Iowa endured extreme winter weather on Jan. 12, but Iowa men’s and women’s basketball played on.
Due to the hazardous conditions, the Iowa Department of Transportation labeled several of Iowa’s Highways and interstates as “impassable” through the holiday weekend. The Iowa State Patrol reported they were called for 72 crashes and assisted 436 motorists from 12 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday.
Iowans across the state suffered power outages, and in Iowa City there was snow as deep as 15 inches, nearly double the 7.6-inch average the city usually sees in January. The weekend brought new challenges with cold temperatures that saw highs in the single digits and lows well below zero, which caused icy conditions on top of the snow blown back into the roads by the wind.
High schools across the state were forced to cancel school and athletic activities, from basketball to bowling, to protect the student-athletes and their families.
The Iowa men’s basketball team had a home game on Friday night against Big Ten rival Nebraska. Luckily, the Cornhuskers traveled to Iowa City the day before on Thursday, so the game was played as scheduled, resulting in a dominant 94-76 win for the Hawkeyes.
Because of the rough weather conditions and the National Weather Service and Iowa DOT recommendations, fan turnout was scarce for the matchup.
Still, those who braved the weather were rowdy and boosted the team’s morale.
There were more doubts about whether the No. 3 Iowa women’s basketball team’s highly anticipated matchup against No. 14 Indiana would be played. Indiana is the reigning Big Ten regular season champion, while Iowa is the reigning Big Ten Tournament champion. The teams were tied for first in the Big Ten, boasting a 5-0 record in conference play heading into the matchup.
According to IndyStar’s Chloe Peterson, the Hoosiers tried to get to Iowa City on Thursday night before the storm, but the airline didn’t have a plane available. They then planned to fly out at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, which was rescheduled for 2:30 p.m. The Hoosiers finally left Indiana at 9 a.m. on Saturday and arrived safely in Cedar Rapids about an hour later.
Despite the rough conditions from Cedar Rapids to Iowa City, the game was played as scheduled, and the schools avoided rescheduling the top-15 matchup for a later date.
The Hawkeye faithful persevered through the poor weather, and Carver-Hawkeye Arena was packed with fans donning the Black and Gold for the Spirit Game. The crowd provided a boost to the team and roared after every made shot as the Hawkeyes earned a dominant 84-57 ranked win and claimed first place in the Big Ten.
The Iowa State wrestling team moved the start time of its home dual against Utah Valley to 5 p.m. The athletic department encouraged fans to watch the dual from home and announced the cancellation of a dual against Pittsburgh scheduled for Sunday due to travel difficulties.
The No. 3 Iowa men’s wrestling team had an away dual on Friday against No. 6 Nebraska in Lincoln, which faced its own weather troubles.
The Hawkeyes bussed to Lincoln the day before, so the event faced no disruptions. Considering the weather, Nebraska had a solid turnout for the top ten matchup, but the fan support didn’t translate, and Iowa went on to win the dual, 22-10.