For all the attention focused no Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers leading up to the women’s national semifinal game between Iowa and UConn, it was Iowa’s Hannah Stuelke who turned out a performance for the stars. She outperformed all of those who joined her on the floor during the Hawkeyes’ Final Four clash with Connecticut, including supernova teammate Clark.
Stuelke whetted the nylon with hook shot after hook shot, showcasing her impressive play as Clark’s battery-mate on the pick-and-roll. Her performance made all the difference — along with a contentious refereeing decision — to Iowa advancing to the national title game for the second-consecutive season.
MORE: Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers’ Final Four duel, by the numbers
Here’s a closer look at Stuelke’s stunning display, a piece of tournament lore Iowans will likely not soon forget.
Hannah Stuelke stats vs. UConn
Stuelke finished with 23 points on an efficient 9-of-12 shooting. She added three rebounds, one assist and one block, saving most of her contributions for the offensive end of the floor.
It was just the sort of offering Lisa Bluder’s side was desperate for, especially as Clark toiled under the pressure of UConn’s scheme in the opening two frames. The nature of Stuelke’s baskets was fairly consistent; she tended to pick up the ball on the block, take one or two dribbles at most, then toss up an uncontested of lightly-contested lay-in towards the backboard. More often than not, it dropped.
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Stuelke’s presence was especially noticeable on the pick-and-roll. She slalomed to the cup on numerous occasions, often reeling in delicate doves from Clark, who finished the contest with a team-high seven assists.
Bluder made sure to get her star sophomore involved in the contest early and often. At this point in her career, Stuelke is a fairly right-hand dominant player. However, if she gets to her spot, she’s hard to stop.
Very good stuff to attack what the defense is giving
Second straight flash and quick rip to the basket from Hannah Stuelke pic.twitter.com/cXVXg7I3Dx
— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) April 6, 2024
As the game wore on and UConn’s defense began to crack ever so slightly under Clark’s gravity, Stuelke just kept whittling away. A push shot here, a layup there, all coming from her favorite place: mere feet from the basket.
Hannah Stuelke has been VITAL tonight pic.twitter.com/bcqknvFLxK
— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) April 6, 2024
Clark’s shooting captures all the headlines. But her handle, penetration and ability to finish is second-to-none. Once the defense collapses on her drives, it opens up space for the Hawkeyes’ complementary players. Stuelke was the main beneficiary on Friday.
Gonna be interested to see how they keep working this, but Iowa has started to target Ashlynn Shade a bit on the defensive end
Use some of the switching to counteract. Caitlin knows she’s gonna force the big to step up after getting a step on Shade
Easy basket pic.twitter.com/V5sFRwYwit
— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) April 6, 2024
It all amounted to a wonderful day at the office for Stuelke. The reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year went way above her 13.8 point per game scoring average on Friday night, all while adhering to her layup-centered focus. In the process, she reasserted her status as Iowa’s second-most important player. In only two games this season was Clark not Iowa’s leading scorer. Both of those featured Stuelke going off to lead the game in points — once on Feb. 8 against Penn State when she exploded for 47 and again on Friday night.
Call it a flair for the dramatic. Call it a lucky break. Either way you slice it, Stuelke put on a show against the Huskies. For that, she’ll be eternal on the courts that line the Des Moines landscape.
