Although early in the conference slate, Iowa women’s basketball (12-5, 2-4 Big Ten) has appeared to have hit a wall.
Following their 74-67 home loss vs. Indiana (12-4, 4-1 Big Ten) on Sunday, the Hawkeyes have dropped three consecutive games for the first time since 2018.
Specifically, in Sunday’s loss against the Hoosiers, Iowa shot 21-for-62 (33.9%) from the floor, 6-for-19 (31.9%) from deep, and 19-for-23 (82.6%) from the charity stripe.
Junior guard Taylor McCabe led the team with 15 points off 4-of-7 (57.1%) shooting from the floor and 4-of-5 from deep.
Defensively, the Hawkeyes forced 17 turnovers, including eight steals and four blocks that Iowa eventually converted into 24 points.
With Sunday’s loss in the past, here are three thoughts summarizing the Hawkeyes’ performance against the Hoosiers.
Turnovers stalling the offense
Although Iowa was better at limiting their turnovers by only committing nine against Indiana on Sunday, the lost opportunities that result from those mistakes add up and can ultimately cost the team in the long run.
While the turnovers were not the sole contributor to the losing effort by the Hawkeyes on Sunday, there is no denying that the mistakes slowed Iowa’s offensive attack throughout the game.
Ugly Shooting Performance
It is understandable to have a few players struggle to put the ball through the basket at times, but it’s a whole different problem when it’s the entire team.
Iowa’s top two offensive contributors, Lucy Olsen and Hannah Stuelke, shot a combined 4-for-18 (22.2%) from the field, 0-for-3 from deep, and 5-for-8 (62.5%) from the charity stripe.
With the competitiveness of the Big Ten only getting stronger with the addition of the four West Coast programs, Iowa can ill-afford for this poor shooting trend to continue moving forward.
Lack of Starting Production
Iowa’s bench outscored its starters 39-28 on Sunday. While scoring depth off the bench is a great thing to have, the Hawkeyes need more from their starting five and from their veterans.
Or, Iowa needs to consider shaking up the starting five and rotations to get players on the floor that are producing more for the Hawkeyes.
Turnovers stalling the offense
Although Iowa was better at limiting their turnovers by only committing 14 against Indiana on Sunday, the lost opportunities that result from those mistakes add up and can ultimately cost the team in the long run.
While the turnovers were not the sole contributor to the losing effort by the Hawkeyes on Sunday, there is no denying that the mistakes slowed Iowa’s offensive attack throughout the game.
In particular, it played a big role in Iowa trailing by as many as 15 points in the first half as nine of the Hawkeyes’ turnovers came in the game’s opening half.
Iowa’s next matchup will be on Thursday when they return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for a 6 p.m. clash vs. Nebraska (13-4, 4-2 Big Ten).
The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network along with the radio call on the Hawkeyes Radio Network.
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