CHAMPAIGN — Five losses in a row. Three against ranked teams. Not the way the Illinois women's basketball team wanted to finish 2017 or start '18.
Illinois led No. 18 Iowa 23-16 after one quarter. Gradually, the Hawkeyes took control in an 84-71 victory.
"What we talked about early in the pregame was our energy, our effort and our enthusiasm and to try to do that for 40 (minutes)," Illinois coach Nancy Fahey said. "We tried to piece it together minute by minute and I think we did a good job. There were a couple minutes we can all talk about that we'd like to take back.