Tenth-seeded Creighton made its first round of 16, and did it with late-game drama befitting the N.C.A.A. women’s basketball tournament.
Lauren Jensen, a sophomore who is in her first year playing for Creighton after transferring from Iowa, shut the door on her former team on its home court in Iowa City with a go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute to help seal a 64-62 victory over the second-seeded Hawkeyes.
“I honestly didn’t know if it was going to go in,” Jensen said after the game. “It kind of rattled off the back rim there. It wasn’t super clean, but I’m just glad it fell.”
Iowa was a popular pick to make the Final Four, mostly thanks to the eye-catching play of sophomore guard Caitlin Clark. Clark entered the game as Division I’s leading scorer, averaging 27.4 points per game. Creighton held her to just 15 points on 4-of-19 shooting, although, with 11 assists and eight rebounds, she nearly had a triple-double.
“I’m not going to sit here and make excuses for how I played,” Clark said. “I think just coming back and working harder than I ever have is really all I can do.”
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Iowa junior Gabbie Marshall’s 3-pointer put the Hawkeyes ahead with just under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter — a lead that briefly made it look like Iowa had finally found its footing after trailing by as many as 12 points, a lead Creighton only reclaimed when there were 12 seconds left in the game on Jensen’s 3-pointer.
The basket gave Jensen 9 points in the final quarter.
“Those last few minutes had to be magical and special, and we’re super proud of her and we’re super proud that she’s part of our program,” Creighton Coach Jim Flanery said.
The Hawkeyes had a few looks at a close last-second shot, but none went in. “I’ve shot a million hook shots in my life and that one happened to not go in,” Monika Czinano, who led Iowa with 27 points, said after the game.
The Hawkeyes, typically so prolific on offense, made just 35.7 percent of their shot attempts from the field to record their lowest point total at home since 2016.
In 2021, they were able to ride Clark’s shot to the round of 16, where they lost to Connecticut, a No. 1 seed. This year, their postseason ended in the second round, at the hands of a young group of Creighton players who held onto the lead for nearly 29 of the 40 minutes.
The Bluejays’ upset win, played before a sold-out had more Carver-Hawkeye Arena, was one of just a few first- and second-round games airing on ABC — mostly because of the buzz surrounding Clark, a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy for national player of the year.
“That was the most special environment that I’ve ever played in by far,” Creighton senior Payton Brotzki said.
Creighton strong-armed Iowa, collectively outrebounding the Hawkeyes by 15 and making it miserable for them to shoot. It was a balanced, collective effort that, in some ways, mirrored Creighton’s first-round victory over No. 7 Colorado. In that game, the Bluejays were also in control almost from the tip-off, and didn’t get flustered when their opponents showed signs of life.
This is Flanery’s 20th season as Creighton’s head coach, and the team’s fifth N.C.A.A. tournament appearance under his leadership. In the round of 16, the Bluejays will play the winner of No. 3 Iowa State’s game against No. 6 Georgia on Sunday night.
