The 17-1 Iowa women’s basketball team, now up to second in the AP Poll, faces two more tests this week in hosting Wisconsin on Tuesday and visiting No. 18 Ohio State on Sunday.
The Hawkeyes jumped from third to second in the AP Poll after UCLA lost to USC over the weekend. They now sit just one spot behind the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks.
And Iowa earned that leap to No. 2 after a quite comfortable 84-57 win over the then-No. 14 Indiana Hoosiers on Jan. 13, who were supposed to be a big test for the Hawkeyes but could not find a response to the solidified balance of scoring on the Iowa offense.
Caitlin Clark notched a double-double of 30 points on 10-of-21 from the field and 6-of-16 from deep in addition to 11 assists — but guard Molly Davis stole the show, her 7-of-10 shooting performance from the field earning her 18 points for a career-high in an Iowa uniform.
And Iowa guards Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall finished with 10 and 12, respectively, the latter continuing her hot streak from deep upon hitting four threes.
So the Hawkeyes will play host to the Wisconsin Badgers at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, last seeing them in Madison, Wisconsin, on Dec. 10 and escaping with an 87-65 win.
There, Clark scored 28 points on 11-of-19 from the field and 4-of-8 from deep while forward Hannah Stuelke scored 21 off of the bench as she made eight of 16 attempts from the field.
But, as seen against Indiana, the Iowa scoring offense is so much wider spread now that the Hawkeyes are only hotter than they were when they last beat the Badgers by 20 — and Wisconsin has since slowed down.
The Badgers are now 8-8 overall and just 1-5 in the Big Ten, that one win coming against a disappointing Illinois team.
They last lost to Michigan, 76-52, on Jan. 13, in which they struggled to score from the field where they shot 19-of-39. And the Badgers made 11 assists but gave up a very costly 28 turnovers on the night.
Only Wisconsin forward Serah Williams recorded double-digits in the game, scoring 11 — but her 3.3 blocks per game this season ranks fourth in the country, continuing to prove a threat to Iowa posts who will need to fight to establish a presence in the paint and thus control Williams’ power throughout the game.
And although the Badgers held the Wolverines — who were receiving votes in the AP Poll — to 76 points, the Hawkeyes like to get out and score so much more that it is hard to imagine the Wisconsin defense can stop such an efficient Iowa offense if all Hawkeyes are as engaged in scoring as they have been.
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The Hawkeyes will then take a trip across the Midwest to Columbus, Ohio, for an 11 a.m. tip on Sunday with a bigger test in the No. 18 Ohio State Buckeyes, who often give opponents a tough and close game.
The Buckeyes are 13-3 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten. They lost to now-No. 6 USC by nine to open the season, then-No. 2 UCLA by six on Dec. 18, and Michigan by nine on Dec. 30 — but they beat then-No. 20 Tennessee by 20 earlier in the season and most recently Michigan State by five on Jan. 14.
OSU is outsourcing opponents on an average of 81.4 points per game to opponents’ 61, propelled by a solid 34 percent from three this season despite shooting under 50 percent from the field.
And the Buckeyes are averaging just 13.8 turnovers per game, demanding the Hawkeyes lock in defensively because OSU possesses the ball much better than the majority of Iowa’s opponents thus far this season.
Three Buckeyes are scoring in double-digits this season, led by guard Jacy Sheldon with 17.7 points per game on 52.6 percent from the field and 40 percent from three at the highest volume on the team.
Sheldon also shoots an impressive 87 percent from the free throw line but has 45 assists thus far this season on 43 turnovers, making her a potential target for the Iowa defense to exploit for changes of possession when the ball is in her hands.
Guard Taylor Thierry is second in scoring with 12.9 points per game on 62.5 percent from the field, and forward Cotie McMahon is third with 12.7 — but on just 61 percent from the charity stripe and 25 percent from deep, so the Hawkeyes can target her too to dare her to shoot and send her to the free throw line in crunch time.
OSU will have Maryland on Jan. 17 for a chance to earn another momentum-building win before they welcome the Hawkeyes to town this weekend.