By John Bohnenkamp

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Jan Jensen sat down in the post-game press conference and exhaled.

“Phew,” the Iowa women’s basketball coach said. “I’ll open with that.”

The 82-78 win over Illinois on Thursday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena was one that took Jensen’s breath away because of its difficulty.

That’s life in the Big Ten, Jensen said.

And that’s life in the final week of the regular season, the final push to add to an NCAA Tournament resumé, the final push to cement the seeding for the Big Ten Tournament.

Ava Heiden scored a career-high 28 points, helping the ninth-ranked Hawkeyes escape the second-half 3-point shooting of the Illini.

Iowa trailed by six points early in the fourth quarter and 69-64 with 5:43 left before rallying.

“We were playing not to lose,” Jensen said. “So I’m glad we came out with a win.”

“In the Big Ten, every team is a good team,” Heiden said. “As a team, we stick together through that instead of separate.”

Heiden is only a sophomore, but she has become a leader for a team that is more young than old, especially since the loss of senior guard Taylor McCabe to a season-ending knee injury.

“After we lost Tay-Mac, I’ve tried to fill that leadership role,” Heiden said.

Heiden described herself as wanting to be a “steady, calming presence.” Jensen, though, challenged her to be a little more feisty.

“We just find different ways to win,” Jensen said. “And Ava is a big part of that.”

Heiden, fourth nationally in field-goal percentage, was 13 of 18 from the field, continuing her hot play — she is averaging 25 points over her last four games.

“She’s a lot better than she was in November,” Jensen said. “She’s a lot better than she was at the end of December.”

The Hawkeyes (23-5 overall, 14-3 Big Ten) won their fifth consecutive game, extending their home winning streak over the Illini (19-9, 9-8) to 13 games.

The Illini were 8 of 8 in 3-pointers in the second half, but couldn’t get one off down 81-78 with four seconds left after Destiny Jackson was called for an offensive foul when she knocked down Kylie Feuerbach. Hannah Stuelke then hit the first of two free throws with three seconds left for the final margin.

“Kylie and Hannah, I’m so thrilled they ended like that as seniors,” Jensen said.

Stuelke had 18 points. Taylor Stremlow had 11 points and a career-high 11 assists.

Berry Wallace led Illinois with 21 points. Cearah Parchment had 20 points and 12 rebounds. Jasmine Brown-Hagger had 15 points. Aaliyah Guyton, who transferred from Iowa last spring, had 11 points.

The Illini shot 60% in the second half.

“They were hitting tough contested shots,” Stremlow said. “But we responded really well.”

The two teams were tied at 35 at halftime, tied at 56 at the end of the third quarter. The Hawkeyes, Jensen said, didn’t look like they did in their 62-44 win over Michigan on Sunday.

“We were much tighter,” Jensen said. “It really wasn’t until the fourth quarter that I saw those eyes light up again.”