McKenna Warnock hasn’t missed a beat.

The junior forward from Madison, Wisconsin, broke her hand against Ohio State on Jan. 31. 

Warnock initially injured her hand against Penn State on Jan. 25. She played through Iowa’s games against Northwestern on Jan. 28 and Ohio State. In the final seconds of the Hawkeyes’ loss to the Buckeyes, Warnock fractured her hand while jumping for a rebound.

Warnock had surgery in early February and stepped out onto the court to play Indiana on Feb. 19 — just 19 days after suffering the injury.

“[My hand] feels really good, I’m super excited to be back,” Warnock said. “Obviously, I came back at a really good time. We’re kind of peaking right now, so I’m really excited for that.”

Head coach Lisa Bluder did not ease Warnock back into the game. Warnock played in full force.

Warnock helped the Hawkeyes take down the then-No. 5 Hoosiers in Bloomington on Feb. 19, 96-91, by contributing 21 points on 6-of-8 shooting, six rebounds, and five assists. 

Iowa defeated No. 10 Indiana again on Feb. 21, 88-82. In her second game back from injury, Warnock eclipsed double-digits again with 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting and seven rebounds.

“I just think McKenna is such a big factor for our team because she can do so many things,” Bluder said. “… She brings the depth back, but I also think her teammates have so much confidence in what she does. Like, what does she do for our team? She’s a great 3-point shooter, she’s one of our best rebounders.

“She brings a certain amount of toughness to our team, as well, and a bit of level-headedness.”

The Hawkeyes will be relying on Warnock as they travel to Piscataway, New Jersey, on Thursday for their only regular season matchup with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

The Scarlet Knights run a physical defense, allowing just 59 points per game in 2021-22. The Hawkeyes rank third in the nation in scoring offense this season, with an average of 84.6 points per game.

“Their philosophy has always been, ‘Defense, defense, defense,’” Bluder said. “What makes them aggressive, I guess, is that mindset. They hang their hat on defense. They love defense.”

The Scarlet Knights are just 9-18 overall and 2-13 in the Big Ten in 2021-22 — a vast difference from their 10-3 conference mark in 2020-21.

But the Hawkeyes, who are at 12-4 in the league and on the hunt for a Big Ten Conference regular season title, won’t overlook the Scarlet Knights. Rutgers has gone 8-7 at home — Jersey Mike’s Arena — compared to a 1-8 record on the road this season.

If Iowa wins its final two games of the season, the Hawkeyes will be no worse than Big Ten co-champions and the No. 2 seed in the 2022 Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament in Indianapolis.

The Hawkeyes have a tall task to win out, however, as the No. 6 Michigan Wolverines come to Carver-Hawkeye Arena to close out the regular season on Feb. 27.

But first, Iowa will have to take down Rutgers.

“They understand what could be lost if we do overlook this game,” Bluder said of her players. “And I think they are smart, and they’re going to make sure that that doesn’t happen.”

The Hawkeyes and Scarlet Knights will tip off at 7 p.m. The game will air on the Big Ten Network.