The Iowa women’s basketball program has now won five straight games, a far cry from the five-game conference losing streak that opened 2025.
In Monday’s 81-66 win against Nebraska, the Hawkeyes put up an energizing, high-scoring performance, led by 32 points from fourth-year Lucy Olsen to hold a lead for almost 38 minutes of play.
Iowa’s first contest against the Cornhuskers this season, on Jan. 16, left much to be desired. An 87-84 overtime loss, not to mention at home, was devastating, especially with the Hawkeyes’ 11-point lead in the fourth quarter. In this instance, Iowa failed to close the deal, a problem that repeated with the following contest’s 50-49 loss to Oregon, where the Hawkeyes again led late and again came up just short.
If anything, the previous five wins, starting with an 85-61 triumph against Washington on Jan. 22 and including a 76-69 upset over then-No. 4 USC on Feb. 2, have been nothing short of encouraging.
This recent run of success has led to Iowa being heavily favored to take home the victory in Thursday’s contest against Rutgers at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Scarlet Knights enter the matchup 13-14 overall and 2-11 in Big Ten play. ESPN Analytics gives the Hawkeyes a 94 percent chance to pull out a victory.
Some of this may owe to the difference in records between the two teams, as well as which programs have given them their losses. Rutgers is nursing some particularly tough defeats, such as a 92-42 loss to USC, who Iowa beat. The Scarlet Knights have also lost to Virginia Tech, Minnesota, and Nebraska, all of whom the Hawkeyes have bested once.
Where Rutgers has an advantage is in individual numbers. The Scarlet Knights have two players averaging 17 or more points per game, good for a team average of 69 points per game. Olsen, Iowa’s leading scorer, is also the only Hawkeye posting 17 points per game, despite scoring much more than 17 in recent performances.
These individual numbers may help keep Rutgers in the game, but Iowa is likely still favored based on team performance, as well as how the Hawkeyes have fared in the gauntlet of Big Ten competition.
The Scarlet Knights have won only two of their last five contests, both wins against teams that Iowa beat. The Hawkeyes are also averaging a stifling hot 75.2 points per game this season, and seemed to have found their groove offensively during this winning stretch.
A good test for Iowa will be the turnover battle, an area that has either won or lost games for the Hawkeyes. Bad examples include a 30-turnover outing against Tennessee on Dec. 7, but Iowa did force 15 turnovers in Monday’s win over Nebraska. If the Hawkeyes can keep a similar level of composure, their winning streak may soon hit six.
The game against Rutgers is scheduled to tip off on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. local time. A live-stream can be found on Big Ten Plus.