The Hoosiers have struggled this year, but they've won three of the last five meetings against the Hawkeyes.
Assembly Hall is famous for being the host of the legendary Indiana men's basketball team, but its women's team has been the more prestigious program in recent years.
The Hoosiers reached the NCAA tournament just four times in their history prior to the 2014-15 season, but that year marked the arrival of coach Teri Moren. It took a few seasons, but Moren soon had Indiana back in the Dance in 2016, and they've played in every NCAA tournament since 2019 (would've made it in 2020 as well), reaching the second weekend three times.
The early indication is that 2025-26 appears to be a down year for the Hoosiers (11-6, 0-5), but it's still early January. Plenty of opportunities to build an NCAA tournament resume remain, but Jan Jensen and the No. 14 Hawkeyes (13-2, 4-0) are hoping Indiana puts that quest on hold for a game.
Sunday's matchup in Bloomington (4 p.m CST, BTN) will be the 79th all-time meeting between the two programs. Iowa holds a comfortable 54-24 edge in the series, but Indiana has won three of the last five meetings, including the last two at Assembly Hall. While many of the other Big Ten programs struggled to beat Caitlin Clark during her historic career, Indiana knocked her off four times - twice at home.
The Hoosiers' program trajectory has taken a downward angle since then, but any Moren-coached team shouldn't be taken lightly. If Indiana finishes with a winning record this season, it could be Moren's best coaching job yet. The Hoosiers were picked apart by the transfer portal in the offseason, losing nine players.
The new-look roster has struggled to adjust to high-major competition so far. Indiana's only wins against Power Five teams were Butler (7-9) and Florida State (5-11), and its struggled to even compete with the rest of the Big Ten so far, losing their four league games by over 20 points each, including a 71-48 home loss to Minnesota on Dec. 29.
Much of the Hoosiers' scoring load has been placed on senior guard Shay Ciezki. She has delivered, increasing her scoring average from 11.8 to 22.8 points per game this year. The lack of talent around the 5-foot-7 Ciezki has made her efforts all for naught, but defending the 44 percent three-point shooter will be crucial for Iowa to avoid the upset.
Another name to watch on this Indiana squad is sophomore Zania Socka-Nguemen. The 6-foot-3 forward struggled to earn playing time on UCLA's Final Four team last season, and the move to Bloomington has paid off for her. Socka-Nguemen leads the Hoosiers with 8.3 boards per contest, and the inside presence has helped take the pressure off Ciezki.
Indiana has struggled to score the basketball as a team this year, recording 72.3 points per game (13th in Big Ten). The Hoosiers have shined on defense, however, holding opponents to just 65.6 points per contest.
PREDICTION: Iowa 71, Indiana 62
I expect Indiana to put up a valiant fight on its home floor, but Iowa just has too many weapons. Ava Heiden will pick up right where she left off against Northwestern, and Taylor McCabe will light up the nets from outside. Give me the well-rested Hawkeyes to get a much-needed morale boost after struggling in Evanston on Monday night.
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