The Nebraska women’s basketball team hits the road in the mid-week for a Thursday night Big Ten showdown with No. 20 Iowa. Tip-off between the Huskers (15-7, 5-6 Big Ten) and the Hawkeyes (18-4, 9-2 Big Ten) is set for 6:30 p.m. (CT) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.
The Hawkeyes enter the week tied atop the Big Ten standings after suffering their second Big Ten loss of the season with a 78-63 setback at Michigan on Sunday afternoon in Ann Arbor. The loss to the Wolverines snapped Iowa’s nine-game winning streak that stretched back to the opening game of Big Ten play – a 78-69 loss at Nebraska on Dec. 28.
While Iowa had its nine-game Big Ten winning streak snapped, it still enters the game against the Cornhuskers with several home winning streaks intact. The Hawkeyes own a 32-game home winning streak at Carver-Hawkeye dating back to Nebraska’s 92-74 win over Iowa on Jan. 28, 2018. Iowa has won 18 straight Big Ten home games since the loss to the Huskers.
Iowa is ranked No. 20 nationally in this week’s Associated Press Top 25, but that doesn’t tell the full story of the Hawkeyes’ position in the big picture. Iowa was No. 5 in the official NCAA RPI last week and entered this week at No. 12 in the RPI.
In the first meeting this season between Nebraska and Iowa, Husker junior center Kate Cain led five Huskers in double figures with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Nicea Eliely (12), Hannah Whitish (11), Sam Haiby (10) and Leigha Brown (10) helped the Huskers put together one of their most complete efforts of the season.
Senior point guard Kathleen Doyle led Iowa with 19 points in the first meeting, while sophomore post Monika Czinano added 16 points and 17 rebounds. McKenna Warnock pitched in 14 points and six rebounds off the bench for the Hawkeyes.
Nebraska leads the all-time series with Iowa, 15-14.
