Caitlin Clark's game-winning 3-pointer saves Iowa women's basketball vs. Michigan State

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Those cloaked in Iowa gold wiggled and fidgeted as the scoreboard drama intensified, this sold-out affair unfolding much differently than expected. The long Big Ten slog tends to produce a few of these even for seasoned squads.

In swooped Caitlin Clark to make sure everyone rested easy.

Locked in a clunky offensive battle Tuesday with a Michigan State women’s basketball team trending upward, No. 3 Iowa had to quickly brush away any thoughts of a masterpiece and shift to finding an escape route. Not surprisingly, that was Clark, who drained a game-winning 3-pointer as time expired for a 76-73 win over the Spartans at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

caitlin clark's game-winning 3-pointer saves iowa women's basketball vs. michigan state

Iowa’s Caitlin Clark (22) attempts a three-point shot against Michigan State Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

In the lead-up to the 2020 election, all eyes are on Iowa. Get updates of all things Iowa politics delivered to your inbox.

The trey was the final of Clark’s game-high 40 points, as she saved the day on a final possession that looked to be going nowhere.

CAITLIN CLARK TRACKER: Iowa star is making a run at NCAA scoring record

Just as it was last season at the Breslin Center, Tuesday’s matchup featured a bunch of scrappy Spartans hunting a monumental upset. A roaring Carver crowd that brushed off an 8 p.m. weekday tip with ease did little to derail Michigan State in the late stages of the game.

Clark’s trey with 2:32 left handed the Hawkeyes a 71-67 advantage and offered Michigan State a chance to bow out admirably, but the Spartans didn’t take it. Back-to-back buckets brought Michigan State back even, and the same happened after DeeDee Hagemann countered Molly Davis’ two free throws for a 73-73 tie.

Clark made sure Iowa had the final say as the clock hit zeroes.

Trotting to the locker room in a 37-35 halftime hole had to be unsettling for the Hawkeyes, given how well the opening 20 minutes unfolded aside from two barren stretches.

Iowa opened up a double-digit cushion late in the first quarter and led by nine with six minutes until the break, before sputtering into intermission with similar struggles seen at the start. After landing the opening blow with an 8-0 run to start the game, Michigan State closed the half with a 9-0 surge that saw Iowa muster nothing over closing four minutes.

This squad enduring one extended drought like that is stunning enough; then came another one barging in early in the third quarter. The Hawkeyes finished six seconds short of a second four-minute scoring drought and spent the entire third period chasing, until Clark decided to punctuate this one the only way she knows how.

Clark finished with the 40 points on 14-of-34 shooting (8-of-20 from 3-point range), five assists and just one rebound (she averages nearly seven per contest). Hannah Stuelke scored 15 points for Iowa. Kate Martin led the Hawkeyes with 11 rebounds.

Iowa improved to 14-1 and 3-0 in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes play at Rutgers on Friday night.

Michigan State is 11-3 and 1-2.

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Caitlin Clark’s game-winning 3-pointer saves Iowa women’s basketball vs. Michigan State

OTHER NEWS

18 minutes ago

Video: Inside the Serpentine Gallery's boozy summer soiree: Wine-swilling Maya Jama snaps selfies with Laurence Fishburne while Venus Williams dotes on Edward Enninful and Bianca Jagger pulls in Sadiq Khan for a cheeky hug!

18 minutes ago

Video: 'I'll protect what's mine at all costs': Mother (who has black belt in Taekwondo) seen launching herself through the air to tackle thief to the ground after he stole her motorbike in extraordinary CCTV

18 minutes ago

Video: Katy Perry shows off her incredible abs as she goes braless in a perilously plunging fur coat for Paris' Balenciaga show after furiously hitting back at Ozempic claims

18 minutes ago

Video: Julian Assange: Wife reveals what freed Wikileaks founder is looking forward to doing after landing in Australia

18 minutes ago

World Cup's 'sexiest fan' Ivana Knoll reacts to Croatia's crushing Euro 2024 draw against Italy after supporting her country from the stands

18 minutes ago

Italy's Meloni rattled as European Union negotiators agree deal for bloc's top jobs

18 minutes ago

Millionaire Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen gives out-of-touch response to skyrocketing grocery prices

18 minutes ago

Jay Slater ‘spotted watching Euros’ hours after last contact

18 minutes ago

Supacell, Netflix review: clever superhero adventure combines Top Boy and Misfits

19 minutes ago

Phil Mickelson shows true feelings about LIV Golf star Bryson DeChambeau

19 minutes ago

Mercury may be coated in a layer of diamonds ‘kilometres thick’

19 minutes ago

Georgia vs Portugal: Euro 2024 prediction, kick-off time, team news, TV, live stream, h2h results, odds today

19 minutes ago

Amazon Prime Video's My Lady Jane cast: Where you've seen stars of inventive historical drama before

19 minutes ago

Dustin Johnson's LIV Golf team faces challenges as Pat Perez nears relegation zone

19 minutes ago

Rulani Mokwena reveals his mandate for next season: List of trophies the club needs to win

19 minutes ago

Championship fixtures in full: Luton vs Burnley on opening weekend after Friday night curtain-raiser

19 minutes ago

Valuable credits ‘may help grandparents’ with over 123,000 applications approved

19 minutes ago

Jermain Defoe backs Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer to give England ‘identity’

19 minutes ago

Ask Reform candidate Howard Cox anything in exclusive question and answer session with The Independent

19 minutes ago

How a bitter row between neighbours created one of this city’s most loved tourist attractions

19 minutes ago

Local fashion brand Minimalist opens new branch in Abu Dhabi

19 minutes ago

Jeremy Allen White says he's 'gonna try' to sing in Bruce Springsteen biopic he's set to star in

19 minutes ago

H&M Collaborates with Jean-Michel Basquiat Estate for New Clothing Line

22 minutes ago

‘We’re in Greece with no AC and it’s 32°C at night – it’s brutal’

22 minutes ago

When 'challenged' the Prime Minister's authority 'completely crumbles away'

22 minutes ago

Both mortgage rates and weekly mortgage demand are stuck in place, suggesting a slow summer housing market

22 minutes ago

Mom of missing North Carolina girl Madalina Cojocari named suspect in 2022 disappearance month after prison release

22 minutes ago

Cristiano Ronaldo to score in 90 minutes, Joao Palhinha to be carded and Bruno Fernandes to score or assist tonight is 9/1 courtesy of a Sky Bet BuildABet

22 minutes ago

Ange Postecoglou leaves ITV pundits in stitches after making a jibe at Arsenal's interest in Benjamin Sesko - with striker snubbing move away to stay at RB Leipzig

22 minutes ago

Video: Corey Worthington reflects on his party boy past - and the media frenzy that followed

22 minutes ago

Channel Nine's pre-game State of Origin coverage raises eyebrows for all the wrong reasons - as network shamelessly spruiks sporting event

27 minutes ago

International Criminal Court convicts al-Qaida-linked extremist leader of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Mali

28 minutes ago

A signature Biden law aimed to boost renewable energy. It also helped a solar company reap billions

28 minutes ago

Austrian court frees a former intelligence officer at the center of a major spying scandal

28 minutes ago

Flatulent cows and pigs will face a carbon tax in Denmark, a world first

28 minutes ago

How One Actor's Bold Catwoman Campaign Became A Huge Batman Movie Controversy

29 minutes ago

Dutch journalists claim The Netherlands 'need resuscitation and a lot of luck' amid the prospect Ronald Koeman's side could face England in the knockout stages at Euro 2024

29 minutes ago

Channel Nine's pre-game State of Origin coverage raises eyebrows for all the wrong reasons - and you won't believe what sporting event the network shamelessly spruiked

29 minutes ago

Harry Grant left bloodied after brutal clash with teammate as State of Origin Game II goes from bad to worse for Queensland in nightmare first half against NSW Blues

29 minutes ago

Video: Google confirms the date for its next unveiling event where it could reveal a new AI-powered smartphone - and it's much earlier than we expected