Rematch with No. 25/24 Iowa Set for Wednesday Night

MINNEAPOLIS - Minnesota (11-13, 4-8 B1G) are headed to Iowa City, Iowa, for a matchup with the Iowa Hawkeyes (15-6, 9-3 B1G) on Wednesday night. The game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena can be streamed on B1G+ and fans can also listen to the game on KFAN+ with Justin Gaard and Lynnette Sjoquist on the call.

ABOUT THIS GAME

Wednesday's matchup with the Hawkeyes is the second time this season the two teams have faced off. On. Jan. 20, Iowa won at Williams Arena 105-49 over the Gophers with Caitlin Clark scoring 35 points while dishing out 11 assists and grabbing 13 rebounds to lead the Hawkeyes to victory.
Renewing its most-played rivalry, Minnesota hosts Iowa Thursday in the 84th meeting between the schools. The Gophers trail in the all-time series 56-27.
The Hawkeyes have won 11 games in a row at Carver-Hawkeye Arena with Minnesota's last win over Iowa in Iowa City coming on Jan. 25, 2007. That game ended in an 80-78 win in overtime with then-sophomore Emily Fox scoring a then-career high of 30 points.
Iowa has one Minnesotans on its roster: senior Monika Czinano from Watertown and Watertown-Mayer High School.
Iowa is 15-6 on the season and 9-3 in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes are 1-2 in their last three games with losses to No. 6/5 Michigan and No. 23/19 Ohio State with the lone win over Wisconsin (84-50) on Feb. 3.
Caitlin Clark is the reigning Big Ten Player of the Week and ESPN National Player of the Week. She scored 38.7 points per game, 9.3 assists per game and 6.3 rebounds in three games last week. This season she leads the Hawkeyes with an average of 27.4 points per game and snags 8.2 boards per game while handing out 8.2 assists per contest. On top of leading the team in scoring and rebounds, Clark leads the country in triple doubles (5).
As a team, Iowa is the No. 1 ranked team in the nation in field goal percentage at 49.7 while also being No. 1 in free throw percentage at 84.9. The Hawkeyes are also in the top five nationally in assists per game at 19.4 and scoring offense at 84.5.

GOPHER NOTABLES

Last time out the Golden Gophers came out with a 11-point win over Michigan State, avenging an earlier 3-point loss to the Spartans earlier this season. Led by Sara Scalia's 24 points, six rebounds and four assists, the Gophers outscored the Spartans by 12 in the second and third quarter to pull off the victory at the Barn. Alexia Smith scored her most points against a Big Ten opponent with 13 off the bench while Deja Winters scored 10 points as well.
Sara Scalia extended her double figures scoring streak to 14 with her performance against Michigan State. Scalia is one of four players in the Big Ten that have active double-figures scoring streaks of at least 14 games. During the streak Scalia has averaged 20.0 points per game and is shooting 45.2 percent from three (56-of-124) and has averaged 4.0 made threes per game. This season Scalia ranks 10th in the Big Ten in scoring average (16.8) and is eighth during Big Ten play at 18.4 points per game.
As a team this season Minnesota has the second-best three-point field goal percentage in the Big Ten at 37.2 which is also good enough for 13th best in the NCAA. On average the Maroon and Gold make 8.5 threes per game, good enough for the 25th best mark in the nation and the third best in the conference. In total the team's 204 made threes is the most in the Big Ten and the 11th most in the country.
Guard Deja Winters has continued to show why she is one of the Big Ten's most impactful grad transfers this season. Averaging 11.3 points per game. Winters also has been the Gophers best on-ball defender this season. Her 22 steals (1.8 per game) during conference play is 10th in the Big Ten this season and her 23 total blocks (1.0 per game) this year are good enough for the 10th most in the conference.
After playing some of her best basketball off the bench, Laura Bagwell Katalinich, a Minneapolis, Minn., native stepped into the starting lineup for the first time against Michigan State (2/6). In her last three games she's averaged 21.0 minutes per game and has been making impact plays all over. During that span she's averaged 8.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists while shooting 47.8 percent from the floor. In two of the last three games she's scored in double figures and played a season-high 27 minutes against Michigan State.
Off the bench Bailey Helgren has bas been picking up her rebounding efforts of late. She 6-5, Edina, Minn., native has averaged 5.4 rebounds per game since Jan. 23, playing an average of 19.4 minutes per game. She made a handful of impact plays in the Gophers' win over Michigan State (2/6), highlighted by her three offensive rebounds and two blocks.
On Dec. 21, head coach Lindsay Whalen was announced as a candidate for the Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022. Whalen, who is eligible for the first time this year, is on the ballot for her time as a player. After a stellar collegiate career where she led the Maroon and Gold to the Final Four, Whalen collected numerous honors and championships in the WNBA and with the U.S. National team. Finalists will be announced Friday, Feb. 18, in Cleveland, Ohio, during the NBA All-Star Weekend.
Minnesota's four signees in the 2022 signing class were all named McDonald's All-America Games nominees last week. Those future Golden Gophers include Mara Braun (Wayzata, Minn.), Amaya Battle (Hopkins, Minn.), Mallory Heyer (Chaska, Minn.) and Niamya Holloway (Eden Prairie, Minn.).

BY THE NUMBERS
204 - At 204 made threes this season the Gophers have now passed the 2016-17 Gophers for the fifth most 3-point field goals made in a single season (since 1987-88).
5 - Gadiva Hubbard moved into fifth place in total minutes played against Michigan State (2/6), passing head coach Lindsay Whalen.
14 - Sara Scalia has scored in double figures in 14 straight games, which is the longest streak of her career.
1 - Minnesota is 9-3 when leading after the first quarter this season, and 2-10 when trailing after the first quarter.
8 - Sara Scalia has scored 11 or more points in a single quarter eight different times this season.
127 - On Wednesday grad student Gadiva Hubbard will move into a tie for fifth in program history for games played at Minnesota at 127, tying her with four others.

Minnesota will have a quick turnaround when Northwestern (13-8, 5-5 B1G) comes to Williams Arena on Friday, Feb. 11, at 3:30 p.m. The game against Northwestern will be broadcast on B1G+ and can be heard on KFAN+.

For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@GopherWBB) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the 2021-22 season.

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Players Mentioned

Laura Bagwell Katalinich

Bailey Helgren

Gadiva Hubbard

Sara Scalia

Alexia Smith

Deja Winters