Nebraska defeats No. 2 Iowa 82-79 to steal the thunder from Caitlin Clark.

On Sunday, February 11, 2024, in Lincoln, Nebraska, Maddie Krull, Jaz Shelley, and Natalie Potts of Nebraska celebrate their victory against Iowa in an NCAA collegiate basketball game. (Rebecca S. Gratz/AP Photo) (Rebecca S. Gratz/AP Photo)

LINCOLN, Neb. — On a nationally televised celebration of women’s basketball, fans from Nebraska and Iowa flocked to Pinnacle Bank Arena in the hopes of witnessing Caitlin Clark break the NCAA record for women’s lifetime scoring.

On Sunday, however, fans witnessed an incredible comeback by the Cornhuskers, who defeated No. 2 Iowa 82-79 after trailing by 14 points in the fourth quarter.

Nebraska (16-8, 8-5 Big Ten) won its first win over a Top 25 opponent this season and its first over Iowa in 10 tries. The day was highlighted by a court storming led by students.

With thirty seconds remaining, Jaz Shelley scored a 3-pointer to give Nebraska its first lead. She then sank all four of her free throws to seal the victory over the Hawkeyes (22-3, 11-2).

With a day like today, Cornhuskers coach Amy Williams expressed her pride in her position as head coach at Nebraska as well as her pride in her squad for their outstanding response during the fourth quarter and their ability to come through with a victory.

Over the last 12 1/2 minutes, Clark, who finished with 31 points, was held scoreless. Six shots were missing from her, one of which was a three right before the buzzer.

Simply put, didn’t perform well in the end. It reeks,” remarked Clark.

With eight more points to surpass Kelsey Plum’s record of 3,527 points for Washington from 2013 to 2017, Clark will have 3,520 lifetime points. She’s probably going to smash the record this Thursday when Michigan comes to town.

With 9:22 remaining, Hannah Stuelke’s layup gave Iowa its largest lead, 71-57. The Hawkeyes lost the game after being outscored 25–8.

As the shot clock was about to expire, Shelley, who finished with 23 points, five 3-pointers, made a 3 from the right corner to give the Huskers the lead.

With 18.1 seconds remaining, Clark’s 3-point attempt was blocked by the front of the rim, and Shelley then sank two free throws. Stuelke’s basket put the score at 80-79, but Shelley added two more free throws, and in the closing moments, Clark and Kate Martin missed three-pointers.

“Everyone is going to try their hardest for us. At this stage of the season, if you’re unaware of it, Clark remarked.

Fans from both Iowa and Nebraska made up the crowd. Chants of “Let’s Go Hawks!” began before to tipoff.

Alexis Markowski of Nebraska remarked, “It’s kind of scary to come outside and see more yellow at first when you’re at home.” “Husker supporters were very visible. It presented a challenge to us. We were aware that we were not the favorites in this match. We succeeded after giving it everything we had.

Nebraska trailed by just 39-35 at the intermission after playing a competitive first half. In order to prevent Iowa from pulling away, Shelley made three 3-pointers, including two in a row at the end of the second quarter.

Although Clark scored 17 points in the first half, she also made significant contributions to defensive and assist play. In the third quarter, she increased her scoring significantly, scoring 14 points.

On defense, Nebraska rotated Shelley and two other players onto Clark. Additionally, the Huskers double-teamed her up high before switching to the box-and-one gimmick defense to stop her late.

“We train for it all season long, but we hadn’t really trained for it the last few practices,” Clark remarked. “We ought to have been prepared for it,”

A brief interruption occurred in the postgame news conference with Nebraska players when Iowa coach Lisa Bluder, who was outside the interview room, became agitated. The fact that Nebraska players entered the interview room before Iowa players infuriated her. Bluder fielded questions in a nearby hallway while Kate Martin and Caitlin Clark spoke with the press.

“We need to catch our flight!” Alexis Markowski of Nebraska stopped talking and turned to peer over Bluder’s shoulder when she yelled at her. Here we have (expletive). This protocol is not Big Ten.

She let off one more shot, seemingly in protest at the way the game was being presented in the arena. “Music is played while you attempt free throws.”

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Nebraska: In the history of the program, this was the first women’s basketball game to sell out. For a seat in the lower bowl, a few vendors on the secondary ticket market were asking as much as $2,000. However, there were empty seats at one end of the arena that were the tallest.

Iowa: The Hawkeyes broke their tie with Ohio State for top place in the Big Ten.