By Hawk Fanatic

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Iowa women’s basketball team won’t have much time to celebrate its first Big Ten win under new head coach Jan Jensen.

The Hawkeyes will usher in the new year by facing Penn State on New Year’s Day at the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, Pennsylvania.

Wednesday’s game will be played just three days after Iowa defeated Purdue 84-63 this past Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The win over Purdue was Iowa’s first win in conference play under Jensen.

Iowa lost to Michigan State 68-66 in the Big Ten opener on Dec. 15 in East Lansing, Michigan, while Penn State is 0-2 in conference play.

Iowa has had its way with Penn State for an extended period, winning 10 straight games in the series and four consecutive games in Happy Valley.

The Nittany Lions fell to Minnesota on Sunday, 90-54. It was Penn State’s largest margin of defeat since losing to Iowa by 33 in the 2024 Big Ten Tournament.

Penn State has lost four out of its last five games.

Iowa, meanwhile, has eight players that average from 17.5 points to 5.1 points per game this season.

Villanova transfer Lucy Olsen, a 5-foot-10 graduate guard, leads the team in scoring (17.5) and with 57 assists.

Senior center Addi O’Grady, who is starting for the first time in her career, has been in double figures in 10 games this season after having just two total games scoring in double figures over her previous two seasons.

Iowa’s freshmen class is also starting to make a significant contribution, and that was especially true in the win over Purdue.

“That was a confidence builder for all of us,” said freshman guard Taylor Stremlow. “Obviously, freshman year is a lot of ups and downs. It’s a roller coaster and all of us knew that whether it’s minutes or how you perform. It’s always just hard to know what to expect.

“But this is definitely a confidence booster.”

Iowa (11-2, 1-1) vs. Penn State (9-4, 0-2)

When: Wednesday, noon.

Where: State College, Pennsylvania, Bryce-Jordan Center.

TV: BTN+

Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network

All-time series: The series is tied, 29-29. Iowa has won 10 straight against the Nittany Lions. The Hawkeyes have won four consecutive in Happy Valley.

Editor’s note: hawkeyesports.com contributed to this report.