Women’s Basketball: Can the Hawkeyes put together a complete game to advance to the Sweet 16?

IOWA CITY, IOWA - MARCH 21: Taylor Stremlow #1 of the Iowa Hawkeyes drives the ball to the basket as Reese Downey #25 of the FDU Knights guards during a first round game of the 2026 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament held at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 21, 2026 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Rebecca Gratz/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) | NCAA Photos via Getty Images There’s no question that Ava Heiden did her part on Saturday in No. 2 seed Iowa’s closer than expected 58-48 win over No.

15 seed Fairleigh Dickinson. Her career-high 29 points were at times literally the only offense her team was able to produce. Hannah Stuelke did her part as well, adding 13 points and 16 rebounds, and that was pretty much it for the Hawkeye offense.

That won’t fly on Monday if the Hawkeyes hope to advance to the Sweet 16, and it will start with guard play. All of Iowa’s starting guards, but particularly Taylor Stremlow and Chit Chat Wright, have had moments of sheer brilliance and sheer disappointment throughout the season when it comes to offensive outputs. Neither are ever a complete net-negative, but in a year when the rotation has only gotten smaller as the calendar has progressed, scoring contributions from your starting lineup become even more crucial than normal.

When the shots are falling for Iowa’s guards, it makes the team nearly impossible to stop. Take a look at one of Iowa’s best games of the year, the 80-67 road win at Nebraska. Ava Heiden once again led all scorers with 27, but it was supplemented with double digit performances from Stremlow, Wright, and Journey Houston off the bench.