Iowa Women's Basketball Tip Time Preview: Washington State

WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (2-2) AT IOWA HAWKEYES (5-0)

TIME: 3:00pm CT

TV: Big Ten Network – Sloane Martin and Meghan McKeown

SERIES: 3rd Meeting – Washington State won the last meeting in 2016

BY THE NUMBERS

OFFENSE: IOWA: 82.6 PPG, 50.6% FG, 31.4% 3PT, 13.8 TO WAZZU: 67.8 PPG, 39.2% FG, 30.7% 3PT, 13.8 TO

DEFENSE: IOWA: 62.6 PPG, 35.6% FG, 31.3% 3PT, 18.6 TO, +7.8 REB MARGIN WAZZU: 73.0 PPG, 43.5% FG, 50.0% 3PT, 16.0 TO, -8.5 REB MARGIN

IOWA HAWKEYES PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Lucy Olsen	Point Guard	5-10/ Sr.	Villanova transfer. Averaging 17.4 PPG, 3.8 REB and 5.4 AST. Big East Most Improved Player last season. Scored in double figures in all five games. 16 pts, 3 reb, 6 ast vs Kansas
Kylie Feuerbach	Guard	6-0/ rSr.	Averaging 6.6 PPG, 4.4 REB and 2.8 STL. Recorded six steals against NIU. 5 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast vs Kansas
Syd Affolter	Guard	5-11/ Sr.	Averaging 4.8 PPG and 5.5 REB. Big Ten All-Tournament Team last season. Missed the season opener vs NIU. 6 reb vs Kansas
Hannah Stuelke	Forward	6-2/ Jr.	Averaging 14.8 PPG and 7.8 REB. Second Team All-Big Ten last season. Third on the team in made field goals (25). 16 pts, 10 reb, 4 ast vs Kansas
Addi O’Grady	Center	6-4/ Sr.	Averaging 15.2 PPG and 4.4 REB. Shooting 70.2% from the floor, second on the team in made field goals (33). 9 pts, 3 reb vs Kansas

WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Eleonora Villa	Guard	5-8/ Soph.	Averaging 15.5 PPG, 3.0 REB and 3.0 AST. Scored in double figures in 29 games and led the team with 54 made threes last season. 12 pts, 3 ast vs Texas Tech
Astera Tuhina	Guard	5-9/ Jr.	Averaging 8.0 PPG, 4.0 REB and 3.0 AST. Scored in double figures in 14 games last season. 6 pts, 2 ast vs Texas Tech
Jenna Villa	Guard	6-1/ Soph.	Former four-star recruit. Averaging 5.5 PPG and 2.0 REB. Scored in double figures six times last season. 10 pts, 3 reb vs Texas Tech
Tara Wallack	Forward	6-2/ Sr.	Averaging 12.5 PPG and 6.5 REB. Scored in double figures 19 times last season. Has 110 career blocked shots. 8 reb vs Texas Tech
Alex Covill	Center	6-6/ Soph.	Averaging 6.0 PPG and 3.0 REB. Leads the team in field goal percentage (52.6%). Season-high 11 pts, 6 reb vs Idaho.

WASHINGTON STATE PLAYER TO WATCH: Forward Tara Wallack

The most versatile player for the Cougars, Tara Wallack is a stretch four that can play on the perimeter and in the paint. She scored in double figures in 19 games last season, shooting 35.6% from three-point range and 55.2% from inside the paint. On top of that, Wallack is rim protector, totaling 110 career blocks, including five in their season opener against Eastern Washington. It will be interesting to see how she matches up with Hannah Stuelke.

IOWA PLAYER TO WATCH: Guard Taylor McCabe and forward Teagan Mallegni

Sure, we are only a couple of weeks into the season, but Washington State’s three-point defense has been remarkably bad. Opponents are shooting exactly 50.0% from behind the arc against the Cougars, which has them ranked dead last (330th) in three-point defense. Taylor McCabe leads the Hawkeyes with 13 made threes (54.2%), while Teagan Mallegni is 5/12 (41.7%) over the last two games. They have the ability to really hurt the Cougars if they get left open.

Keep an eye on Kylie Feuerbach as well. She hasn’t been afraid to pull the trigger from behind the arc but is shooting just 21.7%. The Hawkeyes would love to see her hit a couple of gain some confidence.

KEY TO THE GAME FOR IOWA: Take advantage of the Washington State defense

The Cougars are going to try to keep this to a 60’s or 70’s game, but to do that, they will have to slow down the pace of the game and get stops on the defensive end. Wazzu ranks 261st in points allowed per possession and 308th in rebounding. Meanwhile, Iowa is shooting 60% from two-point range and ranks 34th in points per possession. If the Hawkeyes can be efficient on the offensive end and avoid some of the careless turnovers that hit against Kansas, they will be in a great position to win.

BREAKING DOWN THE COUGARS

Washington State is under the direction of seventh year head coach Kamie Ethridge. She has led the Cougars to three NCAA Tournaments, as well as a WBIT semifinals appearance last season. Coming off of a 21-15 season and an eighth-place finish in the PAC 12, the Cougars return 58.8% of their scoring. They are off to a 2-2 start, with their losses coming to Stanford and Texas Tech.

Taking a look at the other players to watch for Washington State, guard Eleonora Villa is the leading scorer for the Cougs, averaging 15.5 points and 3.0 assists per game. Villa scored in double figures 29 times as a freshman last season, leading Wazzu with 54 made threes. Although her career-high is just 20 points, Villa can hit any shot on the floor. Per CBB Analytics, she shot at, or above the DI average in all 11 shot zones last season.

Originally from Kosovo, guard Astera Tuhina is averaging 8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. She is a capable three-point shooter, knocking down 44 of them last season at a 43.1% clip. Tuhina is off to a slow start this year, shooting just 34.5% from the floor. That being said, she put up 24 against Oregon and 20 against Illinois last season, so she can get hot.

Rounding out the players to watch for the Cougars is 6-foot-6 center Alex Covill. She is averaging just 6.0 points per game, but leads the team with a 52.6% field goal percentage. It’s surprising to see that she has taken just 7.9% of the teams’ shots through four games, but it will still be interesting to see how the Hawkeyes fare against her in the paint.

A deeper look at the early season stats behind the matchup between the Hawkeyes and Cougars…

THE PICK

Warren Nolan Projection: IOWA 80 WASHINGTON STATE 63

Washington State is only averaging 65.8 points per game in regulation, so expect them to try to keep this game as low scoring as possible. That being said, Iowa is more equipped to win lower scoring games and already have done it against Virginia Tech (71-52) and Kansas (71-58). This just isn’t the same Cougars team that has made four consecutive postseason tournaments and the early season numbers reflect that. They rank 212th in 2pt FG%, 185th in 3pt FG%, 261st in defense and 308th in rebounding. Wazzu has some nice players, but the Hawkeyes are the better offensively and defensively. Make it six double digit wins in a row to start the season. IOWA 80 WASHINGTON STATE 60