The No. 22 Iowa Hawkeyes treated their fans to a bit of a doozy when an in-state rival, the Northern Iowa Panthers, came to town on Friday night.
The Hawkeyes led by as many as 18 points, seemingly well on their way to an expected dominant victory. They were scoring in bunches, moving the ball around and getting productive minutes out of their bench.
Senior guard Lucy Olsen was carrying the team with her patent midrange jumper and playmaking. Junior forward Hannah Stuelke and senior forward Addison O’Grady were working wonders in the paint. Senior guard Sydney Affolter was crashing the boards at will. Coming off the bench, junior guard Taylor McCabe was lights out from beyond the arc, while freshman guard Teegan Mallengi was perfect at the free throw line.
However, the Panthers came storming back from the brink, putting the Hawkeyes on their heels in the final quarter as they got within one possession a number of times. Northern Iowa threatened in large part to the scoring exploits of grad guards Maya McDermott and Kayba Laube, as well as Iowa’s struggling defense.
A strong feeling of anxiousness began to reverberate through the packed crowd of over 14,000 at Carver Hawkeye Arena.
Then, the Hawkeyes found their spark at just the right moment.
With 4:19 remaining…
