Hawkeyes handle Northwestern in front of a soldout Welsh-Ryan Arena

The Iowa women’s basketball team came into Wednesday night as 35.5-point favorites according to the sportsbooks, but Welsh-Ryan Arena was welcoming a sellout crowd of just over 7,000 fans. They saw the Hawkeyes roll to a 110-74 victory, but for some the score had no meaning. Fans were lining up hours in advance, with one family arriving at 10:30am to ensure they got a front row seat to see Caitlin Clark and Iowa.

“I think this was one that was definitely circled on my calendar just because of the amount of Iowa fans in Chicago,” said Clark. “I was super excited to come here. I love this gym and Coach Joe (McKeown), I have so much respect for him. He’s amazing for women’s basketball and we have had a lot of really good battles in this arena.”

The first quarter was dominated by a mixture of baskets from Caitlin Clark and Hannah Stuelke. Clark hit a pair of three-pointers and got to the line for a few more, while Stuelke was 3/3 from the floor in the opening ten minutes. Northwestern hit some shots to hang around, including a three from Maggie Pina to tie the game at 12 apiece, but Iowa led 24-15 after the first quarter. For Stuelke, it was nice sight to see her back in a rhythm are a tough stretch.

“I just thought (Hannah) had a little more spring in her step. Nine rebounds is good, but she didn’t back down from anybody. She worked on defense down there. They were pretty physical inside and she worked hard,” said head coach Lisa Bluder on the play of her sophomore center. “I thought she ran the floor a little bit harder tonight.”

The story of the night was the Iowa offense getting whatever they wanted. The Wildcats were able to hit shots and got 19 points out of their leading scorer Melannie Daley, but the Hawkeyes offense was too much for a struggling NW defense to handle.

“I feel like (Melannie) always plays really well against us. She made a lot of tough two’s. That’s what we’re willing to give up on our defense, but a lot of those shots were contested shots,” said Caitlin. “I thought she had a really nice night. She always seems to get up a little more for the Iowa Hawkeyes.”

A 10-0 run from Iowa midway through the second quarter that broke the game open and made it 38-21. Caitlin Clark got the basket for a layup to cap off the run and put herself past former Ohio State guard Kelsey Mitchell for the Big Ten scoring record, as well as second all-time on the NCAA scoring list.

“I think the coolest thing is just the names that I get to be around (on the list). People that I grew up watching, especially Kelsey Plum, Brittney Griner, Kelsey Mitchell,” said Clark. “Those are really great players. People that are still playing our game at the very highest level and people that you watch night in and night out.”

In the final minute of the first half, it was a three-pointer from Kate Martin in the waning seconds that gave the Hawkeyes a 47-32 advantage going into the locker room. Caitlin Clark was just 2/7 from behind the arc, but was able to get to the hoop and to the line, where was just 8/8 in the first half.

“I didn’t shoot it very well from three tonight and I’ve been shooting the ball pretty well, so you’re due for one of those nights here and there,” said Clark. “I got to the basket, got to the free throw line, made all ten of my free throws and that’s what you have to do (when your shot isn’t falling).”

Early in the second half, Gabbie Marshall helped pick up right where the offense left off, with a pair of three-pointers in the first three minutes of the third quarter. Caitlin Clark followed with a three of her own to make it 60-36 Iowa. The Hawkeyes were rolling and nothing was going to stop them from winning their 20th game of the season.

In the fourth quarter, Caitlin finished off her night with a quick six point spurt in the span of 53 seconds, a pair of assists and then one more basket in the lane. She finished with a double-double, 35 points, ten assists and six rebounds.

“I think execution was the biggest thing. We wanted to come out here and execute and get better,” said Clark. “This wasn’t a game where we felt like we were just going to walk through. That’s not what good teams do and that’s what Coach Bluder said. We don’t have time to be bad for a quarter, that’s not the point of the season that we’re at.”

Iowa did not have a bad quarter, as they put up 20+ points in each quarter, including 37 points in the fourth quarter. They outscored Northwestern by eight or more points in three of the four quarters. In total, four Hawkeyes scored in double figures, with Hannah Stuelke going for 17 points and nine rebounds, while Kate Martin finished with 16 points, five rebounds and four assists. Gabbie Marshall made four of five from three-point range, finishing with 12 points and two assists.

As a team, Iowa shot 38/68 (55.9%) from the floor, including 13/28 (46.4%) from three-point range. Offensively, their 1.45 points per possession was a season-high, while 110 points is second, behind the 113 they scored in a win over Drake. The Hawkeyes outrebounded the Wildcats 42-30 and racked up 28 assists to just five turnovers. That’s a stat that Lisa Bluder was really pleased with.

“We talked about wanting to come in here with intention and not just going through the motions to get a W, but coming in here and getting better at some things,” said Bluder. “I think we did a better job rebounding in the second half. I love 28 assists on five turnovers, really good numbers there and four people in double figures.”

Up Next, the Hawkeyes travel out east for a matchup against the Maryland Terrapins in College Park. Tipoff is set for 7:00pm CT on FOX with Gus Johnson on the call.