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It goes without saying that the rise in popularity for women’s basketball is partly due to the frenzy surrounding Iowa. From 2022 to 2024, which included back-to-back national title game runs in 2023 and 2024, the Hawkeyes were caught in the glare of the national spotlight.
It was during that stretch that Hannah Stuelke and Taylor McCabe became two of the most beloved players.
Stuelke, a soft-spoken post player from Cedar Rapids, let her game do all the talking. In 2023, she became the Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year. Over the course of her career, Stuelke became the seventh player in Iowa history to capture more than 1,500 points and over 850 rebounds. Meanwhile, McCabe became a fierce sharpshooter, especially from the 3-point line. She will finish her career matching the third-highest 3-point percentage in program history; she also became the 21st Hawkeye to hit more 100 3-pointers.
This year, both Stuelke and McCabe were immensely impactful in helping the Hawkeyes secure a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, a 26-6 overall record and a 15-3 mark in the Big Ten.
Stuelke earned multiple Big Ten Player of the Week honors, in addition to being named Naismith National Player of the Week in January. McCabe shot 40 percent from the field and the 3-point line and found herself in the starting rotation before succumbing to an ACL injury in late January.
Before they exit Iowa City, Stuelke and McCabe are leveraging their strong bond through an innovative NIL program with T-Mobile called “Better Together.” With the help of social media and US-Cellular, which is part of T-Mobile, Stuelke and McCabe are showcasing themselves as a dynamic duo with off-court content that inspires their on-court excellence.
McCabe explained in an interview with Swish Appeal:
I think that social media has been such a big deal.
And I think it really lets people, like fans, connect with players and teams on an extra level. When they see stuff we support, they want to support it as well, and just to grow closer to us and become more involved in the community and things like that. So I’ve definitely seen an increase in social media activity, and as the team has become more popular, I’ve gained more followers. And so that’s been pretty cool to see.
Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) has been a breakthrough for college athletes, allowing them to benefit financially off the court, whereas, previously, the NCAA’s rigid amateur rules forbade them from doing so. While the concept of NIL is still a work in progress, women’s sports, especially women’s basketball, have benefited tremendously. Some of the top players can earn between $500,000 and $800,000 from endorsement deals.
On NIL opportunities, Stuelke said:
It’s been really cool seeing the growth, especially in women’s basketball, just having so many fans and then being able to support things that align with our values, like what we’re doing here and how important relationships are.
It’s good to have that outlet.
Stuelke has NIL deals with US Cellular, BODY ARMOR, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, Riverside Casino & Golf Resort and the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Iowa. McCabe has a deal with Formosa Sushi Bar in Iowa City for a Taylor McCabe Roll.
It is this new, higher level of exposure that has enabled many players to gain recognition they probably wouldn’t have received in the years before NIL. As McCabe shared:
I had a letter once, somebody sent me a letter once I got injured, and said, “I didn’t even know you played basketball until I saw your commercial with Hannah and with US Cellular.” That actually just made me laugh because I was like, it’s so funny. But I mean, in communities like this, you want to reach out to as many people as possible.
Iowa will host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament beginning on Saturday, March 21 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. They will play No. 15-seed Fairleigh Dickinson University.
After that, anything is possible for Stuelke and McCabe in their final days as Hawkeyes. But no matter what, the impact of Stuelke and McCabe on Iowa will go beyond any numbers. As Stuelke put it:
I think you could always remember the stats. But I think what’s most important about us is, like you said, how much chemistry we have, how much fun we have, and the joy that we bring to the people around us.
