Iowa Women's Basketball: Perimeter Preview

We begin our two-part Iowa women’s basketball preview with a look at the Hawkeye perimeter group — the point guard, shooting guard, and small forward positions. There’s a good bit of turnover from last season, including losing their top scorer to the WNBA, but the mix of veteran returnees and talented young players has the fanbase excited for what’s to come. Before we dive into individual player breakdowns, we’ll start with a look at who departed and who returns.

Overview

Iowa’s perimeter rotation will look noticeably different this season, with key departures and new faces stepping into expanded roles. The most significant loss, no doubt, is Lucy Olsen, who led the team in scoring (17.9 ppg) during her lone season in Iowa City after transferring from Villanova. The other major departure was team captain and small forward Syd Affolter (8.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg), though she remains with the program as a grad assistant. Meanwhile, point guard Aaliyah Guyton (4.7 ppg, 16.3 mpg) opted to transfer to Illinois after spending just one season in black and gold.

Set to return just one full-time starter, Jan Jensen and her staff turned to the transfer portal for reinforcements, landing Georgia Tech point guard Chit-Chat Wright and UCF small forward Emely Rodriguez. They’ll join a perimeter group that brings back sixth-year senior Kylie Feuerbach, senior Taylor McCabe, and sophomore Taylor Stremlow, while five-star freshman Addie Deal could crack into the starting five as a true freshman.

Calculating the percentage of returning minutes, points, and starts used to be straightforward. However, in the age of the transfer portal, it only makes sense to fold incoming production into the equation — especially when evaluating a roster that has made notable transfer acquisitions. With that in mind, the Hawkeyes have 78.0% of last season’s minutes, 84.5% of starts, 74.5% of scoring and 73.5% of made threes accounted for on the current roster.

So, with that, let’s dive into the group and take a deeper look at the Hawkeyes perimeter players…

Projected Starters

PG Chit-Chat Wright (Soph)

2024 Numbers (Ga Tech): 7.2 PPG, 2.6 AST, 25.3 MPG – 37.1% FG, 32.3% 3PT, 88.6% FT

Number to Know (2.21): The Hawkeyes were 181st in turnovers last season, giving it away 20+ times in eight games. As a true freshman at Georgia Tech a year ago, Chit-Chat posted a 2.21 assist-to-turnover ratio, which ranked second-best amongst 169 true freshmen that played 600+ minutes. She was seventh at GT in usage rate last season (15.8%), which almost certainly set to go up this year, but just five Big Ten guards last season had a usage rate above 18.0% and still managed a 2.0+ assist-to-turnover ratio. It would be a huge boost to the Iowa offense is she could do something close to that benchmark.

Quote from Assistant Abby Stamp: “The way she passes the ball and the way she moves the ball in transition — Last year, played a little slower than we would have liked to play. We want to get back to where 20-22% of our scores are coming from transition, so Chit-Chat helps us with that. She’s a great full-court passer. She’s also very quick. She can really get herself into the paint and make really good decisions from there.”

“The only reason she’s not necessarily a primary scorer right now is because she just doesn’t have that attitude, and we haven’t really needed to demand that from her. She can shoot the ball off the ball screen really, really well. She’s got deep range on her three, like I mentioned, she can get to the paint, and she’s smart about where she can finish and when she can finish…She’s going to be just fine when it comes to scoring, nobody is going to be able to help off of her. It’s not a situation like that at all. She’s just not going to probably look (to score) as much as people are used to from our point guards.”

Season Outlook: The Hawkeyes have been graced with having some pretty prolific scorers play the point guard position over the past decade. In fact, you have to go back to the 2018-19 season to find the last time that an Iowa point guard averaged less than 15.0 points per game. Kathleen Doyle averaged 12.0 per game and the Hawkeyes went 29-7, with an Elite Eight appearance.

Chit-Chat is, as Jan Jensen said, a capital letters, pass first point guard. She’s an incredibly smart passer, averaging just 1.87 turnovers per 40 minutes and likes to get out in transition, which will be fun to watch with Hannah Stuelke and Ava Heiden as running mates. Her willingness to pass fits perfectly in an Iowa offense that values the assist as much as any program.

Her scoring ability isn’t talked about as much and it’s because she was fifth in shot attempts at GT, averaging just 6.7 attempts per game. She’s a capable shooter from three-point range, knocking down 43 triples last season, including some deep range, with 19 of them coming from 25+ feet. Standing at 5’4, she’s not going to light it up with baskets in the paint, but she’s quick and can finish at some odd angles like we saw when Molly Davis was on the roster.

I’m excited to see Chit-Chat take on an expanded role with more freedom to operate. She put up good numbers as a true freshman in the ACC, despite ranking 232nd in usage rate amongst high-major players that played at least 60% of minutes. If Jan Jensen can get her to be more aggressive and hunt her shot more, I really like the potential Wright possesses.

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SG Kylie Feuerbach (6th)

2024 Numbers: 6.7 PPG, 2.1 REB, 2.3 AST, 1.3 STL, 25.4 MPG – 38.0% FG, 29.9% 3PT, 75.5% FT

Number to Know (3.56): On the short list for the Big Ten All-Defensive Team, Kylie Feuerbach is the best defender in the conference that no one gives credit to. There’s no statistic that properly encapsulates the impact a player makes on the defensive end, but anyone with eyes could tell you she was an obvious snub from last year’s All-Defensive Team. No one in the country averaged more offensive fouls drawn per game (1.0), while she tacked on 43 steals, averaging 3.56 steals/charges drawn per 40 minutes.

Quote from Assistant Abby Stamp: “We’ve talked about consistency with her three-point shot, and that’s something that she’s trying to work on. Is it physical? Is it mental? Whatever it is, she’s worked pretty hard on that through the summer, utilizing some of our different resources.”

“She’s really finishing well around the rim. She’s playing off of two feet, going up into the contact a little bit more. Kylie’s always had great quickness, but after that injury it is a little hard to get her to go from that speed to slow to be able to finish. She’s been able to slash, get to the rim and score.”

“I talked to her the other day and told her that we need her to be irreplaceable on the defense end. There’s not a single other player on this team that has the size, the speed, the length, and the experience to do what she does on the defensive end. There’s nobody in the league, in my opinion, that is better and more versatile with who they can guard.”

Season Outlook: As previously stated, there aren’t any statistics that can properly explain how good of a defender Kylie Feuerbach is. She’s not one to rack up a mountain of steals, instead, she’s the type of defender that’s going to be in your pocket on every possession forcing you to take tough shots. Does Iowa beat USC if Kylie doesn’t fluster JuJu Watkins early in the game? No. Does Iowa win on the road at Michigan if Kylie didn’t help hold Olivia Olson to a season-low six points? Maybe, but certainly not by 13 points. She’s arguably the best guard defender in the Big Ten and that’s a huge weapon to have when putting together a defensive gameplan.

Offensively, Feuerbach notched career-highs in points per game (6.7), made field goals (76), made threes (38) and assists (78). She also saw her assist rate skyrocket from 8.1% in ’23 to 15.2% in ’24, which was a welcome sight. Kylie got in a better offensive rhythm the second half of the season, but still only shot 29.9% from three-point range. Best case scenario, her offseason work pays off and she’s able to hit 45+ threes, tally 90+ assists and is able to be a consistent complementary offensive option alongside some of the other projected main scorers.

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CG Addie Deal (Fr)

2024 Numbers (Mater Dei HS): 19.9 PPG, 7.0 REB, 5.9 AST, 3.4 STL

Number to Know (9.2): The last non-Caitlin Clark true freshman to start for the Hawkeyes, Kathleen Doyle averaged 9.2 points per game during her freshman season. It’s also worth noting that nine Big Ten freshman averaged 9.0+ points per game last season. The Hawkeyes will need Deal to contribute some three-point shooting, but she can score at all three levels. Some other notable stats from Doyle’s freshman year, 4.4 assists, 8.6 shot attempts and 2.6 rebounds per game, while knocking down 22 three-pointers. Matching Doyle’s assist numbers is probably not going to happen, but everything else is attainable, while the 22 made threes is a mark she’s capable of eclipsing.

Quote from Assistant Abby Stamp: “She’s certainly going to be a piece (this year). We don’t exactly know what that’s going to look like, but she’s certainly going to play minutes at the guard positions, both the one (PG) and the two (SG), and try to work her in wherever we can.”

“She’s really, really high IQ, a great shooter. We’ve got to get her up to speed, Big Ten level defensively, but that’s always the case with freshman. It’s a whole new world when you start to get into some of the pace, speed and the schemes that people do as well. She’s still learning, taking a lot in. We’ve got to get to that point where she can really unleash and play and that certainly will be happening here in the next couple weeks.”

“She’s pretty versatile, so is Kylie and Taylor Stremlow also. A lot of times, when they’re freshman, we try to keep them to a couple positions versus overloading their brain. She’s somebody in the future I can definitely see being able to play quite a few positions while on the floor.”

Season Outlook: Ever since Addie Deal announced her commitment back in March of 2024, the fanbase has slowly been building excitement for her eventual debut with the Hawkeyes. Now, that debut is less than ten days away. Everything we’ve heard through the summer, and fall suggests her maturity and willingness to learn is well beyond that of a normal freshman. She’s been in the spotlight as a five-star recruit, playing at a number of high-level events, including the McDonald’s All-American Game. Because of that, I don’t expect the pressure and stakes of college basketball to bother her.

How quickly she adjusts to the speed and physicality of the college game will determine her minutes load and offensive role. It’s clear she’s put in work in the weight room — both in high school and since arriving on campus — because she fits right in from a size and strength standpoint.

Her skillset doesn’t have many holes, so it’s just a matter of getting comfortable within the offense. She is a capable scorer at all three levels, including a good feel for when to attack the basket and when to pull up for a midrange jumper, which isn’t always something that a freshman excels with. In addition to her skills as a scorer, Addie has great court vision and has always been described as a gifted passer, evidenced by the fact that she averaged nearly 6.0 assists per game as a senior at Mater Dei.

Every single freshman is a different case. Each one adjusts to the college game, finds their role within the offense and gains confidence at a different rate. That being said, true freshman have had success in the Big Ten the last couple of seasons, including Mara Braun (15.6 ppg), Olivia Olson (16.3 ppg), Syla Swords (16.0 ppg) and Britt Prince (13.4 ppg) to name a few. The learning curve is always present, but recent history proves that impact doesn’t have to wait. Addie Deal is more than capable of making a big impact this season.

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Options off the Bench

SG Taylor McCabe (Sr)

2024 Numbers: 6.7 PPG, 2.4 REB, 23.5 MPG – 41.3% FG, 40.5% 3PT, 85.7% FT

Number to Know (3): Only three Hawkeyes — Caitlin Clark, Melissa Dixon, Makenzie Meyer have made 75+ three-pointers in a season for the Hawkeyes since 2010. McCabe made 68 triples and a 40.5% clip last season, including 12 games with 3+ made threes. Three-point shooting is a mild concern heading into this season, so they’ll need Taylor to lead the way again in that department. We’ve heard that she’s been hunting her shot more this offseason. Is a season with 75+ threes in the cards?

Quote from Assistant Abby Stamp: “She’s always been a really high IQ basketball player. She is executing at a very high level right now in practice and she has really improved her defensive game as well. The last couple years, knowing what she brings offensively, we kind of had to figure out where to put her to hide her on the defensive end, but she’s taken some really good strides in that area.”

“She’s really quick with her ability to get her shot off, and she’s hunting for it a lot more intentionally, rather than just taking the open one. She’s going to take some with a hand in her face and she’s going to take some coming off the screen She knows we need her to do that.”

Season Outlook: Taylor McCabe may enter this season as the most underrated player on the roster. Although she’s not underrated in the traditional sense, she started 19 games last season and hasn’t gotten much talk as a potential starter this season. All the talk and excitement has been focused on the transfer additions or the freshman class or Ava Heiden, which isn’t necessarily out of line, but but McCabe might quietly be one of the most important pieces on the roster because of what she brings to the table as a three-point shooter.

Taylor is truly one of the best pure three-point shooters in the entire country. Last season, she ranked 7th in effective field goal percentage (60.3%) amongst 164 players that attempted at least 150 threes. The Hawkeyes ranked 61st in made threes a year ago (250), but the current roster made just 188 threes last season, which would have ranked 193rd. I’ve been a proponent of getting her as many looks as possible and that might be as feasible as it’s ever been. Prior to this point, Taylor has predominantly been an open look three-point shooter. She’s always had a quick trigger, but it could finally come into play more often, as Taylor has spent the offseason working on taking contested threes and getting looks coming off of screens.

If her improvements on the defensive end have been significant enough that she can stay on the floor for 25-27 minutes a game, she should get the opportunity to eclipse last season’s 68 made three-pointers. Open looks, hand in her face, off a screen, can Taylor McCabe make 75+ threes this season?

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SF Emely Rodriguez (Soph)

2024 Numbers (UCF): 11.9 PPG, 5.3 REB, 26.4 MPG – 40.9% FG, 33.3% 3PT, 75.3% FT

Number to Know (18.0): There are bits and parts to take away from the freshman season Emely Rodriguez put together at UCF. She averaged 18.0 points per 40 minutes, but averaged 15.7 shot attempts per 40 minutes, with a 43.8% effective field goal percentage. That ranked 40th out of 47 players in the Big 12 that had a usage rate above 20%. So, what’s the takeaway? Don’t fixate on efficiency — focus on her ability to score. UCF won just six of their last 18 games last season and had 12 double-digit losses. That means a lot of forcing shots in losing efforts. With more talent around her, Rodriguez will be able to find teammates for open shots, allowing her to take smarter shots rather than any shot.

Quote from Assistant LaSondra Barrett: “She fits in really well. Probably one of the most versatile (players) on our team. Some of her strengths are, she’s really amazing in transition, she has the ability to get the rebound and push, which is really hard to guard, and create and facilitate. She’s very good off ball screens and she’s one that if you need a bucket at the end of the shot clock, you give it to her.”

“I tell her all the time, you are a triple-double waiting to happen, and she has that capability.”

“The transition (for her) is learning the system and then learning how play with other really good players. Then, her ability to defend, just trying to get her comfortable with being able to switch, if we have to switch, one through three, one through four, but she’s adjusting really well. She looked really good in our scrimmage last week.”

Season Outlook: Emely Rodriguez might be the most intriguing perimeter piece on Iowa’s roster. The UCF transfer, for lack of a better term, learned the college game in low-stakes environments. It’s not meant to be a knock on the Knights, but they went just 6-18 down the stretch, including seven losses by 20+ points. As a true freshman, Rodriguez ended up being one of UCF’s go-to options in the scoring department. Sometimes that meant pushing the envelope in attempt to chip away at a deficit. She’s had to adjust to having a Top 25 caliber roster around her, but her experience at UCF will be far from worthless. That experience gave her reps, freedom and chances to create her own looks against Power 4 defenses.

When you flip on the tape, it doesn’t take long to understand why the coaching staff wanted her on the roster. She’s not a huge three-point taker, but she can score at all three levels and rebounds very well for her position, much like Syd Affolter did. Rodriguez has the ball handling and shot creation skills to play like a third guard on the floor, while she has the size and stature to defend like a third frontcourt player. One skill that will translate immediately from her UCF days: Rodriguez knows how to get to her spots and create her own look. Late in the game or late in the shot clock, she can get you a shot and she’s not afraid to do it.

She could be the starter at the small forward spot, however, the idea of having Kylie Feuerbach in the starting lineup to set the tone defensively, with Emely as a true scoring option off the bench is hard to pass up. Her ceiling is very high, but just like any other newcomer or freshman, it’s all about how quickly she adjusts to the system that Iowa runs. If it clicks for her sooner, rather than later, Emely has a chance to be one of the more underrated transfers in the Big Ten.

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SF Taylor Stremlow (Soph)

2024 Numbers: 2.4 PPG, 2.5 REB, 2.2 AST, 14.4 MPG – 46.3% FG, 30.8% 3PT, 90.9% FT

Number to Know (5.89 and 4.41): A double-edged sword type of statistic. As a true freshman last season, Taylor Stremlow averaged 5.89 assists per 40 minutes and was fifth amongst Big Ten freshman in assist rate (23.5%). On the other side of the coin, she averaged 4.41 turnovers per 40 minutes, while her 40.5% turnover rate was second highest amongst Big Ten freshman. Her ceiling as a passer is undeniable, but cutting down on mistakes is a must this season.

Quote from Assistant LaSondra Barrett: “She’s been great. Just a joy to coach because she even helps me on the sideline. She’s like a mini coach, and I think she’s one that she adapts to everybody. I think everybody has a good response from her and her demeanor is awesome. Taylor Stremlow is going to that glue player for us because everybody looks to her during good and bad times.”

“She’s the one that, Coach Jan and the staff, we go to when our voice is not really being heard, but we need it to register to them. She’s a player that keeps your locker room tight, keeps your locker room lifted up in good times and even bad times, but Stremlow is going to probably be one of the best leaders that has ever played here.”

Season Outlook: Taylor Stremlow is one of those players you want on the floor — not just for her leadership, but also because she has a knack for making hustle plays that can swing momentum. That’s how she managed to carve out a role last season, averaging 14.4 minutes per game, despite attempting just 1.97 shots per game. She’s cut from the same cloth as Kate Martin and Syd Affolter when it comes to having that glue player type presence on the roster.

It will be interesting to see how the minutes shake out for the perimeter players. Last season, Lucy Olsen (34.0) was the only player to average 30+ minutes, which allowed the Hawkeyes to go six players deep at the 1-3 spots. They’re still six deep this year, but it feels like the exact breakdown of the minutes is far from settled.

If Stremlow wants to see her minutes increase, she needs to look for her shot a bit more, while limiting turnovers will be the biggest keys. Her shooting splits (46.3%/30.8%/90.9%) were not bad, but it came on a pretty limited sample size. Her low shot volume fit last year’s role, but a bigger role will require a bigger offensive footprint. As for the turnovers, Taylor has elite court vision but took some lumps learning what passes can and can’t be made at the collegiate level.

Her versatility — especially the ability to toggle between the three and the one — gives her a real chance to carve out minutes. Taylor will mostly play at the small forward spot, but Jan Jensen has said that she has been in the mix at point guard. I’m high on her ability to make an important impact off the bench if she can take the next step with her shooting and passing.

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G Callie Levin (Soph)

2024 Numbers: 0.2 PPG, 0.6 REB, 3.9 MPG

– The sophomore from up the road in Solon saw limited time last season as a true freshman. She provides even more depth at guard, with the ability to play the point guard or off-guard.

G Kennise Johnson (Jr)

2024 Numbers: Missed the season rehabbing from a torn ACL

– Johson has tallied just 42 minutes during her career and missed all of last season after tearing her ACL late in her freshman season.

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Final Thought on the Hawkeyes Perimeter Players

Having covered Caitlin Clark and Lucy Olsen for the last four seasons, it’s certainly different to look at the Iowa perimeter players and not see someone immediately stand out as the go-to scorer for the offense. That being said, I still feel pretty confident in saying that the parts are there, it’s just the matter of figuring out how they all fit together. What’s the minutes distribution? What are the lineup combinations? What player or two ends up emerging as the top shot takers. The quicker those questions are answered, the more likely it is that this team can reach their full potential. I expect it to take a little bit of time, just like it did for Lucy Olsen last season, but the potential this group has is undeniable.

Up Next, we take at the Hawkeyes frontcourt led by Hannah Stuelke and Ava Heiden. Can Stuelke make a successful move to the power forward spot and is Heiden ready for a breakout sophomore season?