Iowa cruised past Oregon without trailing for a single second, delivering a controlled 74-66 win that reflected its growing comfort under head coach Jan Jensen. The win also spotlighted five-star freshman Addie Deal, who continues to draw comparisons with former Iowa star Caitlin Clark. Deal turned in one of her best outings against the Ducks, and head coach Jan Jensen later revealed the conversation that helped spark her growth.

“Addie is just a great player, and she’s continued to progress,” came the spontaneous response of the coach. “She’s in the gym all the time. We had a great chat yesterday, and just the reminders of the progress, the journey is the journey, and I’m not at all surprised. I mean, this is what we’ve seen when we recruited her. But when you get into the course of the game day in and day out, practices game in and game out, the timing is always a little bit different for every player, and it was certainly great to see her. I’m thrilled for her. She keeps putting in the time, I’m really excited for her.”

That patience is now paying off. Deal is settling into her role and finding rhythm at both ends of the floor. Against Oregon, she scored 18 points in 20 minutes, shot a perfect 4 for 4 from beyond the arc, and paired seamlessly with Hannah Stuelke as the duo combined for 36 points.

Deal’s potency to channel drives and make scrumptious perimeter points makes things easier for Jensen now as the season reaches the deep end. Deal has now validated the coach’s faith in her and shown she’s not just some hype but the “Real Deal” for the Hawkeyes. So what made this possible? Was it Jan Jensen’s words of encouragement that really made her reach her full potential?

“Just checking in, reminding her about the journey and the progress and the timing and the belief and the patience, and they just need to hear,” said Jensen. “Sometimes because there’s a lot of noise from a lot of other people and reminding them about our culture, reminding what is fun about the University of Iowa is celebrating everybody’s accomplishment,s is working together and knowing when your time is come and you’re ready and she’s just a great kid and she’s just really been staying the course.”

Now, Iowa has always been a university that fosters a sense of community. Sure, there can be a breakout star like Caitlin Clark, but even she had support. Caitlin Clark wouldn’t have been Caitlin Clark without Monika Czinano, Gabbie Marshall, and Hannah Stuelke. There’s also the fear of facing criticism; every game of the NCAA is subjected to hard scrutiny, where the players and their games are dissected, and if you fall below the mark, opprobrium follows.

Deal’s Performance Earns Praise from Teammate

Well, it’s not just Jan Jensen who is infatuated with Addie Deal’s prowess on court, but her partner in crime, Hannah Stuelke, too, couldn’t stop herself from complimenting the freshman. ” Yeah, I thought she was really locked in. It’s hard to play in the Big 10, and I’m really proud of what she did today. I was just so hype when you’re making your shots. I’m like, “You get it, girl. Take another basket, so yeah, I’m really proud of her, there’s more to come,” said Stuelke, giving a fair warning to the other teams in the conference.

The Big 10 is probably one of the deepest conferences in the NCAA, if not for the SEC, where competition excels with teams like Ohio, Indiana, and Maryland in the mix. Back in 2025, 13 of the 15 teams were projected to make it to the NCAA tournament, which is how difficult it gets, and to get past that with ease shows the character of the player.

It seemed Deal had a point to prove when she came off the bench. She dashed through the 20 minutes, made 18 points, grabbed 3 rebounds, made a solitary assist, and made 7-9 on FT and 4-4 on her 3-point shots.

Well, this cumulative effort from the team did give us a positive outlook on the team after their recent shakiness against Northwestern and Indiana, where the team looked a little wobbly, but that mid-week rust seems to have shaken off now. Now all we need is to hope that Addy can “Seal the Deal” with Iowa and help Jan Jensen finish the season on a championship-winning note.

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