No. 22 Iowa quells No. 5 Indiana’s rally, wins 96-91

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Monika Czinano scored 22 points, Caitlin Clark added 16 of her 18 points in the second half and No. 5 Indiana’s fourth quarter rally fell short in a 96-91 loss to No. 22 Iowa on Saturday.

Indiana (19-5, 11-3 Big Ten) scored a program-record 42 points in the fourth quarter to close a 22-point deficit, but missed its last three shots. Iowa (17-7, 11-4) had 25 points in the quarter and made nine of 14 free throws to close the game.

The teams combined to miss 11 of their first 12 shots. Iowa then made nine of its next 11, jumping out to a 23-8 lead. Iowa never trailed and led by as much as 24. The Hawkeyes were up 22 heading into the final quarter before Indiana rallied.

Aleksa Gulbe scored 22 points to lead Indiana. Grace Berger scored 21 and Ali Patberg scored 18.

The Hoosiers focused most of their defensive efforts on Clark in the first half. Clark, who only had two points in the half, still had seven assists, including four to Czanano. Clark shot better in the second half, making 6 of 10 shots. She finished the game with 12 assists for a double-double.

Iowa, which came into the game averaging 84 points, scored the most points that the Indiana defense has allowed all season. Indiana gave up 72 to Nebraska on Monday. Indiana’s 91 points were tied for a season-high offensively.

The Hawkeyes finished the game shooting 56.7% and 10 of 19 from beyond the arc. Indiana shot 42.5% and made 6 of 21 3-pointers. Both teams shot over 57% in the fourth quarter.

BIG PICTURE

Iowa: The Hawkeyes spread out the Hoosiers on defense, with six different Iowa players hitting a 3-pointer. Four different Iowa players scored at least 10 points.

Indiana: The Hoosiers lost their second Big Ten game of the week after falling to Nebraska on Monday and dropped to second in the conference behind Maryland. Indiana and Maryland play Friday.

UP NEXT

Indiana and Iowa will rematch Monday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. The game is rescheduled from Jan. 23.

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