After letting an eight-point lead slip away in the final 30 seconds of regulation, the UW women’s basketball team (8-14, 2-10) lost to Iowa 87-82 (13-9, 7-4) in overtime Thursday night.

“It was a heartbreaker for our team,” UW head coach Lisa Stone said. “Our team showed great character coming off some tough games in Michigan last week.”

With nine seconds on the clock, Iowa forward Jennie Lillis intercepted Wisconsin’s in-bounds pass and found teammate Kristi Faulkner in the corner for a three-pointer to tie the score at 72-72 and send the game into overtime. The dramatic jumper capped an 8-0 Iowa run in the last 30 seconds of regulation.

“Kristi [Faulkner] and Jennie [Lillis] never quit believing in this game,” Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder said. “They came to the bench every single time, and they [said], ‘We’re going to win, we’re going to win,’ the last seven minutes of the game at the end of regulation and into overtime. They truly believed it the whole time.”

In addition to her heroic three, Faulkner scored the Hawkeye’s last 12 points of the second half to force overtime. Iowa’s sharpshooter finished with 29 points on 11-21 shooting and hit 5-9 from three-point range.

“It really was amazing,” Bluder said of Faulkner’s performance.

In the overtime period, Iowa came out firing as guard Lindsay Richards knocked down a three to give the Hawkeyes their first lead since the 9:47 mark in the first half. Richards, who did not score until overtime, knocked down a pair of key three-pointers in the extra frame.

The tandem of Richards and center Jamie Cavey, who recorded only one point in the second half, scored 12 of the Hawkeyes’ 15 points in the overtime period.

“She hadn’t scored a point all game, and then she hit two back-breaking threes against them in overtime,” Bluder said of Richards’ overtime performance.

After failing to score in the first half, Wisconsin guard Stephanie Rich scored five of her 17 points in overtime. Rich finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, recording her second career double-double. In an impressive effort, the Badgers’ tireless floor general played the entire 45 minutes.

“Steph Rich had a courageous effort out there, nearly a triple-double,” Stone said. “No points in the first half, but (she) led us in rebounds and assists. Comes back and pours in 17 in the second half.”

Despite Rich’s strong performance, the resilient Hawkeyes proved too strong for the Badgers in overtime, handing Wisconsin its fifth consecutive loss.

The Hawkeyes were led by Lillis, who scored a game-high 31 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Lillis shot 12-21 from the field and 3-4 from beyond the three-point arc. In a tremendous performance, Lillis recorded the most field goals for an individual against the Badgers this season (12), and finished one point shy of her career high in scoring.

In the defeat, the Badgers lost senior captain Lello Gebisa, who went down in the first half with an injured right ankle. After leaving her feet to block a shot, Gebisa came down hard, holding her ankle. The 6-foot-7 center was helped off the floor, and she did not return. Prior to the injury, Gebisa posted 12 points on 6-8 shooting.

In Gebisa’s absence, forward Jordan Wilson stepped up for the Badgers with 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Wilson played the entire game, recording a career-high 45 minutes of action.

After center Emily Ashbaugh fouled out with 3:29 remaining in regulation, the Badgers were forced to play a small lineup in the final minutes of the second half and in the overtime period. With 6-foot-7 Gebisa and 6-foot-5 Ashbaugh watching from the sidelines, Wisconsin went with 5-foot-11 forward Kjersten Bakke, 6-foot-3 forward Ebba Gebisa and 6-foot-1 forward Wilson.

“We just dug down,” Stone said. “We’ve been faced with adversity in the past, and our players did a great job of rising up. Bakke played every position from the two through the five tonight. Jordan played the whole game and overtime…I give our kids a lot of credit. They stepped up in the absence of Lello.”

Despite a tremendous effort, the Badgers were unable to control the tempo against the Hawkeyes’ powerful attack, surrendering the most points they have allowed all year (87). Though Wisconsin’s 82 points was the team’s strongest offensive showing of the season, Iowa’s high-powered offense emerged victorious in the shootout.

“It was our best offensive night of the year, probably our best overall effort of the year,” Stone said. “I feel bad for these kids because they deserved a win tonight.”

Turnovers plagued the Badgers as Iowa capitalized on 24 Wisconsin miscues to post a 24-11 edge in points off turnovers. The Badgers turned the ball over twice in the final 20 seconds of regulation to allow the Hawkeyes to force overtime.

“It’s unfortunate; we made some costly errors down the stretch and didn’t put the game away,” Stone said.