A Great Run Comes to an End For Iowa in a Sweet 16 Loss to Baylor

The Iowa Women's Basketball team's first appearance in the Sweet 16 since 1996 didn't turn out like they had hoped. But an amazing season was the result for this squad. The Hawks lost to Baylor last night in Oklahoma City 81-66. The Lady Bears came into the contest as a No. 2 seed and have just two losses on the season. Third-seeded Iowa finishes the year at 26-8.

This was a fun team to watch. Congrats to Bluder's Bunch on a fantastic season. Bethany Doolittle led Iowa with 16 points, while Kali Perschel had 12 and Melissa Dixon added 10. Samantha Logic had a triple-double. She had six in her career, second best in NCAA history. Baylor led by 8 at halftime and overcame an 11-0 run by the Hawks. The Lady Bears then owned the second half and cruised to the victory.

Bluder grew up in Marion and made stops at St. Ambrose and Drake before landing the Iowa job in 2000. This was undoubtedly her marquee year as the team reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since the heyday of the mid-90s. Those Hawkeye teams were also really good, reaching the Final Four in 1993.

The Hawkeyes are now 3-3 all-time in Sweet 16 games. Thanks for a memorable season, Iowa!