We have a basketball schedule! On Thursday afternoon, the Hawkeyes announced their full non-conference slate for the upcoming season, including an exhibition matchup against DII Ashland College set for October 30th in Iowa City. In her first year as head coach last season, Jan Jensen guided Iowa to a 23-11 finish, including a win over Murray State in the NCAA Tournament.
The non-conference portion of the schedule includes five teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season, while four more teams appeared in the WBIT and WNIT postseason tournaments. HawkeyeReport takes a look at the non-conference opponents for Jan Jensen’s squad and ranks them from easiest to toughest.
11. vs Evansville Purple Aces (November 9th)
This will be the fourth all-time meeting between the Hawkeyes and Purple Aces, with Iowa leading the series 3-0, including a 115-62 win back in 2023. It will be the return of former Hawkeye guard Molly Davis to Iowa City, as she is a member of the Evansville staff as a grad assistant. In terms of this matchup, Iowa should not have much trouble, as the Aces went 7-25 last season, including a 3-17 mark in MVC play. They do return guard Camryn Runner who averaged 15.5 points per game last season as a freshman.
10. vs Southern Jaguars (November 3rd)
This will be the fourth all-time meeting between the Hawkeyes and Jaguars, with Iowa leading the series 3-0, including an 87-34 win back in the 2022 season-opener. Southern finished with a 21-15 record last season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament after winning the SWAC Tournament. They defeated UC San Diego in the First Four, before falling to top-seeded UCLA. The Jags have not announced a 2025-26 roster, but their top four scorers were seniors, so it’s a good bet they will look a bit different this year.
9. vs Western Illinois Leathernecks (November 26th)
This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the Hawkeyes and Leathernecks, with Iowa leading the series 9-2, including a 92-65 win back in 2021. Caitlin Clark recorded her first of 17 career triple-doubles in that contest. Last season, Western Illinois finished with a 15-17 record and posted an 8-12 record in OVC play but earned a bid to the WNIT where they fell in the second round to Illinois State. The Leathernecks are set to return two All-OVC selections, led by OVC Player of the Year candidate Raegan McCowan who averaged 22.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game last season.
8. vs Lindenwood Lions (December 13th)
This will be the first all-time meeting between the two sides, as the Lions are in just their fourth season at the DI level after transitioning from DII back in 2022. Iowa has an 11-2 all-time record against Ohio Valley opponents. The Lions finished last season with a 23-11 overall record and made their first ever postseason appearance, advancing to the Super 16 round of the WNIT. They return a pair of All-OVC selections, led by First Team guard Ellie Brueggemann who averaged 12.0 points per game and knocked down 71 three-pointers.
7. at Northern Iowa Panthers (November 16th)
The first of three in-state rivalries on the schedule, this will be the 31st meeting in the series, with Iowa winning five in a row by 19.4 points per game. Last year’s meeting was a tight one, with the Hawkeyes sneaking out a 92-86 win in Iowa City. The Panthers finished last season with a 16-17 record, including a loss to Florida in the WBIT. They lost four of six players that started 10+ games and must replace star scorer Maya McDermott, so head coach Tanya Warren has her work cut out for her this season. This game would rank lower even lower if it was in Iowa City.
6. vs Drake Bulldogs (November 13th)
The Hawkeyes and Bulldogs will meet for the 57th time this season, with Iowa winning each of the past seven meetings. That being said, this rivalry has delivered some good games as of late, with three of the last six being decided by less than ten points. Drake finished with a 22-12 record last season, but they fell short against Murray State in the MVC semis and then lost to Marquette in the WBIT. It appears to be a rebuilding year in Des Moines, as the Bulldogs lost their top three scorers, including MVC Player of the Year Katie Dinnebier.
There are several better games on this non-conference slate, but this is where things start to heat up. Do not sleep on the Stags. Fairfield is 59-7 over the past two seasons and have made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances out of the MAAC. They’ll be heavy favorites to make it a three-peat, as they return last season’s MAAC Preseason Player of the Year, Janelle Brown who was lost for the season after eight games, as well as a pair of All-MAAC selections, including First Team forward Meghan Andersen. They beat Arkansas and took #24 Oklahoma State to the wire in Stillwater last season. This has ’21 IUPUI potential if Iowa isn’t careful.
4. vs Miami FL Hurricanes (WBCA Showcase) (November 22nd)
This will be the third consecutive meeting between the Hawkeyes and Hurricanes that comes in a tournament setting, although the last two came in the NCAA Tournament (’13 and ’15). Iowa won both of those meetings and is 4-0 all-time against the ‘Canes. Miami FL finished last season with a 14-15 record, but throw that all out the window, as they brought in seven players from the transfer portal, led by MAAC Player of the Year guard Gal Raviv from Quinnipiac and Florida center Ra Shaya Kyle. Really hard to get a gauge on this ‘Canes team, but this should be a decent game.
3. vs Baylor Bears (WBCA Showcase) (November 20th)
This will be just the third all-time meeting between the Hawkeyes and Bears, while it will be the first time two sides meet outside of the NCAA Tournament. It could very well end up being a ranked matchup if Iowa can get off to a 4-0 start, as Baylor is going to be a preseason ranked team. The Bears finished last season with a 28-8 record, including a 15-3 mark in Big 12 play, but lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Ole Miss. They return two starts, led by First Team All-Big 12 guard Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, while they brought in three transfers that averaged double figures at their previous stops.
2. at Iowa State Cyclones (December 10th)
The Hawkeyes have really dominated this series, winning eight of the last nine meetings, despite the Cyclones making the NCAA Tournament in seven of those seasons. This one will be at Hilton Coliseum, after Iowa won 75-69 in Iowa City last season. Iowa State did not live up to their preseason expectations, sneaking into the NCAA Tournament as one of the Last Four In and finishing with a 23-12 record. They return plenty of talent, led by All-Big 12 center Audi Crooks and All-Big 12 forward Addy Brown.
1. vs Connecticut Huskies (Women’s Champions Classic) (December 20th)
This is by far and away the toughest game on the Hawkeyes non-conference schedule, as the Huskies are the reigning national champions. Although Paige Bueckers now plays with the Dallas Wings in the WNBA, big departures never seem to matter when it comes to UConn, as they have made the Final Four in 16 of the last 17 seasons that a tournament has been held. They finished with a 37-3 record, defeating South Carolina by 23 points in the championship game. This will be another elite UConn squad, with Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd back, while they added Wisconsin forward Serah Williams and USC guard Kayleigh Heckel from the portal. Iowa could be an underdog in up to three non-conference games, but this is the only one where they will decidedly the underdog.
