Iowa Women's Basketball Tip Time Preview: Northern Iowa
#3 IOWA HAWKEYES (2-0) AT NORTHERN IOWA PANTHERS (1-0)
TIME: 2:00pm CT
TV: ESPN+ – Eric Braley and Adam DeJoode
SERIES: 30th Meeting – Iowa leads the series 25-3
THE NUMBERS (2022-23)
OFFENSE: IOWA: 87.3 PPG, 51.1% FG, 38.0% 3PT, 14.3 TO UNI: 74.6 PPG, 44.2% FG, 35.1% 3PT, 12.3 TO
DEFENSE: IOWA: 71.8 PPG, 40.1% FG, 30.3% 3PT, 14.2 TO, +4.2 REB MARGIN UNI: 65.5 PPG, 39.9% FG, 30.6% 3PT, 14.3 TO, +0.9 REB MARGIN
PROJECTED LINEUPS
IOWA HAWKEYES
6’0 PG Caitlin Clark – 44 pts, 8 reb, 6 ast, 13/31 FG vs Virginia Tech
5’9 G Gabbie Marshall – 0 pts, 2 stls, 1 ast vs Virginia Tech
6’0 G Kate Martin – 10 pts, 4/9 FG vs Virginia Tech
6’2 F Hannah Stuelke – 12 pts, 4eb, 6/8 FG vs Virginia Tech
6’3 C Sharon Goodman – 4 pts, 3 reb, 2/4 FG vs Virginia Tech
NORTHERN IOWA PANTHERS
5’6 G Maya McDermott – 16 pts, 9 ast, 5/11 FG vs Green Bay
5’10 G Cailyn Morgan – 4 pts, 3 reb vs Green Bay
5’9 G Kayba Laube – 11 pts, 2 ast, 4/7 FG vs Green Bay
6’0 F Shateah Wetering – 7 pts, 3/6 FG vs Green Bay
6’1 F Grace Boffeli – 14 pts, 10 reb, 4/12 FG vs Green Bay
IOWA PLAYER TO WATCH: PG Caitlin Clark
Realistically, you should be watching Caitlin Clark every time she steps on the floor. In three career games against Northern Iowa, Caitlin is averaging 26.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 2.7 steals. Last time these two teams met in Cedar Falls, the UNI bench was chirping at Clark throughout the game and she picked up a technical foul after hitting a three-pointer late in the game. It’s hard to follow up a 44-point game, but there’s no love lost in this matchup.
NORTHERN IOWA PLAYER TO WATCH: F Grace Boffeli
The best player for the Panthers is going to have to carry the load if they are going to have a chance to upset the Hawkeyes. In UNI’s near upset of Iowa State last season, Boffeli went for 26 points and had five offensive rebounds. It’s going to take a similar performance to keep today’s game close. Boffeli has gone for 20+ points eight times in her career, while the rest of the roster has combined for just seven 20+ point games.
KEY MATCHUP TO WATCH: How does the rebounding battle shake out?
How can Iowa make sure that the Panthers can’t pull the upset? By clearing the defensive glass and limiting second chances for UNI. Last season, the Hawkeyes won by double digits, but got outrebounded 42-35 and allowed 14 offensive rebounds. Luckily for Iowa, UNI only turned that into nine second chance points, otherwise the outcome could have been different. The Hawkeyes have the height advantage in the starting lineup and needs to control the rebounding battle.
THE BREAKDOWN
Northern Iowa finished with a 23-10 record last season, including a 16-4 mark in MVC play, but had to settle for a WNIT appearance after they lost to Belmont in the MVC Tournament. UNI defeated Colorado State in the first round, before losing to Nebraska in the second round. HC Tanya Warren returns three starters this season and the Panthers defeated Green Bay 78-67 in the season opener.
Headling the Northern Iowa starting lineup is Preseason MVC Player of the Year forward Grace Boffeli. She averaged 16.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game last season, while ranking 4th in the MVC with a 55.3% shooting percentage. Boffeli scored in double figures in 29 of 33 games and pulled down double digit rebounds in 16 games. After the Iowa centers did a fairly solid job against Elizabeth Kitley the other night, it will be interesting to see how they do against Boffeli. If she doesn’t have a big game, UNI could be in for a long night.
Point guard Maya McDermott also has the ability to score at a high-level and averaged a team-high 11.06 shots per game last season. McDermott is a preseason First Team All-MVC selection after averaging 14.7 points and 3.5 assists per game a year ago. Just as consistent as Boffeli, Maya scored in double figures 30 times last season. She can also shoot the deep ball, making 60 of them at a 37.7% clip. McDermott knocked down four of her attempts from three-point range in the opener.
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It’s early in the season, so UNI is still trying to figure out who is going to fill the scoring role of Kam Finley who averaged nearly ten points per game. The answer could be guard Kayla Laube. She averaged 5.1 points a game last year and was second on the team with 46 made three-pointers. Laube has scored in double figures nine times over three seasons, but did score 11 points, including three three-pointers in the opener.
Rounding out the starting lineup for the Northern Iowa is guard Cailyn Morgan and forward Shateah Wetering. Cailyn, the sister of Iowa pitcher Marcus Morgan, made her third career start in the season opener, after averaging 3.6 points and 12.5 minutes per game last season. Wetering spent her first three years at Iowa, but opted to transfer to UNI over the offseason. She finished with seven points on 3/6 shooting against Green Bay.
The Panthers have three non-projected starters to know, including one that has started 49 career games. Guard Emerson Green started 31 games last season, but put up 16 points and nine rebounds off the bench in the opener against Green Bay. She averaged 11.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 27.0 minutes per game last season. If Green isn’t in the starting lineup, she will get a chance to provide a spark off the bench.
The tallest option of the roster is 6’3 center Rachael Heittola. After spending three years at Bemidji State, she averaged 3.8 points and 2.0 rebounds last season for UNI. Heittola finished with six points and five rebounds over 14 mins vs Green Bay. The other bench player to know is guard Taryn Wharton. She averaged 12.6 minutes and 4.3 points per game as a freshman last year.
THE PICK
In 2019, the Hawkeyes traveled to Northern Iowa and were blasted by the Panthers 88-66. Since then, it was been a point of emphasis for Lisa Bluder to have her team ready for the Panthers and that is reflected by the fact that Iowa has won the last three meeting by an average of 16.6 points per game. This game has all the makings of a trap game. Coming off a win over a top ten team, short turnaround, road game in front of a sold out crowd and a big home game against Kansas State on deck. However, I think the crowd will be pro-Iowa and that will be a big help. UNI keeps it close early, but Iowa rebounds well and pulls away late. IOWA 85 NORTHERN IOWA 70