For two and a half quarters, the nation’s leading scorer was held in check. Caitlin Clark would find space, put up a midrange effort and watch it hit the front of the rim. She shot a measly 4-for-16 through the first 27 minutes of the game, scoring just 13 points as Iowa fell behind by 25 points.
Then, a switch flipped. An and-one jump shot finally shook her out the funk, and over the next 13 minutes Clark exploded. Her 33 points over that time frame featured three logo 3-pointers, driving layups and jump shots over two, sometimes even three defenders.
The one-person show brought the Hawkeyes as close as five points with 1:05 left in the game, a far cry from the two-and-a-half quarters of dominance from Michigan. Still, the Wolverines won 98-90 to further tighten its grip on first place in the Big Ten.
“I didn’t even know what the heck was going on,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said. “I’ve been coaching for a long time, but that was some display. She dribbled it one time from halfcourt and shot the ball from halfcourt. It was pretty ridiculous for sure.”
Senior forward Naz Hillmon added: “I think (Clark’s) mentality switched a little bit and she wanted the ball, to get the ball and keep it in her hand. We play them again and we have to somehow figure out how to not let her get the ball and that’ll be our challenge next time.”
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