Iowa defeated No. 10 Baylor 57–52 on Thursday night at the WBCA Showcase inside State Farm Fieldhouse in Orlando, Florida, to improve to 5-0 on the season and earn one of its biggest early victories.
Sophomore center Ava Heiden provided the Hawkeyes the kind of breakthrough performance they needed, scoring 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to help No. 20 Iowa overcome the Bears. However, the triumph was accompanied by a fright. Early in the third quarter, sophomore guard Chit-Chat Wright was fouled on a jumper attempt and fell hard. Staff personnel helped her off after she lay on the ground for a few minutes.
Wright will miss Saturday night’s game against undefeated Miami, Iowa head coach Jan Jensen informed the Hawkeye Radio Network following the game. Jensen admitted that losing her starting guard makes things more difficult, particularly against a Hurricanes team that is known for applying pressure, but she did not reveal the extent of Wright’s injury or provide a date for her return.
”It’s going to be a completely different challenge because Miami runs about six different presses,” Jensen stated. “It’s much more concerning to break a press without chit-chatting. She improves my quality of sleep at night. We will now need to rely on our angles and cuts. We’ll work hard even though we don’t have much time to prepare.
Jensen was inspired by her team’s performance against Baylor despite the difficult break. With forward Hannah Stuelke also missing a brief period of time, Iowa had to make last-minute adjustments. Jensen emphasized the consistent playing time of reserve Journey Houston, who only played six minutes but had a significant influence.
Jensen remarked, “She came in and held serve—had a big assist, grabbed a rebound, got the offense going.” “I was quite pleased with that. We simply gutted it out. I frequently express my desire to be a blue-collar worker. Throughout, it was a defensive struggle. Iowa’s defense clamped down on Baylor, limiting the Bears to 29% shooting and giving up just one point in the last few minutes as the Hawkeyes closed on a 9-1 run despite Iowa’s meager 34% field goal percentage.
Jensen remarked, “It wasn’t easy or pretty.” You were aware that you would need to persevere. Baylor is always a good guard. It felt a little erratic because we’re still learning pieces and rotations. And this one was highly desired by both teams. ESPN+ will stream the Hawkeyes’ return to the court on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT against Miami (4-0).
