After letting an eight-point lead slip away in the final 30
seconds of regulation, the UW women’s basketball team (8-14, 2-10)
lost to Iowa 87-82 (13-9, 7-4) in overtime Thursday night.

“It was a heartbreaker for our team,” UW head coach Lisa Stone
said. “Our team showed great character coming off some tough games
in Michigan last week.”

With nine seconds on the clock, Iowa forward Jennie Lillis
intercepted Wisconsin’s in-bounds pass and found teammate Kristi
Faulkner in the corner for a three-pointer to tie the score at
72-72 and send the game into overtime. The dramatic jumper capped
an 8-0 Iowa run in the last 30 seconds of regulation.

“Kristi [Faulkner] and Jennie [Lillis] never quit believing in
this game,” Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said. “They came to the
bench every single time, and they [said], ‘We’re going to win,
we’re going to win,’ the last seven minutes of the game at the end
of regulation and into overtime. They truly believed it the whole
time.”

In addition to her heroic three, Faulkner scored the Hawkeye’s
last 12 points of the second half to force overtime. Iowa’s
sharpshooter finished with 29 points on 11-21 shooting and hit 5-9
from three-point range.

“It really was amazing,” Bluder said of Faulkner’s
performance.

In the overtime period, Iowa came out firing as guard Lindsay
Richards knocked down a three to give the Hawkeyes their first lead
since the 9:47 mark in the first half. Richards, who did not score
until overtime, knocked down a pair of key three-pointers in the
extra frame.

The tandem of Richards and center Jamie Cavey, who recorded only
one point in the second half, scored 12 of the Hawkeyes’ 15 points
in the overtime period.

“She hadn’t scored a point all game, and then she hit two
back-breaking threes against them in overtime,” Bluder said of
Richards’ overtime performance.

After failing to score in the first half, Wisconsin guard
Stephanie Rich scored five of her 17 points in overtime. Rich
finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, recording
her second career double-double. In an impressive effort, the
Badgers’ tireless floor general played the entire 45 minutes.

“Steph Rich had a courageous effort out there, nearly a
triple-double,” Stone said. “No points in the first half, but (she)
led us in rebounds and assists. Comes back and pours in 17 in the
second half.”

Despite Rich’s strong performance, the resilient Hawkeyes proved
too strong for the Badgers in overtime, handing Wisconsin its fifth
consecutive loss.

The Hawkeyes were led by Lillis, who scored a game-high 31
points and pulled down eight rebounds. Lillis shot 12-21 from the
field and 3-4 from beyond the three-point arc. In a tremendous
performance, Lillis recorded the most field goals for an individual
against the Badgers this season (12), and finished one point shy of
her career high in scoring.

In the defeat, the Badgers lost senior captain Lello Gebisa, who
went down in the first half with an injured right ankle. After
leaving her feet to block a shot, Gebisa came down hard, holding
her ankle. The 6-foot-7 center was helped off the floor, and she
did not return. Prior to the injury, Gebisa posted 12 points on 6-8
shooting.

In Gebisa’s absence, forward Jordan Wilson stepped up for the
Badgers with 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Wilson
played the entire game, recording a career-high 45 minutes of
action.

After center Emily Ashbaugh fouled out with 3:29 remaining in
regulation, the Badgers were forced to play a small lineup in the
final minutes of the second half and in the overtime period. With
6-foot-7 Gebisa and 6-foot-5 Ashbaugh watching from the sidelines,
Wisconsin went with 5-foot-11 forward Kjersten Bakke, 6-foot-3
forward Ebba Gebisa and 6-foot-1 forward Wilson.

“We just dug down,” Stone said. “We’ve been faced with adversity
in the past, and our players did a great job of rising up. Bakke
played every position from the two through the five tonight. Jordan
played the whole game and overtime…I give our kids a lot of
credit. They stepped up in the absence of Lello.”

Despite a tremendous effort, the Badgers were unable to control
the tempo against the Hawkeyes’ powerful attack, surrendering the
most points they have allowed all year (87). Though Wisconsin’s 82
points was the team’s strongest offensive showing of the season,
Iowa’s high-powered offense emerged victorious in the shootout.

“It was our best offensive night of the year, probably our best
overall effort of the year,” Stone said. “I feel bad for these kids
because they deserved a win tonight.”

Turnovers plagued the Badgers as Iowa capitalized on 24
Wisconsin miscues to post a 24-11 edge in points off turnovers. The
Badgers turned the ball over twice in the final 20 seconds of
regulation to allow the Hawkeyes to force overtime.

“It’s unfortunate; we made some costly errors down the stretch
and didn’t put the game away,” Stone said.