On March 20, 2022 at approximately 2 PM 14,000 fans in Carver Hawkeye Arena went silent. They came to watch a coronation. To see the Iowa women’s basketball team off to its second consecutive Sweet Sixteen. The Hawkeyes would’ve been favored to reach the Elite Eight, and would’ve had a shooter's chance to advance to the program’s first Final Four in nearly three decades. Instead, Iowa fans witnessed one of the biggest upsets in women’s college basketball history. And the winning basket was made by a former Hawkeye in Lauren Jensen.
There’s a saying that you never know a good thing until its gone.
That wasn’t true in this case. Iowa fans knew they had a good thing in last year’s Iowa women’s basketball team.
They sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena to watch the team win a share of the Big Ten regular season title. They traveled and watched Iowa win three games in three days to capture the Big Ten Tournament. And they sold out the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament at Carver to support the team again.
Unfortunately, the good thing was gone before anyone expected.
Fortunately, it wasn’t gone forever. The core of last year’s Iowa team is back. Iowa is ranked #4 in the preseason AP poll, and is ready for the expectations that come with that. The journey to the Final Four is about to begin again.
In the coming few days we'll be previewing this year’s Big Ten, reviewing this year’s returning players, and also introducing the new faces to this Iowa women’s basketball team. But for now, let’s take a look at Iowa’s non-conference schedule.
Typical Iowa Non-Conference Schedules
Unlike the Iowa men, the Iowa women play Drake, Northern Iowa, and Iowa State every year in their non-conference schedule. Iowa also participates in a tournament around Thanksgiving, though usually the opponents in those tournaments aren’t great.
Most of the rest of Iowa’s non-conference schedule consists of mid-major schools. There are usually one or two cupcakes, but Coach Bluder is very good at identifying mid-majors that are good and can give her team a challenge.
Iowa’s non-conference schedule usually lacks big name opponents, though. Generally, Iowa’s biggest tests come during conference play.
The Non-Conference Schedule
| Friday October 28 | vs. Nebraska Kearney (exhibition) |
| Monday November 7 | vs. Southern University |
| Thursday November 10 | vs. Evansville |
| Sunday November 13 | at Drake |
| Thursday November 17 | at Kansas State |
| Sunday November 20 | vs. Belmont |
| Friday November 25 | vs. Oregon State (Phil Knight Classic) |
| Sunday November 27 | vs. #5 UConn or Duke (Phil Knight Classic) |
| Thursday December 1 | vs. #10 NC State (ACC/Big Ten Challenge) |
| Wednesday December 7 | vs. #8 Iowa State |
| Saturday December 18 | vs. Northern Iowa |
| Wednesday December 21 | vs. Dartmouth |
As you can see, this year’s schedule is a little different.
Top 10 Opponents
First, Iowa State is good again. There is a good chance that both Iowa and Iowa State will be ranked in the Top 10 come December 7th. This year’s Cy-Hawk game might well be the biggest in the history of the rivalry.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. North Carolina State might not be as good as it was last year when it earned a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but it still will bring a ton of talent to Iowa City on December 1st.
And then there’s potentially the biggest game of all. Unlike most years, Iowa decided to go for a bigger challenge with this year's holiday tournament. If both Iowa and UConn take care of business in their first games at the Phil Knight Classic, they will square off in a game likely between two Top 5-ranked teams.
The bad news is that UConn All-American Paige Bueckers tore her ACL this off-season, so we won’t get to see Round 2 of Bueckers vs. Caitlin Clark. That said, UConn is still loaded with some of the top recruits (and players) in the country -- but this game is likely more winnable for Iowa than it’s been in a while.
Under the Radar Games
But before Iowa can earn that marquee matchup with UConn, they must get past an Oregon State team that will be very tough. The Beavers aren’t ranked to start the year, but have been very good in the recent past. Coach Scott Rueck took the Beavers to the Final Four in 2016, and he made an Elite Eight and two Sweet Sixteens in the three years following it.
Iowa also can’t overlook Belmont. The Bruins are part of the Missouri Valley conference now, and are preseason favorites to win the conference. Like last year’s game against IUPUI, if Iowa doesn’t play at their best, they could absolutely be upset by the Bruins.
We all know that Drake and Northern Iowa give Iowa their best shot every year. Neither program is expected to be great this year, but that doesn’t mean that either will be an easy out. The Drake game in particular could be tough given that it’s Iowa’s first road game of the season and also the third game Iowa will play in less than a week.
A Lost Opportunity
When Iowa’s game against Kansas State was announced, it looked like another big one. Kansas State made the NCAA Tournament last year thanks in large part to the play of All-American post Ayoka Lee. With Lee set to return, it seemed like Iowa might face a ranked road game against one of the best players in the country.
Unfortunately, Lee was also hurt this offseason, and will miss the entire season. Kansas State might still be a good team, but the matchup has lost a lot of its original luster.
Resume Building
The best way for Iowa to maximize its chance to make a Final Four is to get as high of a seed as possible in the NCAA Tournament. Even at its best, this Iowa team will have flaws, especially against tall and athletic teams. Better seeding should mean fewer games against teams that might pose match-up difficulties for Iowa.
For seeding purposes, Iowa’s non-conference schedule gives it plenty of opportunity. If the Hawkeyes were to go 2-1 against possible Top 10 opponents, that would look very good come March. If they manage to go 3-0 in those games, they might make themselves one of the favorites to be a #1 seed depending on how conference play goes. Regardless, this should be another very fun year of Iowa women’s basketball.
