Iowa's Wednesday home game vs. Northwestern postponed due to COVID-19 issues

Wednesday night’s matchup between Iowa and Northwestern has been postponed due to COVID-19 issues within the Wildcats program, as Stadium’s Jeff Goodman first reported. Northwestern only has six available players, Goodman said.

The Wildcats and Hawkeyes were supposed to square off at Carver-Hawkeye Arena Wednesday night at 9 p.m. ET on the Big Ten Network. Iowa made the news official Tuesday morning and said both teams will work with the Big Ten office on rescheduling options.

Both teams are in the thick of the Big Ten race — Iowa has a 4-3 record in league play this season while Northwestern is a half game behind at 3-3. As the halfway point of the league schedule draws closer, three teams sit tied for sixth place, 2.5 games behind first-place Purdue.

🚨 SCHEDULE UPDATE 🚨

Wednesday's game vs Northwestern will not be played as scheduled due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols within the Northwestern program.

The two schools will work with the Big Ten on rescheduling options. pic.twitter.com/CtF5iQEf5c

— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) January 17, 2023

Iowa is in the midst of a four-game winning streak, including an 81-67 home victory over Maryland on Sunday. The Hawkeyes got a big performance out of Tony Perkins that night as he dropped 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting to lead the offensive attack. Kris Murray also had an impressive showing with 19 points.

Northwestern, meanwhile, has lost two straight games to fall to 12-5 overall and 3-3 in conference action. The Wildcats fell to Michigan 85-78 on Sunday, just a few days after a loss to Rutgers in the final minutes at Welsh-Ryan Arena. In that loss to the Wolverines, Northwestern had a 59-58 lead with 10:17 to play before Michigan woke up to pull away with the victory. Boo Buie led the Wildcats with 22 points and five turnovers while Chase Audige had a big day on defense, coming away with five steals in the effort.

Iowa is next scheduled to take on Ohio State in Columbus on Saturday at noon ET while Northwestern is set to welcome Wisconsin that same day.