No. 21 Iowa won their season opener as expected—but not in the way expected

Over the last few years, the 3-point shot has become the bread and butter for Iowa women’s basketball. 3s fueled their legendary high-octane, push-the-pace offense, which has carried them to national prominence. It was a shot absolutely mastered by a select few, and one in particular who needs no explanation.

So one might expect the No.21 Hawkeyes to be lights out from their sweet spot in their 2025-26 season opener against Southern University, but they would be sorely mistaken. Nevertheless, the Hawkeyes, as expected, came out on top 86-51. In the process, they had to rely on their inside game, mid-range jumpers and free throws to cross the finish line.

Sophomore Ava Heiden led the way with a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds. Additionally, she shot 62 percent from the field. Hannah Stuelke kicked off her senior season with 20 points and nine rebounds. Fellow senior Taylor McCabe came away with six points, five rebounds and three assists. Super senior Kylie Feuerbach had four points, four rebounds and three assists.

Newbies Chit Chat Wright, Emely Rodriguez, Addie Deal, Layla Hays and Journey Houston each got their shine in their first official game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Rodriguez came away with 13 points, three assists and three rebounds. Wright added nine points and seven assists. Deal had four points and two rebounds. Houston finished with five points and four assists. Hays had four baskets and a rebound.

Sophomore Taylor Stremlow was effective at both ends of the floor. Though she didn’t score, she had four rebounds and three assists. Defensively, she added three blocks and three steals to her name.

However, when it came to 3-pointers, the Hawkeyes had to work for it. They were literally 0-for-10 from beyond the arc in the first half. Only to come back and go 4-for-7 in the second half and finish 4-for-18 (22.2 percent) overall. Stuelke made the first Hawkeye three-pointer to kick off the third quarter. Ironically, Stuelke isn’t known for shooting threes.

“It felt great,” she said. “I’ve just been working really hard. We all have, but that has been one of my main focuses to hit that.” “She’s been working a lot,” Heiden added. “I’ll come in, I’ll see her in the gym.”

McCabe, their go-to 3-point shooter, was only 2-for-6. Rodriguez hit one late in the game. Undoubtedly, Iowa was far better than Southern and, in a perfect world, should been ahead by 20 to 30 points by halftime; however, that was not the case.

Despite using the inside game, head coach Jan Jensen, in her second full season at the helm, doesn’t envision the team necessarily switching gears. She explained after the game:

I do think tonight was an anomaly. I staff all of our shooting drills, and I staff all of our live action. I was shocked we were 0-for-10 in the first half. I don’t think we are going to push crazy numbers, but that was an anomaly. I thought we got good looks in my mind, but I’ll know more when I watch the tape tonight. Right now, I wouldn’t say that. I think we’re just all used to playing dazzling guard play for the last couple of years, and now Ava, Hannah and Layla have had some good moments, which has shored up that inside game right now. But I think it’s way too soon to think about a shift to go one or the other.