The Hawkeyes didn't play well in the second half, but they did enough to get out of town with a win. A showdown with Michigan awaits.
Good college basketball teams are always in the national media spotlight, and there always seems to be a common phrase at some point during the season.
"This could be a trap game."
A trap game is defined as a heavy favorite struggling (and sometimes losing) to a bad team. That's exactly the scenario the No. 13 Iowa women's basketball team faced on Thursday evening.
Few, if any people predicted a loss to a struggling Purdue team that's barely hanging on for a spot in the 15-team Big Ten tournament, but as the saying goes - "that's why they play the game."
The Hawkeyes came out firing on all cylinders to begin this one. Taylor Stremlow, who has been terrific in the starting lineup during Iowa's three-game winning streak, scored 19 points (a new career-high) in the first half to help the Hawks race to a 52-31 halftime lead.
A runaway win seemed like a lock, but then the "trap game" feel really crept into Iowa's veins. After leading 61-39, the Hawkeyes played sluggish basketball for the remainder of the contest.
Purdue did knock in some open threes to get back in the game, but its efforts were aided by 13 Iowa turnovers. Again, some of the mistakes were caused by desperate Boilermaker defenders, but most of those errors were self-inflicted - poor communication and rushed possessions were among the mistakes that highlighted this stretch.
It's rare to see a Jan Jensen-coached team play sloppy ball, and she'll likely be the first person to tell you that she wasn't very happy with how the half turned out. Purdue came all the way back to make the score a respectable 82-74, and might've really given Iowa a run for its money if it didn't get blasted in the first half.
But this game is in the history books now. The Hawkeyes will look back at this film and work on some things for the next game. There's going to be some tough criticism from the coaching staff, the bottom line here is that Iowa found a way to win the ballgame.
Jensen won't make any excuses for the bad second half, but struggling on the road in this gauntlet of a Big Ten, especially after just playing a road game three days ago, is nothing to sweat about.
Sunday's showdown against No. 7 Michigan (11 a.m, FOX) likely won't play a role in deciding the Big Ten regular season race because of UCLA's dominance this year, but it's going to heavily factor into Big Ten tournament seeding.
Michigan and Iowa are No. 2 and No. 3 in the league standings, respectively, so a Hawkeye win would push them above the Wolverines and secure a crucial head-to-head tiebreaker.
That's a big deal considering there's only one week remaining in the regular season, but that's where the Purdue game comes into play.
Had Iowa fallen into the dreaded "trap" on Thursday, the shine of the upcoming Michigan game would've rusted.
But that's only a hypothetical.
The Hawkeyes took care of business against the Boilermakers, and that's all that mattered.
One heck of a college basketball game in Iowa City awaits.
Looking for a FREE Hawkeyes community?
Don't miss out on our Roundtable community and the latest news! It's completely FREE to join.
Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members. Download the FREE Roundtable APP and stay even more connected!