IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Caitlin Clark is a self-admitted perfectionist.
So when things weren't going her way early in No. 1 seed Iowa's NCAA Tournament opener she got frustrated.
The unanimous All-American finished with 27 points and 10 assists on an off-shooting night as the Hawkeyes defeated Holy Cross 91-65 in a women's NCAA Tournament first-round game Saturday.
Clark also had eight rebounds but was just 8 of 19 from the floor, 3 of 9 in three-pointers, showing her frustration with missed shots multiple times during the game. She was constantly complaining to officials and at one point cameras caught her dad Brent telling her to stop.
Clark seemed to get the message.
"I should probably smile more. I'm a competitor," said Clark, who even head-butted the basketball during the game in frustration. "I love this game. I'm a perfectionist. But hey, I'm competitive. I want to win and I want our team to play our best basketball."
Clark struggled early, not making her first field goal until 22 seconds were left in the first quarter. She committed five turnovers in the first eight minutes, and also got popped in the nose on what was ruled an intentional foul on Holy Cross' Bronagh Power-Cassidy.
"It was kind of just a stinger to the nose," Clark said. "Honestly, I'm totally OK."
Iowa had its own slow start. The Hawkeyes had a 10-0 run midway through the first quarter that didn't bother the Crusaders, who were within 23-21 at the end of the quarter.
Iowa hadn't played since winning the Big Ten Tournament championship on March 10, and Coach Lisa Bluder said the long layoff was apparent.
"I think in the first quarter we showed a little rust," Bluder said.
Kate Martin added 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Hawkeyes (30-4), who advanced to Monday's second round to face eighth-seed West Virginia.
"I think we had to knock some rust off," Martin said. "I think we knew what we needed to do, and that was (play) defense."
The Hawkeyes then outscored Holy Cross 25-9 in the second quarter, holding the Crusaders to just 1 of 12 shooting. Clark finally got her first three-pointer with 3:26 left in the first half, shaking her head and rolling her eyes after making the shot.
"Our three-point defense was really good, and that's a key for us," Bluder said.
"We really started running our offense in the second quarter," said Clark, who had just one turnover over the final three quarters.
The Hawkeyes' biggest lead was 84-53 with 4 1/2 minutes to play.
Holy Cross (21-13) made 12 three-pointers in Thursday's 72-45 First Four win over UT-Martin, but were just 7 of 34 in three-pointers in this game, with only three in the second half. The Crusaders, who missed their first 10 shots of the fourth quarter, shot just 32.4% from the floor.
Holy Cross Coach Maureen Magarity said her team wasn't affected by playing in front of a sellout crowd of 14,324.
"I just can't put into words how proud I was of our fight," Magarity said. "We were trying to take it to them. We really were."
Addison O'Grady, who was 7 of 9 from the floor, had 14 points for Iowa, with Gabbie Marshall adding 11 points. Iowa had a 50-37 rebounding edge despite starting forward Hannah Stuelke, the team's second leading rebounder, playing just 10 minutes.
WEST VIRGINIA 63,
PRINCETON 53
IOWA CITY, Iowa -- JJ Quinerly scored 29 points as West Virginia defeated Princeton.
Quinerly, who was 10 of 19 from the floor, scored West Virginia's first 12 points of the fourth quarter as the eighth-seeded Mountaineers (25-7) pulled away from the No. 9 seed Tigers.
West Virginia ended Princeton's five-game winning streak by rallying in the second half as its pressure defense disrupted the Tigers.
West Virginia led 42-35 early in the fourth quarter when Quinerly took over, hitting four field goals and going 4 of 4 in free throws over a 6 ½-minute stretch to keep Princeton from coming back.
Princeton (25-5), the Ivy League champion making its fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, led the entire first half despite shooting 34.4% from the floor. The Tigers had a 24-12 edge in rebounding, and Kaitlyn Chen had 11 of their points. Princeton led by as much as nine points, but West Virginia got to within 26-24 at halftime on Jordan Harrison's buzzer-beating three-pointer.
That seemed to give the Mountaineers a spark heading into halftime, which continued into the second half. West Virginia's pressure defense began wearing down the Tigers, who had 10 turnovers in the first 5 1/2 minutes of the third quarter to help start a 13-0 run by the Mountaineers. West Virginia outscored Princeton 18-7 in the quarter.
West Virginia shot 52.5% for the game, but 64.7% in the second half, including making 5 of their 6 shots in the fourth quarter. Princeton shot just 33% for the game, 30% in the second half.
Madison St. Rose had 22 points to lead Princeton. Chen had 17.
CREIGHTON 87, UNLV 73
LOS ANGELES -- Lauren Jensen scored 25 points, Emma Ronsiek added 23 and the Creighton Bluejays sank 15 three-pointers en route to a victory UNLV despite 30 points from Desi-Rae Young.
Morgan Maly added 16 points for seventh-seeded Creighton (26-5).
Young became the second 2,000-point scorer in UNLV women's history early in the second half.
Kiara Jackson scored 16 for the Lady Rebels (30-3), who were bounced from the first round for the third consecutive year.
The Bluejays came into the game 13th in the nation with 8.8 made three-pointers per game. It is the 14th time in women's tournament history a team has made at least 16 in a game during the first two rounds.
In the first half, 10 of Creighton's 16 field goals were from beyond the arc as they were up by 14 at halftime.
UCLA 84, CAL BAPTIST 55
LOS ANGELES --Kiki Rice scored 20 points, Gabriela Jaquez added 17 and second-seeded UCLA cruised to a victory over California Baptist.
Charisma Osbourne finished with 15 points, 15 rebounds and 9 assists. The Bruins (26-6) will face seventh-seeded Creighton (26-5) in the second round on Monday for a spot in the Albany 2 Regional.
Kinsley Barrington scored 16 points and Nae Nae Calhoun had 12 for California Baptist (28-4).
The 15th-seeded Lancers, who were making their first NCAA Tournament appearance, were 12th in the nation in scoring, averaging 81.1 points, but shot 28.8% from the floor.
Londyn Jones added 12 points for the Bruins, who were without leading scorer Lauren Betts due to a foot injury. The sophomore center, who missed four games earlier this season due to foot problems, could be available for Monday's game.
Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder talks with guard Caitlin Clark (22) during a break in the first half of a first-round college basketball game against Holy Cross in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Holy Cross head coach Maureen Magarity along with the bench reacts after a 3-point basket by Bronagh Power-Cassidy (not pictured) in the first half of a first-round college basketball game against Iowa in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Iowa guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts after she was intentionally fouled by Holy Cross in the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Iowa guard Sydney Affolter (3) shoots a basket as she is fouled by Holy Cross forward Lindsay Berger (35) in the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Iowa guard Kate Martin (20) pulls down a rebound down as Holy Cross guard Simone Foreman (24) defends in the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Iowa guard Taylor McCabe (2) and Holy Cross forward Callie Wright (0) battle for a rebound in the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)
Holy Cross guard Bronagh Power-Cassidy (13) shoots a 3-point shot against Iowa in the first half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Saturday, March 23, 2024, in Iowa City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney)