Sometimes even a comfortable 20-point victory can feel disappointing. That was the case with Iowa’s 87-67 victory against Southern University tonight.
Before tonight’s game, the Jaguars had played two games this season, and neither had been close. They lost their opener at #23 Texas A&M, 92-32, then lost their second game at Marquette, 65-40. Southern struggled mightily to score in both games, and their defense didn’t seem like it would pose much of a threat to Iowa’s high-powered offense. This looked like a game that Iowa should have won decisively coming in.
In the first quarter, the Iowa offense looked up to the task of a significant blowout. The Hawkeyes scored 33 first quarter points, thanks largely to strong three-point and free throw shooting. Caitlin Clark led the way with 9 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds while taking just two shots.
Unfortunately, Iowa’s first quarter defensive effort didn’t come close to matching the offense. Southern scored 21 first quarter points thanks largely to strong three-point shooting. The Jaguars shots 4/7 from three in the period, mostly on wide open shots.
Teams that score like Iowa does will certainly give up some 21-point quarters in a season. But they shouldn’t surrender those quarters to teams that come in averaging 36 points per game.
The second quarter was similar—Iowa did well on offense, but surrendered far too many points to a team it should’ve been able to lock down. At the half, Iowa led 55-37. Clark was up to 13 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds.
The second half wasn’t much better. Iowa’s offense shot worse than in the first half, turned it over more, and didn’t get to the line as much. The defense did force more missed shots from Southern, but the Jaguars still scored more than they should have. Iowa led 73-54 at the end of the third quarter and went on to win, 87-67.
Clark managed to get her first triple-double of the season (and the second of her career) with 16 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds. She also had six turnovers, however, and was just 1/6 from three-point range. McKenna Warnock scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in just 21 minutes. Monika Czinano and Tomi Taiwo were Iowa’s final double-digit scorers with 16 and 12 points respectively. A box score for the game is here.
Defensive Issues
The biggest issue for the defense was effort. Iowa’s defenders weren’t consistently getting out to shooters, struggled to keep with their player when Southern drove, and didn’t put much effort into rebounding when shots went up. Basically, it looked like the Hawkeyes were doing the bare minimum on defense because they knew they were going to win anyway.
Iowa also played some 2-3 zone in the first half, and frankly it looked awful. Hawkeye teams of the past have played fairly well in a 2-3 zone, but last year’s team played the zone poorly, and this year’s team doesn’t look like it has improved much. Iowa has generally looked better in their player-to-player defense, though none of Iowa’s defensive alignments looked great tonight.
Hopefully this defensive effort will be a wake-up call for the players and coaches. Iowa simply isn’t talented enough to lack defensive focus and do well. The players have to be locked in on every possession, or else they will give up points in bunches. Tonight, the defensive effort didn’t really hurt Iowa. Against a better opponent, it could be the difference between a win and a loss.
Opposing Pressure
Southern mixed in some full court pressure in tonight’s game after made baskets. When Clark was in the game, that was no problem, and Iowa often broke the press with a chance to score an easy basket. When Clark was out, though, the press occasionally gave Iowa trouble and forced some bad turnovers. Hopefully Iowa’s other guards will work on their ball-handling and can learn from their mistakes in this game. Iowa will face much better presses throughout the season, and can’t afford turnovers in the back court.
Next Up
Iowa returns to action this Sunday, November 21 at 2 PM CT at home against Drake. The game will be televised on BTN Plus. The Bulldogs are 1-1 on the season, with an 82-79 victory over Creighton and a 61-46 loss to South Dakota. They play at home against Iowa State on Thursday. If Iowa wins this game, it will be Coach Bluder’s 800th career victory.
