Maryland women’s basketball vs. Iowa preview: Terps look to remain unbeaten in the Big Ten

After a narrow win against Penn State, Maryland women’s basketball heads to Iowa looking to improve to 5-0 in Big Ten play.

The Terps looked impressive in wins over Nebraska and Northwestern, but did not look as sharp against the Nittany Lions, turning the ball over 21 times and failing to put Penn State away late. Brionna Jones continued her dominant run by scoring 42 points to tie the Maryland record for most points in a game. She also had 14 rebounds and became the fifth Terp to grab 1,000 career rebounds.

Jones was also named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 this week along with fellow senior Shatori Walker-Kimbrough.

Iowa comes into the matchup with an 11-6 record, with their most recent game being a 78-58 win over Illinois on Wednesday, avenging a Dec. 28 loss to the Illini. The Hawkeyes also beat Nebraska, a team Maryland beat by 44, by only three points.

Iowa Hawkeyes (11-6, 2-2 Big Ten)

2015-16 record: 19-14, 8-10

Head coach: Lisa Bluder has a 334-194 record in 17 seasons at Iowa. She’s the winningest coach in program history, and has led the Hawkeyes to 12 NCAA tournament appearances. She previously spent 10 seasons at Drake and six seasons at NAIA St. Ambrose University.

Players to know

Megan Gustafson, sophomore, forward, 6’3’, No. 10. Gustafson leads the Hawkeyes in points (17.6) and rebounds (10.2) per game, and her .665 field goal percentage is second in the Big Ten behind only Jones. She was named to the Big Ten Freshman Team last season.

Ally Disterhoft, senior, guard, 6’0, No. 2. The hometown product ranks second on the team with 16.3 points per game and first on the team in three-point shooting at 39.3 percent. Her 1,819 career points are fifth all-time in program history.

Tania Davis, sophomore, guard, 5’3, No. 11. Also a member of last year’s Big Ten Freshman Team, she leads the Hawkeyes with 4.1 assists per game and an 86.7 free throw percentage to go along with 9.7 points per game.

Kathleen Doyle, freshman, guard, 5’9, No. 22. A top-100 recruit, Doyle is averaging 8.1 points and a team-leading 2.1 steals per game.

Strength

Shooting. The Hawkeyes’ .471 field goal percentage ranks 13th in the country. Gustafson and Disterhoft both shoot over 50 percent, and could be tough matchups for Maryland.

Weakness

Turnovers. Iowa averages 17.2 turnovers a game, which is the fourth-most in the Big Ten. This could be a problem against the Terps, who force almost 20 turnovers a game.

Prediction

Maryland wins, 84-68.