/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68923570/1303878590.0.jpg)
The Iowa Hawkeyes (14-8; 10-8 Big Ten) will take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers (11-10; 9-9 Big Ten) on Saturday night at 8 p.m. ET in what will be the final regular-season game for both teams. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network Plus streaming service.
The last time the Hawkeyes and Cornhuskers met, it was a high-scoring affair (as Iowa games tend to be), with the Hawkeyes prevailing 88-81 on Feb. 11. Freshman sensation Caitlin Clark, who is a finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award and is a frontrunner for National Freshman of the Year, recorded 39 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists for the Hawkeyes — one of ten 30-point efforts for Clark on the season.
Y'all... what more can we say? @CaitlinClark22 | #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/xBlHBv8DPB
— Iowa Women's BBall (@IowaWBB) February 12, 2021
Clark will need to put up big numbers once again to keep Iowa in consideration for the NCAA Tournament. The Hawkeyes are currently projected to be a No. 8 seed by ESPN’s Charlie Creme, and while it’s unlikely that a loss to Nebraska would drop them out completely, it’s the time of year when every game counts and a letdown could mean the difference between tournament entry or denial.
For Nebraska, the stakes don’t seem as high. The Cornhuskers sit at 9-9 in conference play and while they have wins over Northwestern, Rutgers, Michigan State and Ohio State on their resume, they don’t have much of a non-conference case, and aren’t projected by Creme to be an NCAA Tournament team.
Perhaps a big victory over Iowa could put Nebraska “on the bubble” of the NCAA Tournament, but Saturday’s game will more realistically be used as a Big Ten Tournament measuring stick, for which seeding has yet to be decided. Incidentally, Nebraska (No. 9 seed) currently ranks just behind Iowa (No. 8 seed) in the Big Ten standings, so if those are any indicator, we’ll be in for one more competitive game to finish up regular-season play on Saturday.
Game Information
Iowa Hawkeyes (14-8; 10-8 Big Ten) vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers (11-10; 9-9 Big Ten)
When: Saturday, March 5, at 8 p.m. ET
Where: Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, IA
How to watch: Big Ten Network Plus/Radio: Husker Sports Network or Nebraska’s athletics site or TuneIn (Nebraska)
Keys to the matchup: Stopping Clark has proven to be futile for the majority of Big Ten teams this season, but outscoring her as a team has had better results: Iowa ranks dead last in Division I in points allowed per game (81.3), a stark contrast to their offensive ranking (87.6 points scored per game; second in Division I). Winning a shootout behind Sam Haiby (28 points vs. Iowa on Feb. 11) may be Nebraska’s best strategy, save for a rare off-night from Clark, but the Cornhuskers will need an answer for Iowa’s Monika Czinano as well; the Hawkeyes center is currently scoring 18.8 points per game on 66.8 percent shooting.