BROOKLYN, N.Y. -- The No. 17 Iowa women's basketball team suffered its first loss of the season, falling to Tennessee 75-68 in the Champions Classic in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday.
The lead changed hands 16 times in the contest, but ultimately the Hawkeyes (8-1, 0-0 Big Ten) could not overcome 30 turnovers -- a staple of the Lady Volunteers' (7-0, 0-0 SEC) game plan.
Iowa head coach Jan Jensen described poise as "the key to the game" during a postgame interview with the Hawkeye Radio Network.
"I do not think that we had that at all," Jensen said. "That is what a pressing team does because we turned the ball over. ... We never could look confident. You have to look pretty confident. You do not want them to think that they can put pressure on you.
"You should not even be in a game if you have 30 turnovers. That is what I told the team. It was like, 'Hey, it was a one-possession game with three minutes and 20 seconds left.' And, we had had 27 turnovers that time. That was the game."
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The Lady Vols started the game 5-of-5 from the field to sprint out to a 10-2 lead while forcing five Hawkeye turnovers in the first three minutes of the game.
Iowa responded with an 8-0 run capped by a Hannah Stuelke layup at the buzz of the shot clock to know the game at 10-10 midway through the first quarter.
Lucy Olsen, back after a two-game absence, closed the first quarter on a 7-0 run by herself to give the Hawkeyes a 22-18 lead after 10 minutes of action.
A back-and-forth second quarter ended with a 35-35 gridlock at halftime as Iowa went without a field goal over the final 4:16 of the frame.
Tennessee closed a back-and-forth third quarter with a 4-0 run to take a 55-52 lead into the final quarter of action.
The Hawkeyes limited the Lady Vols to just one field goal and four points through the first four minutes of the fourth quarter to once again take the lead, 62-59, with six minutes remaining in regulation.
Tennessee closed out the game with a 14-1 run over the final 3:43 of regulation to earn the 10-point victory.
Olsen led the Hawkeyes with 23 points on 7-of-14 from the field. Addison O'Grady added 17 points and 11 rebounds. Hannah Stuelke contributed eight points and 10 boards.
Talaysi Cooper led the Lady Vols with 23 points. Ruby Whitehorn (16), Samara Spencer (11) and Darby Tess (11) also finished in double figures for Tennessee.
Iowa will look to bounce back from its first loss of the season with a home matchup against No. 20 Iowa State (7-2, 0-0 Big 12) in Iowa City on Wednesday at 8 p.m.
Turnovers doom Hawkeyes
Over its first eight games of the season, Iowa averaged 16 turnovers per game and held a plus-2.78 average turnover margin.
The Hawkeyes' 30 turnovers against the Lady Vols resulted in 42 points, including a critical turnover on an in-bounds pass that Cooper immediately turned into a layup to swell Tennessee's lead to 75-67 with 1:23 to play.
Assistant coach Abby Stamp told the Hawkeye Radio Network that the turnovers stuck out like a sore thumb in the box score.
"Early, they were against the press," Stamp said. "As we got into the game, we just had way too much trouble in the quarter court, continually trying to do things that we knew were not working. Trying to get the ball into the post from the wings was almost a turnover every time. (We) needed to limit that.
"With a young team, you get into in-game adjustments and how quickly they can pick up some things, versus how much do they rely on their training and practice. That is where we had a little bit of a hard time tonight. We were not able to make as many in-game adjustments and respond to them the way that we would have liked to see."
Defense passes biggest test yet
Entering Saturday's contest, the Lady Vols averaged 95.0 points and 11.2 three-pointers per game through the first six games of the season. Both represented the top marks in the country.
Facing the best offense they have seen this season, the Hawkeyes' revamped defense stood tall and limited Tennessee to just 30-of-77 from the field (37.8%), seven three-pointers on 29 attempts and 78 points.
Any concerns that Iowa's defense would struggle against high-powered offense were assuaged significantly despite the loss.
"The only reason we are in the game is they really, for the most part, shot poorly from the three-point line," Jensen said.
Welcome back Lucy!
After missing both of the Hawkeyes' games in the Cancun Challenge last week with a deep cut on her right knee, Olsen returned to action on Saturday night.
Olsen's impact became immediately noticeable as the senior guard scored 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting and 5-of-5 at the free throw line. The Villanova transfer also dished a pair of assists and finished the first half plus-six.
After back-to-back slow starts last week in Cancun, Olsen's return to the lineup helped Iowa's offense overcome the Lady Vols' aggressive press.
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University of Iowa Athletics Beat Reporter
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