One Big Win, More Than One Big Loss
Iowa's victory in Charlotte saves the Big Ten from a fully lackluster start
Week one has come and gone, and the women’s college basketball landscape has already turned into full-blown chaos.
Outside of the Big Ten, LSU was downed by Colorado (this upset was Hoopla Approved™️), South Carolina beat a top 10 Notre Dame team by 29, unranked NC State beat UConn, etc. etc. etc. As the talent continues to grow nation-wide, the parity in women’s college basketball is only going to grow, which is a wonderful thing for this wonderful sport.
But we do focus on a certain conference around these parts, and while there was plenty of good things to take from the Big Ten’s first week, the net feeling was in the red.
The Big Ten went 21-6 in week one, with four of those losses coming against ranked opponents. A 1-4 record against the AP Top 25 is not ideal, especially when four of those games also included a ranked Big Ten team on the other side.
We will get to the defeats, but this Hoopla is going for a “compliment sandwich” approach, so I want to focus on that one victory first.
Clark Leads Statement Iowa Win
In my home city of Charlotte, North Carolina, 15,196 people were in attendance for a top 10 matchup between Iowa and Virginia Tech.
No matter what the outcome of the game ended up being, this was an immediate win for both me and the sport. These teams filled the vast majority of the Spectrum Center, with plenty of fans on both sides. It was *loud* from start to finish, and it was an absolute delight to be there.
Of course, I also saw the result: an 80-76 Iowa victory that showed me a lot in how the Hawkeyes can beat big-time opponents. It also showed me what Iowa will likely need to do to get back, and win, the national championship this time around.
The highlight here was, unsurprisingly, Caitlin Clark. She scrapped her way to 44 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. And when I say she scrapped those out, I do mean it.
This was not Clark’s most efficient performance (13 of 31, 5 of 16 from three), but it was clear early on that she needed to lead this offense more than expected, and she took over by driving to the hoop and forcing the contact (13 of 17 on free throws).
I was so impressed by Clark here past the inefficient night, because she did exactly what Iowa needed her to in order to survive the lethal Virginia Tech offense. After the first quarter, outside of 8 big points by Hannah Stuelke (more on her later), non-Clark Iowa players were 0 of 8 from the field. The nerves may have played a part, but regardless it had to become an even more Clark-heavy offense than normal.
Is that sustainable for a full season? Likely not, but it was on Thursday night. Clark got those 44 points, and she did so with only one turnover, a significant sign of growth from previous seasons. Her duel with Hokies guard Georgia Amoore (career-high 31 points) was delightful to watch, but it was the Hawkeyes who left the Queen City with the victory.
Outside of Clark, I thought three Iowa players did step up in a big way to help seal this win:
The previously mentioned Hannah Stuelke was excellent every time she was on the floor, and looked significantly more confident than she did a season ago. Her 12 points in 17 minutes were huge, but she did foul out and will need to work on being able to stay on the floor as the season progresses.
Sydney Affolter had just 2 points, but made her impact defensively and on the glass, ending the night with a team-high 14 rebounds. She also added two steals and was generally a great impact player off the bench.
Finally, Kylie Feuerbach was a spark plug with 8 points in 17 minutes, and should continue to get these opportunities all season. She played with great energy and had one of the highlights of the game, a nasty pump fake three that dropped the defender.
Iowa beat the No. 7 team in the country in a neutral-site game, and the Hawkeyes did it with Clark having a below-average shooting day and without all-around great performances. They won two other games this week in convincing fashion and was ranked second in today’s AP poll. Hoopla’s No. 1 preseason team played like it in week one.
The Big Losses
Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Ohio State were all ranked opponents heading into the first week of the season. All four lost. Two losses were not close and one was to an unranked opponent.
If one of these matchups swings the other way, it’s probably a mediocre, but acceptable start for the upper echelon of the conference. But having four of the five ranked teams lose in the first week is a not-great look for the conference.
Ohio State-USC
The Buckeyes had significant preseason hype, including various No. 1 seed projections, and started the year with a neutral site matchup against the Trojans, who Ohio State will see more of in the Big Ten starting next year.
This was a very odd game, and the Buckeyes looked like the better team for about half of it. They won the first quarter 18-15 and the third quarter 30-10, the latter of which being extremely necessary because Ohio State was outscored 31-10 in the second. Then, even after coming all the way back to lead entering the final quarter, the Buckeyes fell flat, losing the fourth 27-16 and the game 83-74.
USC won this game by shooting 60 percent from inside the arc and because of true freshman sensation JuJu Watkins, who dropped 32 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists in her first ever collegiate game.
Watkins was spectacular, and I was impressed with how USC worked its offense around her, but Ohio State also had areas it will need to improve to reach the heights it is hoping for. The Buckeyes started the game settling for a variety of bad looks from the mid-range and three, something not considered an area of expertise without Taylor Mikesell on this roster.
When those shots aren’t falling, the Buckeyes can’t properly use their press defense, and the results can spiral. On the other end, when shots do start falling, the press ramps up, which is why you can get 10-31, then 30-10 quarters in succession.
But this Buckeyes roster is too talented to go through that significant of a lapse as they did in the second quarter, and I expect they will be better at avoiding these as the season moves forward. Cotie McMahon (3 of 11) and Celeste Taylor (1 of 8) combined to shoot 4 for 19 here, which I don’t see happening often.
Final note, and a positive one: Jacy Sheldon was spectacular in this game. She had 28 points and 5 steals on 10-of-19 shooting, and was the engine that kept Ohio State in striking range late. The Buckeyes followed this game with a thumping of IUPUI, and gets some intriguing battles before facing Tennessee in December.
Concern Level: 5/10
Illinois-Marquette
In the Big Ten’s lone Friday game, Illinois suffered its first loss of the season, falling 71-67 to Marquette in a game that went wire to wire. On the surface, this is a tough loss for the No. 23 team in the country, but the Golden Eagles should be a solid team, and the Illini were without star Makira Cook, who missed both games this week.
Do I think Cook makes Illinois at least five points better? I do. That said, I was hoping to see Genesis Bryant step up the same ways she did in the Illini’s opening win (32 points, 12-16 FG). But Bryant struggled with 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting, with Illinois’ interior threats of Kendall Bostic (14 points) and Camille Hobby (18) instead leading the way.
I haven’t found any updates on the extent of Cook’s absence, so I’ll hope this is more precaution and nothing long term until proven otherwise. This Illini team is still plenty talented to win games without her, but that context makes the road Marquette defeat pretty forgivable.
Concern Level: 2/10 | Concern Level If Cook Misses Extended Time: 7.5/10
Maryland-South Carolina
This Elite Eight rematch was one I thought the Terps had a real chance of winning when I wrote last week’s Hoopla. By the time the Gamecocks beat Notre Dame by 29, I grew concerned, and by the end of South Carolina’s 114-76 win over Maryland, I had more thoughts on how good Dawn Staley’s team is compared to how outmatched the Terps were.
South Carolina is playing like the No. 1 team in the country once again, this time with more balanced scoring to strike fear in even the best of early opponents. Maryland matched the Gamecocks in the first quarter, but went down 12 at half and never could catch up. The score looks worse because of a 37-17 fourth quarter when the game was basically in the balance, but that’s what happens when your “garbage time unit” is a stack of five-stars.
The Gamecocks had a team-high scorer of 14 points. Seven players scored 12+ points. To have that level of balance is unreal. I think Maryland will be fine — I was still impressed with Shyanne Sellers (22 points) and the Terps looked great earlier in the week. This week’s matchup with UConn might be a better gauge compared to what might be yet another Staley Death Star.
Concern Level: 2.5/10
Indiana-Stanford
Unfortunately, the big-time Big Ten losses concluded with what ended up being the most concerning of outcomes.
Indiana, last year’s Big Ten regular season champion and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, got a great early prove-it matchup on the road against Stanford. And the Hoosiers got beaten into a pulp.
It took just over five minutes for Indiana to be down double digits, and by halftime it was over: 54-26 Cardinal lead. The final score of 96-64 felt accurate to what I had watched.
Early on, Stanford got the advantage simply by capitalizing more consistently. Both teams had decent looks from the perimeter, but the Cardinal were the only ones hitting. Stanford shot 6 of 12 from three in the first quarter, while Indiana shot 1 of 9.
The Hoosiers were 9 of 30 from the floor and 2 of 17 from deep in the first half. That is 30 percent and 11.8 percent, respectively.
This matchup excited me primarily for one reason in particular: Mackenzie Holmes vs. Cameron Brink. While Brink dominated Holmes on the attack with 20 points and 17 rebounds, she was potentially even more dominant slowing down the Hoosiers star. Brink had five blocks total, and Holmes had zero points and zero rebounds at half. She ended with 8 points on 3-of-12 shooting. It was her worst shooting performance since shooting…. 3 of 12 against Stanford in 2021.
This was not all on Holmes, as the Indiana offense failed to get her involved early. Sara Scalia and Sydney Parrish paced the team with 15 points each, but neither were particularly efficient getting there.
This was not a game that included a real positive takeaway. Freshman Lenée Beaumont’s 9 points on 4-of-5 shooting in 11 minutes would be the one if I were to choose. But all this being said, it is early November, and the season has just started. Indiana should be a much better team than it showed on Sunday.
Concern Level: 8/10
Around The Big Ten
Those losses were the major Week One takeaway, but that doesn't mean it was all bad in the Big Ten by any means. Here are some other quick hitters that I noticed throughout the conference:
Nebraska’s 2-0 start, highlighted by a strong 71-52 road win over Wyoming. That’s a win the Cornhuskers should get, but a 19-point road victory is worth celebrating. Of note: True freshman Natalie Potts has gotten both starts and is averaging 12.5 PPG on 78.6-percent shooting thus far.
Mara Braun (Minnesota) and DeeDee Hagemann (Michigan State) agendas are off to the races. Both were the stars in their teams’ 2-0 starts, and are second and third in the conference in player win shares early on (behind Clark). Braun is averaging 25 PPG and 5 APG on 58.1-percent shooting, while Hagemann is at 20 PPG, 6.5 APG and 68.2-percent shooting. I had high hopes for both guards, and so far, so good.
Penn State has scored 201 points over two wins, and did so without Ashley Owusu entering the picture yet. Owusu was questionable against Navy, so she should be back soon, and I’m excited to see how the Nittany Lions offense can reach a second level when that happens.
A few too-early wild stat lines for players with multiple games played:
Caroline Lau (Northwestern, 2 GP): 13.5 PPG, 13.5 APG
Ronnie Porter (Wisconsin, 2 GP): 9.5 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 4.5 SPG
Destiny Adams (Rutgers, 3 GP): 11.3 PPG, 12.3 RPG, 3.3 SPG
What To Watch
More games than normal for you here, because a lot is interesting early on and a lot of Big Ten teams face the same non-conference opponents somehow, so we will get intriguing comparisons.
Penn State vs. Kansas, 11/13 (Monday), 6 p.m., BTN
Penn State’s first big test with this roster, hopefully with Owusu added into the fray.
Wisconsin vs. South Dakota State, 11/14 (Tuesday), 7:30 p.m., B1G+
The Badgers get one of the best mid-major programs at home for a chance to prove that this team can reach new heights.
Notre Dame Games
Northwestern at Notre Dame, 11/15 (Wednesday), 7 p.m., ACC Network
Illinois vs. Notre Dame, 11/18 (Saturday), 1 p.m., NBC
The Wildcats will be heavy underdogs here, but it will be interesting to see how the roster matches up with the threats the Fighting Irish have to offer.
On the other end, Illinois battles the Irish in Washington DC with a real chance to make some noise. If Cook is back, I think the Illini could surprise people here.
Rutgers at Seton Hall, 11/15 (Wednesday), 7 p.m., FloHoops
The Scarlet Knights fell to Auburn in a game that was closer than the final score would say. An in-state matchup against a solid Seton Hall team is a good bounce-back opportunity.
UConn Games
Maryland at UConn, 11/16 (Thursday), 6:30 p.m., FS1
Minnesota vs. UConn, 11/19 (Sunday), 5 p.m., FS1
Maryland gets another crack at an elite opponent, as does UConn. Both need this win bad, and it should make for an electric matchup.
Paige Bueckers will get to play in her home state here, and I want to see how Braun and co. hold up to the challenge. This is a young team that can learn a lot from a game like this.
Kansas State Games
Iowa vs. Kansas State, 11/16 (Thursday), 8:30 p.m., FS1
Wisconsin at Kansas State, 11/19 (Sunday), 5 p.m., ESPN+
How Iowa deals with Ayoka Lee inside will be fascinating. The Hawkeyes correctly limited Elizabeth Kitley against Tech, but Lee is a different type of challenge. Still, Iowa has so many weapons and should avenge the defeat from last season.
Funny enough, Wisconsin’s setup is more suited to deal with Kansas State than Iowa, and Serah Williams has a chance to prove herself against one of the nation’s best post players.
Michigan in the Bahamas
vs. Middle Tennessee, 11/18 (Saturday), 5 p.m., FloHoops
vs. South Dakota/DePaul, 11/19 (Sunday), TBA
The Wolverines only played once last week, but gets some exciting matchups in a tournament setting to see where they really stand.
Feature Photo Credit: Iowa Athletics
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