It was the Lauren Jensen revenge game.
Jensen transferred from Iowa to Creighton in 2021 after playing just 6.9 minutes per game off the bench as a freshman. She became a starter at Creighton and, on Sunday, found herself with the ball in her hands on her former home court, against her former teammates, with a chance to eliminate her former team.
Jenson hit the go-ahead three with 12.6 seconds remaining to give No. 10 Creighton a stunning 64-62 win over No. 2 Iowa in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The victory sent Creighton to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history.
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Each time Iowa tried to pull away in the fourth, Jensen had an answer. She scored nine straight points for Creighton over the final 4:44, converting a layup with 1:27 left to pull the Bluejays within 62-60 and set the stage for her game-winning shot.
Iowa's Caitlin Clark missed a potential go-ahead layup with eight seconds remaining, and Emma Ronsiek then made one of two free throws to push the Creighton lead to two with four seconds left.
Iowa's Monika Czinao, who had 27 points, missed a turnaround hook shot in the paint and McKenna Warnock was unable to convert a putback as Creighton held on for the win.
The Bluejays advance to play the winner of No. 3 Iowa State and No. 6 Georgia on Friday.
Jensen finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. Ronsiek and Payton Brotzki each added 13 points.
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Jensen, the co-Most Improved Player of the Year in the Big East, averaged 12.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 28.8 minutes per game for Creighton this season.
