The Iowa women’s basketball team is poised to enter the 2024-25 campaign anew after a legendary season that saw tremendous strides for both the school and the sport as a whole.
In the 2023-24 season, head coach Lisa Bluder and deep shooter Caitlin Clark sensationalized women’s basketball across the country, The team scored 91 points per game, played in front of sold-out crowds at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and reached the NCAA championship game against South Carolina.
But with these two key components having moved on from Iowa basketball — Bluder to retirement and Clark to the WNBA — the Hawkeyes are looking to keep the ball rolling and the momentum alive with a new team in the new season.
Head coach Jan Jensen, in her first year in the position, acknowledged that last year’s class was both rare and special — especially with the leadership of Clark, now playing for the Indiana Fever, and Kate Martin, now with the Las Vegas Aces.
“Any time you lose a very senior-heavy class, there’s just a gap for a while,” Jensen said. “I don’t care how great that freshman class coming in is; there’s no speedy trick for experience. You just have to go through it. You just have to fall on your face a few times. You have to make a few mistakes, get some glorious moments.”
Third-year Jada Gyamfi agreed the graduating class brought a lot to the team but remains excited for the upcoming 2024-25 campaign.
“I think it’s really exciting,” Gyamfi said. “Obviously, there’s room for more opportunities, for more players. We miss Caitlin and all those guys. They brought a lot to the team, but I think we have some really good new additions. We’re just excited.”
One such addition is Lucy Olsen, a score-heavy guard who transferred from Villanova, finishing third in the NCAA in scoring last season with 23.3 points per game.
The team dynamic, in addition to Gyamfi and returning stars Sydney Affolter and Hannah Stuelke, also includes newcomers like first-year Taylor Stremlow.
Stremlow, a four-star from Wisconsin, echoed Gyamfi’s sentiment, adding that the team remains popular despite losing Clark, who led Division I women in points per game last season.
“Obviously, what Caitlin and Coach Bluder did here was incredible and really set the stage for those of us that are new here,” Stremlow said. “I think it’s incredible to see the fans that came for Caitlin and coach have stayed for all of us. They’re just as invested and just as excited, which is pretty incredible.”
The Hawkeyes remain close-knit going into the new campaign, having sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena for this and last season, a memory Jensen fondly recounted.
“That was a moment,” Jensen said. “A testament to all that was. Really, a testament to this fan base, of their belief in not only what was but what can be. That kind of thinking is right up my alley. For the fans to be as excited as they were a year ago about such a young and rebuilding and youthful perspective, that is just really cool.”
Gyamfi noted that the team, including the new additions, has gotten even closer over time.
“I’ve always been really close with all the girls on the team, ever since I got here my freshman year,” Gyamfi said. “There’s a lot of newbies, so I have a different relationship with every person on the team. I think I’ve gotten closer throughout the months to all of them, so it’s been really good.”
Stremlow, who averaged 16.1 points per game as a high school junior, said the relationships are the greatest part of being at Iowa.
“I was really surprised with how quickly I connected with everybody in different ways,” Stremlow said. “I felt like I didn’t miss a beat getting to know them and getting close with them. They’ve been great.”
The new Hawkeyes will take the court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in their first game, an exhibition against Missouri Western, on Wednesday, Oct. 30.
The first regular home game will be played against Northern Illinois on Wednesday, Nov. 6, with both games expected to receive coverage from both Big Ten Plus and the Hawkeye
Radio Network.