hawkeyes' midrange game - especially star center Ava Heiden.
Heiden led all scorers with six points at the first media timeout, and it felt like it was only a matter of time before the rest of her teammates opened the floodgates. It took nearly the whole quarter for that to happen, but a three-pointer from Wisconsin native Teagan Mallegni gave Iowa a six-point lead.
Nikki Kerstein, who only made one triple all season, gave the Badgers a boost with a half-court shot at the buzzer to make it 19-16 Hawkeyes after one.
The second quarter was an offensive struggle for both teams. The period's first field goal didn't come until the 7:00 mark. Iowa held a slight lead early thanks to some terrific interior defense from Heiden, but the Hawkeyes struggled to find any rhythm offensively- going just 6/13 from the floor.
Wisconsin made just three field goals in the second (3/15) but stayed in the game thanks to five free throws - all of which came from Howell. All of this led to a tightly-contested 33-29 Iowa lead at the break.
Second Half
The Hawkeyes were desperate for a fast start out of halftime to gain separation, and that's exactly what they got. After going 2/9 from distance in the first, Kylie Feuerbach and Chit-Chat Wright opened the second with back-to-back triples to force a quick Wisconsin timeout.
That was more than enough to ignite Iowa's offense, which clicked on all cylinders in the quarter. Heiden continued to produce in the paint, while Wright was equally dominant from beyond the arc. Wright registered just 14 points in the previous three games, and she matched that total by the 4:51 mark of the third quarter.
Wisconsin had no answer for the Hawkeyes after that, and Iowa cruised to an easy victory.
Up Next
Iowa clinches the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten tournament with Sunday's victory. The Hawkeyes won't have to play in Indianapolis until Friday, March 6, where they will take on the winner of the No. 7 vs. No. 10 seed matchup.
Tip off from Gainbridge Fieldhouse is set for 5:30 p.m. CST on Big Ten Network.