Ava Heiden continued her spectacular sophomore campaign with a game-high 28 points, while an unlikely source sealed the game at the charity stripe.
Though the in-house disk jockey said Thursday's contest against Illinois was Iowa women's basketball's final game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, the Hawkeyes likely still have at least two more games to play in their longtime home.
If there was any doubt before this one tipped off, No. 9 Iowa (23-5, 14-3 Big Ten) put the finishing touches on securing an NCAA tournament regional in Iowa City with a dramatic 82-78 victory over the upstart Fighting Illini (19-9, 9-8).
Here are three observations from Iowa's win:
Heiden brings the heat
Sophomore center Ava Heiden was named to the Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Women's College Player of the Year Late-Season Team on Feb. 17, and she's done nothing but help her case to win the award since.
Like her men's basketball counterpart Bennett Stirtz, the Hawkeyes have had to rely on Heiden's scoring at crucial junctures. That's a major spotlight for a sophomore to be in, but Heiden has delivered each time.
The sophomore recorded a game-high 28 points on 13/18 shooting, which was even more impressive considering she saw just 23 minutes of game action. Fans were curious about Heiden's lack of playing time, but Jensen hinted that she wasn't 100% during Sunday's 62-44 win over then-No. 6 Michigan.
Healthy or not, Heiden looked the part of an All-American-caliber player on Thursday.
"What's interesting about Ava is that she was really good to start the year. You can see that jump, but she's a lot better now than she was in November," head coach Jan Jensen said after the game. "...She's really understanding that next level of what it takes, and reading her body, how tired she is, but really pushing it with extra work."
Iowa seals the deal at the stripe
The fourth quarter was a one-possession affair throughout, but two free throws and a Heiden layup gave Iowa a seemingly insurmountable four-point edge with 25 seconds to play.
But Illinois, which led by six early in the period, wouldn't go away quietly. Berry Wallace nailed a pair at the line to slice the deficit down to just two. That forced the Hawkeyes to win the game at the free throw line.
Iowa is one of the Big Ten's worst free throw shooting teams to begin with (68.9% on the year), and it put the game in the hands of Hannah Stuelke. The senior has been a steady presence during her entire career in the Black and Gold - except at the free throw line.
The capacity crowd inside Carver-Hawkeye groaned when Taylor Stremlow passed the ball to Stuelke - a career 60% free throw shooter - but the senior turned those groans into roars by calmly knocking down both foul shots to extend Iowa's lead back to four.
Five seconds later, Chit-Chat Wright - who didn't register a point until the end of the game - still had to make another pair of free throws to put the game away for good.
The Hawkeyes will be the first to tell you they aren't the best free throw shooting team in America, but they delivered when it counted.
"If she misses it, I can get hammered [for leaving Stuelke in the game], Jensen said. "...But you go with the seniors sometimes, and I'm thrilled for Hannah like a daughter."
Illinois couldn't miss
Illinois came into this game boasting one of the Big Ten's best offensive attacks, and Iowa couldn't stop it on Thursday. The Fighting Illini shot an efficient 52% clip for the game, and it nearly won the game because of its lethal perimeter shooting.
Jensen later praised Illinois coach Shauna Green for throwing a variety of confusing looks at the Hawkeyes. The Illini didn't miss a single shot from distance in the second half (8/8), finishing the game 11/19 from beyond the arc.
Most of those looks were open, and Illinois would've had a great look to tie the game late had Kylie Feuerbach not drawn an offensive foul during the play.
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