What Lisa Bluder, Caitlin Clark Said After Iowa's 86-69 Loss to Indiana

Coach Lisa Bluder and superstar Caitlin Clark spoke with reporters following No. 4 Iowa's 86-69 loss to No. 14 Indiana on Thursday. Here's what they had to say.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind — Indiana put together one of its best performances of the season on Thursday, as the 14th-ranked Hoosiers took down No. 4 Iowa and Caitlin Clark 86-69. It was a huge win for IU, one that bumped the team up to second in the Big Ten standings.

Sara Scalia led all scorers with 25 points and proved to be a thorn in the side of the Hawkeyes. Mackenzie Holmes had a big day, as well, dropping in 24 against the Hawkeyes.

Indiana played a physical brand of basketball on the defensive end, holding Clark to 24 points on eight-of-26 shooting.

Following Thursday's game, Clark and Iowa coach Lisa Bluder spoke with reporters about the loss. 

On Sara Scalia's 25-point performance ...

Bluder: "We didn't have an answer for Sara Scalia. She was really good tonight. She was really good. And give her credit, she played really well today. 

"We didn't play very well tonight, but I want to give all the credit to Indiana, I thought they played a great defense."

On if IU's defense was the same as the first game ...

Bluder: "No."

On what Indiana did to limit Clark ...

Clark: "I think being physical — face guarding me, denying the ball, threw a lot of different people at me. Yeah, just very physical. I think that was the main thing. Kinda pushed me off my spots, got me out a little deeper than I wanted to be. Threw a little box-and-1 at us. Other than that, played mostly man-to-man.

"But yeah, just physicality and denying me the ball. Yeah."

On getting more production from other players ...

Bluder: "Gabbie Marshall was one-for-two from three, I'd take that any day. But she's gotta have more than two shots. I mean, she shot 50% from 3-point range. That's pretty good. We need to get the ball to her more.

"We had other people shoot the ball well. Addison O'Grady was 60%. Sydney (Affolter) was 66%, so we have to have other people shoot the ball, you know?"

On playing from behind all game ...

Clark: "Honestly, I give our girls a lot of credit. I thought we fought. Nobody ever gave up and hung our heads. This is a great environment to come and play basketball. Their crowd is incredible. It's fun to play basketball here. Once you get down, you just kinda gotta start taking some shots that maybe you wouldn't really take.

"I thought maybe we could've drove to the basket a little bit more. I wouldn't say we're a team that really plays from behind very much, but I'll give us some credit, I thought we kept battling, especially when they started the third quarter pretty well. We kinda came back. I think we cut it to eight ... you gotta give credit to our girls, they always fought. But they always had an answer and always responded."

On Clark's exchange with the Indiana bench ...

Clark: "Basketball is competitive. That's what it's all about. I think IU does a tremendous job, their coaches do a tremendous job and that's what makes basketball fun.

"(Indiana coach) Teri (Moren) said some very nice things to me after the game and I have nothing but respect for their program and what she's been able to do here and the players she's been able to develop. I've played against a lot of really good IU players. I have all the respect in the world for them."

On the heated nature of Indiana-Iowa ...

Clark: "I think every battle is heated. When you're playing against the top teams in the Big Ten and you know one loss, one win can switch up the standings and switch up battling for a regular season title — that's exactly how it should be. That's exactly how women's basketball should be. It should be heated. It should be that way. That's just because people care so much and people are passionate about winning. That's what makes it so fun."

On the possibility of playing for the Indiana Fever ...

Clark: "Honestly, I'm just focused on this team right now and playing my heart out for Iowa. Getting to represent my state every single day and that's what it's all about. Not really too worried about the future. ... Whatever I decide, I go game-by-game. I gotta learn from this, We gotta move on."

On how Iowa's defense played ...

Bluder: "I don't know, I think the tape will tell a little bit on that. Again, we did not have an answer for Scalia. I mean, she really did a great job running off screens, getting her feet set. She set her screens up really well, and then when we closed out hard, she beat us off the bounce. I mean she really, really played well, I thought."

On matching physicality with other teams ...

Clark: "Yeah, I think you can always be physical back. I think I could have set up and used cuts a little better. You gotta be careful, too, being physical back. I think it starts on the defensive end for us. Be physical, get in passing lanes, things like that.

"They were just tenacious. It helps when there's 17,000 people screaming for you. That never kills anybody. I think it's something we're capable of and something we've done all season long. There's nothing to hang our head about. Just go back and learn and move on. You can't sulk about one loss. That's not really how this works.

Related stories on Indiana women's basketball

• INDIANA BEATS IOWA GAME STORY: No. 14 Indiana women's basketball beat Caitlin Clark and the No. 4 Hawkeyes Thursday night in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Sara Scalia scored 25 points and hit three 3-pointers as the Hoosiers shot 43% from beyond the arc. CLICK HERE
• WHAT MOREN, HOLMES, SCALIA SAID: Here's the full transcript and video of Teri Moren's press conference following Indiana's 86-69 win over No. 4 Iowa on Thursday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA-IOWA PHOTO GALLERY: A look at some of the best photos from Indiana's 86-69 victory over Iowa at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Thursday. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA-IOWA LIVE BLOG: Welcome to our live blog for Thursday's game between No. 14 Indiana women's basketball and No. 4 Iowa, where we'll share updates, highlights and thoughts on the game from press row at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA NEEDS MARQUEE WIN VS. IOWA: No. 14 Indiana women's basketball (21-4, 12-3) hosts No. 4 Iowa (23-3, 12-2) Thursday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers' only win against the Hawkeyes in the past six meetings was last season at home. Caitlin Clark is coming off breaking the women's D-I scoring record. CLICK HERE
• HOW TO WATCH INDIANA VS IOWA: The prime-time matchup will air on Peacock. CLICK HERE