Throughout the offseason, Iowa women’s basketball emphasized defense.

The Hawkeyes finished the 2020-21 336th out of 336 Division I teams in scoring defense, allowing 80.6 points per game. Iowa wanted to improve its defensive abilities, both schematically and mentally. 

And the Hawkeyes did just that in their season-opening win over New Hampshire. The Hawkeyes held the Wildcats to 50 points, including 29.7 percent shooting from the field and 25 percent from the perimeter.

“I thought we did some good things on defense,” head coach Lisa Bluder said. “We held them to 30 percent field goal percentage, shooting 50 points. So I mean, I think there were some really good things but again, I think the competition is going to get a lot more difficult as time goes on.”

After two Hawkeyes — sophomores Sharon Goodman and Shateah Wetering — suffered ACL tears preceding the season, the Hawkeyes will only dress 11 players for 2020-21. All 11 players saw time in the Hawkeyes’ 93-50 victory over New Hampshire.

Iowa has four newcomers to the Hawkeye squad: freshmen AJ Ediger, Addison O’Grady, and Sydney Affoiter, and Iowa State sophomore transfer Kylie Feuerbach.

“We’re still kind of getting into it,” senior center Monika Czinano said. “And we talked about like, for half of our team, this is their first real game at Carver with fans. So, there’s gonna be jitters and there’s gonna be mistakes that are made. But for the most part, I think we did a good job communicating and talking things through.”

Sophomore point guard Caitlin Clark experienced fans at Carver-Hawkeye Arena for the first time Tuesday night. Clark’s freshman season saw fans limited to family because of COVID-19 protocols.

But Clark didn’t mind the fans — she feeds off the energy she receives from the Hawkeye crowd.

“I think we had a great amount of fans tonight,” Clark said. “So, I’m one of those people that likes to play in front of fans. So, it’s awesome to see the fans come back out there and they were pretty loud and energetic.”

The Hawkeyes’ defensive effort saw them force 21 turnovers from the Wildcats Tuesday night. Iowa scored 19 points off New Hampshire’s turnovers.

But Iowa also struggled in the turnover game, committing 19 through 40 minutes. New Hampshire defended Iowa in a zone — something the Hawkeyes had not practiced.

“We haven’t worked against the zone as much and so I think that showed a little bit tonight,” head coach Lisa Bluder said. “We usually don’t get zoned. So, that was a little bit unusual for us, but I think it’s just probably not having enough reps. And that’s probably my fault.”

After their season-opening win, the Hawkeyes only have two days to prepare for their next opponent. Iowa will tip off against Samford on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.