Some thought that the Iowa Hawkeyes women’s college basketball team may have a down year after losing Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin, and more after two Final Four appearances.
The Hawkeyes, led by Jan Jensen, seem poised to shake that notion and prove that they are still among the top tier of women’s college basketball.
After starting the season unranked, Iowa has quickly jumped into the polls with their 8-0 start and are sitting at No. 17 in the newest AP Top 25 rankings.
Their start is getting the attention of the college basketball world. After being underrated, ESPN has tabbed Iowa as one of the biggest surprises in women’s college basketball so far this season.
We knew TCU and Iowa would be potentially underrated teams in the preseason. Their success so far isn’t too surprising, but it’s worth noting.
No one was sure how Iowa would look after the Caitlin Clark era. The Hawkeyes also lost three other guards — Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall and Molly Davis — who played significant roles, and coach Lisa Bluder retired. Now under Jan Jensen, Bluder’s longtime assistant, Iowa is 8-0. The Hawkeyes won both their recent games at the Cancun Challenge despite Villanova transfer Lucy Olsen, their leading scorer, being out with a cut to her knee. We will know more over the next two weeks as Iowa faces Tennessee, Iowa State and Michigan State. – Michael Voepel, ESPN
What makes this even more impressive is that Iowa is winning with Lucy Olsen sidelined. Fortunately, she is set to return to action soon for some of the Hawkeyes’ biggest tests yet.
Iowa enters a bit of a gauntlet this week taking on Tennessee, No. 20 Iowa State, and caps it off with a trip to No. 24 Michigan State.
The Hawkeyes’ next action is Saturday, Dec. 7 at 6 p.m. CT airing on FOX when they tip off against the Tennessee Volunteers in the Champions Classic at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
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