No. 5 Iowa women's basketball resets after Ohio State loss, looks forward to battle with Nebraska
IOWA CITY — De facto bye weeks inside the grueling Big Ten season are all about timing and what precedes them. For No. 5 Iowa women's basketball, five days in between games was a welcomed reset following a hectic weekend.
"The mood of the team is actually pretty good," Hawkeyes coach Lisa Bluder said Friday afternoon. "They're very excited to get out on the floor again. We had a couple days off (this week), which was really kind of nice with the start of the new school (semester).
"Sometimes I don't really like a bye week after a loss because you've got to sit on it for so long. But I think when you have time to sit on it too, you process it a little bit more and don't just move on right away from it."
There was a lot to process after Sunday's 100-92 overtime loss to then-No. 15 Ohio State, which marked the Hawkeyes' first stumble in two months and first road defeat of the season. Then came the avalanche of distractions following Caitlin Clark's postgame collision with a Buckeyes fan and additional social-media criticism the Hawkeyes (18-2, 7-1 Big Ten Conference) had to endure.
Easy to see why a break was beneficial.
Now comes a great chance for Iowa to get back on track inside the friendly confines of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Saturday's 1 p.m. showdown against Nebraska (13-6, 5-3) on Big Ten Network will deliver another electric environment and a finicky foe. Iowa has owned the Cornhuskers of late, particularly during the Clark years, and doesn't want that to change now.
"Our team does a great job of having a very tight circle and staying with each other," redshirt junior guard Kylie Feuerbach said. "I think also along with that, I think everybody is pretty good about taking out the outside noise and only focusing on what we need to in our circle. Moving forward, we'll just continue doing that. I personally don't try to get onto too many social platforms during the season. A lot of the team does the same. We choose what we want to see and do a good job of it. "
On the court, Sunday's biggest takeaway centered on rebounding as the Hawkeyes lost the board battle for just the fifth time this season. Ohio State's 41-37 edge on the glass marked the second-largest rebounding deficit Iowa has suffered during this campaign. With a strong rebounding team in Nebraska up next, the Hawkeyes can't afford another letdown Saturday afternoon.
The Huskers lead the Big Ten in offensive boards per game (14.3) and ranked second in defensive rebounds per game (31-4), all while topping the league in overall rebounding margin (+10.5). With four players averaging at least four rebounds per game, the strong glass work can come from multiple areas.
"Alexis Markowski and Natalie Potts are very good rebounders, and their new point guard who's a grad transfer is doing a good job on the boards," Bluder said. "They just have a lot of people who really attack the boards. We, for sure, have to make sure we get Markowski and Potts boxed out."
Like the Buckeyes — and really every other team Iowa has faced this season — Nebraska knows a season-altering win can arrive with the Hawkeyes on the other side. Against teams with seesawing seasons like the Huskers', Iowa has come to expect the most potent product from every opponent.
"They're not afraid to come in here," said Nebraska native Taylor McCabe, who hit a trey in her first-career game against the Huskers last season. "That's for sure."
Toppling Nebraska should have everyone back on track after some minor turbulence last weekend. But that doesn't lessen the importance of Iowa remaining locked in off the court the rest of the way. Clark's stardom and the Hawkeyes' placement atop the sport will undoubtedly make that a season-long challenge.
"To me, that's always emphasized — whether we win or lose — just block out the external noise," Bluder said. "Even if you win, there are always people who are doubters and want to take you down. To me, whether you win or lose, tune out the doubters and the extra noise. I try to caution my players to not get on social media too much because that's where you get a lot of it."
Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.