IOWA CITY, Iowa — Losing Caitlin Clark was never going to be easy. Losing Clark and fellow starters Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall and Molly Davis? Well, you can see why Iowa has struggled this season.

But Sunday’s win over USC is the kind of game that can salvage a season — and propel the Hawkeyes back to the top of the game.

“Today really showed us how good we can be. That we can win and we can stay in any game, with any team. That we're really good,” Addison O’Grady, one of the few carryovers from the Iowa teams that made it to the national championship the last two years, said.

“Now we can fully believe it, because we have a win against a really, really good team.”

That’s not to say Iowa will make another deep run in the NCAA tournament. Currently 12^th in the Big Ten, with games still left at Minnesota, at Nebraska, at Ohio State and against top-ranked UCLA, the Hawkeyes have work to do just to make the NCAA tournament.

Iowa is building for the future, however, and a strong finish this year brings that future that much closer.

“I think it really will help us with that belief,” coach Jan Jensen said after the 76-69 win over the Trojans. “I hope we'll keep stacking wins, but I think (it’s about) the future, building into next year and the following.

“I'm just trying to stay steady,” Jensen added. “But, obviously, a top-four win is huge. I'm incredibly proud of them and I intend to build on it.”

Iowa was smart to elevate Jensen when longtime coach Lisa Bluder retired last May. Jensen had been part of Bluder’s staff for three decades, including the last quarter-century at Iowa, and that continuity has been key when so much else is changing.

The Hawkeyes also got Lucy Olsen, who was third in the nation in scoring last year at Villanova, in the offseason.

But when you lose Clark, Martin and Marshall, a trio that played in a combined 468 games and provided the bulk of your offense, defense and leadership, there’s simply no way to replicate it. And Iowa was wise not to try. The transfer portal can plug holes, not replace almost an entire starting lineup.

Instead, the Hawkeyes have leaned heavily on their veterans, who even if they didn’t get significant playing time last year at least got some time on the floor, while integrating a crop of uber-talented freshmen. It’s meant growing pains — Iowa is 15-7 overall and 5-6 in the Big Ten — but it will eventually pay off.

Opinion: No banner big enough to reflect Caitlin Clark's legacy as star returns to Iowa

“They’re definitely a younger group,” Clark said before her jersey was retired following Sunday’s game. “The freshman class, to me, is what's really exciting. You can tell they're freshmen, they're going to be inexperienced at times. But you learn through that and you grow through that.

“I don’t think people always give them the grace that they deserve,” Clark added. “… But this program's in a really good spot. You have a great young group and you have a couple of juniors that are going to be back next year that are really good. And then obviously the class that we have coming in, too, is really good as well.

“So the program is in a really good spot.”

It’s starting to show.

Iowa lost five in a row in January, all by fewer than 10 points and two by a single possession. But the Hawkeyes go into Wednesday night’s game at Minnesota on a three-game winning streak, including that statement win against JuJu Watkins and USC.

Iowa got off to a roaring start against USC, not allowing a field goal until the final minute of the first quarter. Though the Trojans rallied, Iowa refused to fold, with Olsen scoring nine points in a 15-7 run that sealed the win and had Clark on her feet yelling encouragement.

“I think it just takes some time,” said Olsen, whose 28 points against USC was her highest yet at Iowa. “We needed to learn to play with each other and I think it was clicking the past few practices. We had a glimpse of it at Washington, and I think now we're rolling.”

Iowa might be down this season, but it’s not likely to stay there for long.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Caitlin Clark is irreplaceable. No surprise Iowa struggled without her