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Gulf Coast Showcase field set, Iowa Women's Basketball to face Purdue Fort Wayne

On3 imageby:Kyle Huesmann•08/03/23•

HuesmannKyle

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The Hawkeyes will face Purdue Fort Wayne in the opening round of the Gulf Coast Showcase.

It was initially announced back in April that the Iowa Women’s Basketball team would make the trip down to Estero, Florida to compete in the Gulf Coast Showcase. Now, the Hawkeyes have learned their first round opponent, as well as the entire eight-team field set to compete in the Thanksgiving week tournament. Iowa will take on the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastadons in the opening round, while North Carolina, Kansas State, Florida Gulf Coast, Vermont, Western Kentucky and Delaware round of the tournament field.

The matchup between Iowa and Purdue Fort Wayne will be the first ever between the two programs. The Hawkeyes own an 11-2 all-time record against the Horizon League, while the Mastadons are 1-23 all-time against the Big Ten with their lone win coming against Michigan State in 2013. Last season, Purdue Fort Wayne finished with a 14-19 record, including a 9-11 mark in Horizon League play. They dropped contests to Michigan State (85-53) and Maryland (88-51).

This season, the Mastadons are set to return their entire starting five, including guards Amellia Bromenschenkel (12.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg) and Shayla Sellers (10.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg). Head coach Maria Marchesano is entering her third season with the program and led the Mastadons to the Horizon League Tournament semifinals for the first time ever.

Taking a look at the rest of the Gulf Coast Showcase field, North Carolina (22-11) and Florida Gulf Coast (33-4) advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season, while Vermont (25-7) lost in the first round after earning automatic bid out of the America East Conference. Kansas State (19-17) and Western Kentucky (19-14) both competed in the WNIT, with the Wildcats advancing to the Super 16 round. Delaware rounds out the field and finished last season with a 16-14 record. Iowa (#3), North Carolina (#19) and Kansas State (#24) appeared in the ESPN Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings.

The Iowa women’s team returns three starters, including National Player of the Year Caitlin Clark, who averaged 27.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 8.6 assists for a Hawkeye squad that advanced to the National Championship game. They also return starting guards Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall, as well as Big Ten Sixth Player of they Year Hannah Stuelke.

2023-24 Non-Conference Schedule

Nov 6: vs Fairleigh Dickinson

Nov 9: vs Virginia Tech (Charlotte, NC) (Ally Tipoff)

Nov 12: at Northern Iowa

Nov 16: vs Kansas State

Nov 19: vs Drake

Nov 24: vs Purdue Fort Wayne (Estero, FL) (Gulf Coast Showcase)

Nov 25-26: Opponent TBD (Estero, FL) (Gulf Coast Showcase)

Dec 2: vs Bowling Green

Dec 16: vs Cleveland State (Des Moines, IA)

No date set: at Iowa State

The Hawkeyes matchup against Purdue Fort Wayne will take place on November 24th at Hertz Arena in Estero, Florida with tipoff coming at approximately 6:30pm CT on FloHoops.

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