Iowa women’s basketball head coach Lisa Bluder thought securing a double-bye at the 2022 Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament was almost out of the question when the Hawkeyes lost to Maryland on Feb. 14.

“That’s always the goal, but it’s going to be hard to get now,” she said.

At the time, the Hawkeyes had a 10-4 conference record — fifth in the Big Ten behind Indiana, Ohio State, Michigan, and Maryland. Iowa was 0-4 against Associated Press Top 25 teams.

Fast forward one week, and the double-bye is within reach.

No. 21 Iowa women’s basketball notched two ranked victories in three days — both over Indiana. On Saturday, the Hawkeyes took down the Hoosiers, 96-91, in Bloomington. On Monday, Iowa came out on top, 88-82. Now, a double-bye is within reach.

At 12-4 in the Big Ten, Iowa is entrenched in a three-way tie for second atop the conference with Ohio State and Maryland. If the Hawkeyes win out, they can be no worse than Big Ten Conference co-champions and the No. 2 seed in the league tournament in Indianapolis.

“It’s not gonna be easy,” Bluder said following Iowa’s victory over Indiana Monday. “We have a road game and then we host Michigan, who’s at the top of the Big Ten, and is a really good team. But we’re gonna take it one game at a time and we’re gonna give it the best we got.”

With two wins over the Hoosiers, who were ranked fifth in the AP Top 25 on Saturday and 10th Monday, the Hawkeyes proved they can compete on a national stage.

“I think we were just due for one of these games to go our way,” senior center Monika Czinano said. “This year, we’ve had a lot of close games that have kind of slipped through our fingers. This was huge, kind of a turning point for us.”

Iowa rallied from a 25-point deficit against then-No. 5 Michigan on Feb. 6 to get within five points of the Wolverines. Although the Hawkeyes ultimately lost, 98-90, they showed their ability to fight back against a nationally ranked team.

“Obviously, there are some games behind us that we would have loved to get back,” sophomore point guard Caitlin Clark said. “But you know, you’ve just got to flush those and move on, and focus on the opportunity right in front of you. And that’s really what we’ve done with Indiana both times.”

The Hawkeyes have the chance to turn heads nationally if they can win their final two games of the season. Iowa’s biggest test will come on Feb. 27, its last regular season game in 2021-22, when it takes on No. 6 Michigan.

Iowa started the season at No. 9 in the nation, and 2021-22 was one of the most anticipated seasons for Hawkeye women’s basketball.

And in 2021-22, Iowa women’s basketball has the chance to bring the NCAA Tournament to Iowa City for the first time since 2018-19. 

In its latest projection, the NCAA revealed its top 16 seeds for the women’s basketball national tournament on Feb. 10. Indiana was picked as the sixth overall seed, with a chance to host the first two rounds of the tournament in Bloomington, Indiana.

“I mean, Indiana was picked to host, right, in the 16 reveal,” Bluder said. “So, I do think, why not us, right? If they were in it, why not us? And again, it depends on how we go this week, and it depends on how we do in the conference tournament, but I don’t think it’s out of the question.”

The hype for the Hawkeyes can come back. They just need to be consistent.