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The Hawkeyes (25-5) have won seven straight and need two more
wins to capture their fifth conference tourney crown in eight
years. Taylor Stremlow had nine points and six assists, while
Journey Houston grabbed 12 rebounds for Iowa.
Jasmine Brown-Haggard finished with 22 points and Berry Wallace
added 13 for Illinois. The conference's youngest team played its
third game in three nights after advancing to the quarterfinal
round following wins over Wisconsin and No. 18 Michigan State.
Stuelke's return seemed to reinvigorate the Hawkeyes. She was
injured during Iowa's victory over the Fighting Illini on Feb.
26 and missed the Hawkeyes' regular-season finale last weekend.
Coach Jan Jensen said the injury was so severe Stuelke struggled
to shoot during the week, consulted with wrestling trainers
about how to treat it and then fell ill, making Friday's
availability unclear.
None of it didn't seem to bother Stuelke, who went 6 of 11 from
the field and helped Iowa take control quickly before getting
some extra rest late in the game.
The Hawkeyes used an early 12-2 run to take a 19-7 lead late in
the first quarter and the Illini spent the rest of the game
futilely playing catch-up. Iowa extended the margin to 34-18
late in the second quarter and led 37-23 at the half.
The Hawkeyes led by double digits, extending the margin to as
much as 53-31 early in the fourth, until Illinois finally cut
the deficit to nine in the final minute.
Up next
Illinois: Will find out where it goes and who it plays on
selection weekend.
Iowa: Faces No. 8 Michigan in Saturday's second semifinal game
in Indy.
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