Sarah Strong Scores Career-High 39 to Lead UConn Over Iowa

Iowa Falls 91-79 at Connecticut

Connecticut forward Sarah Strong scored a career-high 39 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Huskies to a 91-79 victory over the No. 10 Iowa women’s basketball team on Sunday in Storrs, Connecticut, Hawk Fanatic reported.

The Huskies broke open a close contest in the second quarter and built a lead of as many as 27 points in the second half. Iowa outscored UConn 28-19 in the fourth quarter, but the late surge fell short.

Strong Leads Huskies

Strong proved difficult for the Hawkeyes to handle inside and out, recording her 39 points while shooting efficiently throughout the afternoon. Connecticut entered the matchup looking to bounce back after a 77-66 loss at No. 5 Michigan earlier in the week.

Iowa actually started fast, claiming early leads of 8-3 and 12-7 in the first quarter. However, the Huskies closed the opening frame on a 13-2 run to take a 20-14 advantage.

Third-year point guard Chit-Chat Wright led Iowa with 23 points, shooting 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. Wright pointed to settling down after early mistakes as key to the team’s offensive rhythm.

“I think once we settled down and started playing our game, that’s when we were able to get good looks and great looks that we wanted to get,” Wright said on the Learfield post-game radio show.

All-Big Ten center Ava Heiden added 15 points for Iowa despite battling foul trouble for much of the game. Guards Dani Carnegie and Amari Whiting chipped in 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Foul Trouble and Second-Half Run

Heiden picked up two fouls in the first quarter and spent extended stretches on the bench. Iowa head coach Jan Jensen noted that losing her starting center to foul trouble early put the Hawkeyes at a disadvantage.

“Unfortunately, we get behind the eight ball when Ava has those fouls,” Jensen said on the Learfield post-game interview.

UConn capitalized on Heiden’s absence to shoot 54.5 percent from the field in the first half and build a 52-37 halftime lead. Strong scored 26 of her points before the break.

Wright was knocked to the floor on a hard screen with 2 minutes, 31 seconds remaining and temporarily left for a medical examination before returning. Heiden also briefly exited in the fourth quarter with a facial cut following a collision, returning to the court in a different jersey.

Iowa won the second half 42-39, narrowing the final deficit to 12 points.

“I just thought our fight was good,” Jensen said. “It gives us a lot to build on; a lot more things that are promising than are negative.”

UConn improved its record to 85-3 on its home court since the start of the 2020-21 season.