Why Hannah Stuelke didn't play in the second half Saturday for Iowa women's basketball

Iowa women's basketball star sophomore Hannah Stuelke didn't play in the second half of Saturday's NCAA Tournament victory over Holy Cross, leading Hawkeye fans to wonder about her absence.

ESPN's Holly Rowe got the explanation from Iowa coach Lisa Bluder after the game.

Rowe tweeted: "Just checked in with @IowaWBB Coach Lisa Bluder on why no Hannah Stuelke 2nd half. 'She didn’t feel well, not gonna use her if we didn’t have to' with big lead, they can let her recover for Monday."

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Stuelke said later that she was battling migraines.

"I wasn't feeling good at half," she said. "Just migraines. ...

"I think we had the game handled, so there was no point in me playing when we play again in two days."

Stuelke added that she doesn't expect the issue to prevent her from playing in the second round. "Absolutely not," she said.

So there you have it. Stuelke wasn't feeling well, and the Hawkeyes had plenty of firepower to beat Holy Cross even with Stuelke on the bench.

Apparently nothing major to worry about, and Stuelke should be good to go in the second round Monday against the West Virginia-Princeton winner.

More:Iowa women's basketball vs Holy Cross recap

Stuelke played 10 minutes in the first half, grabbing two rebounds and committing two fouls. She did not score.

The Cedar Rapids native averages 14.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game and shoots 65% from the floor.