IOWA CITY -- Expectations were high for Kate Martin coming into the season. With Monika Czinano gone, Iowa needed second and third scoring options to emerge to compliment Caitlin Clark. Martin, in her sixth year with the program, was a natural fit to carry an increased scoring load. She already had past experience assisting the scoring load in big moments in past games.
Last year in Iowa’s non-conference matchup against #3 UConn, Iowa largely struggled shooting from 3-point range. Everyone except Martin, that is. Martin was a perfect 6-for-6 from deep and scored 20 points in the game. Her shooting kept Iowa in the game for three and a half quarters before Iowa ran out of gas late.
Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder herself set high expectations for Martin in her pre-season media day press conference. "[Kate’s] playing like a pro right now. She really is," said Bluder. "She’s knocking down 3s. She’s physically defending hard, rebounding. I think you’re going to see Kate just jump off the stat sheet this year.”
A Slow Start
Thus far, Martin’s results haven’t matched those pre-season expectations. Martin was Iowa’s third leading scorer in Iowa’s big win over #8 Virginia Tech, but she had just 10 points and only added one rebound and one assist as well.
The Fairleigh Dickinson and Northern Iowa games weren’t close, but Martin chipped in just 8 and 9 points, respectively.
In Iowa’s toughest game of the season against Kansas State, Martin was held scoreless by the Wildcats in the 65-58 loss.
Needing a Rebound
In every season, there are crossroads games where a team's path can go in drastically different directions based on the result. The Drake game was an early crossroads game for the Hawkeyes.
A win over Drake, and the Kansas State game would largely be forgotten. Iowa would move on and put the upset in its past.
But a loss? That would be two home upsets in four days. It could cause a team that started the year with mile-high expectations to spiral.
Fortunately for Iowa, the Hawkeyes have a leader capable of stepping up in big moments. "[Kate] is somebody that you want on your team, no matter what sport it is, no matter what age group it is, no matter male or female, she will just lead," Clark said in the pre-season. Martin would prove her right against Drake.
Stepping Up
Martin's leadership started by matching with Drake’s best player — 6’0" forward Grace Berg — on defense. Berg came into the game averaging 19.0 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game with most of her scoring coming around the basket.
"She's really good in the post," Martin said after the game. "She's super strong down there."
But Berg's prowess also extends to the three-point line, where she came into the game shooting 53.8% on the young season.
"She's also been knock down from three, so I knew that this was going to be a good defensive matchup for me. I love whenever I have to step up to a challenge like that," Martin said.
Martin matched with Berg most of the night. While Berg still scored 19 points in the game, she was also turned the ball over five times and never took the game over.
Martin also went off on the other end. In the first half, she shot 5-of-6 from the floor and added three rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
Remarkably, she was even better in the second half. She matched her 5-of-6 shooting, hit a few three-pointers, and made three free throws. Altogether, Martin scored a career high 25 points, while shooting a red-hot 83% from the floor. Iowa rolled to a 113-90 victory to get its season back on track.
Moving Forward
"Kate played really, really well tonight and that's something we really need from her," Bluder said after the game. "That's something that she's very capable of and something that we believe she can give us every single night."
The Hawks don't need 25 points on 83% shooting every night. But they do need Martin to emerge as a more consistent scoring option going forward. And they will need her to continue taking on tough defensive matchups against players like Berg.
Being one of the team's leading scorers while matching with an opponent's best scorer is a tough ask, but one that Martin looks forward to at this point in her career: "I like whenever I have to step up to a challenge like that... I like whenever I get to play against really good players."
