*****Penn St vs Iowa Game Thread*****

Kceasthawk@77

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Feb 2, 2005
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Kylie will be playing again when she is healthy, and includes come March.
Oh, I'm not saying that Kylie won't be back starting when she's able, I'm saying that I think the team would be much more effective, especially on offense going forward if more of her minutes were taken by Stremlow and Deal. And Honestly if McCabe is going to go 2 for 15 or whatever she has the last two games from three then theres another place to get some minutes. I thought it was funny the announcer said she interviewed McCabe and she was pointing out she's not just a shooter, "she's a scorer". Really? A player who has made an average of ONE two point field per YEAR played? Four, now in her senior season. She shy's away from a layup like there are bamboo tiger traps in the paint.
 

KurtWarner

All-Conference
Nov 30, 2025
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She's a post in a forward's body and she's been very effective at it over the last 4 years. No matter how hard Jan and co have tried to make her a WNBA-ready 4 (and i think she has the athletic ability to do so), she's proven she doesn't have the handles or shooting ability literally anywhere off the block to do that.
Hate to dog on Hannah too much more but in all honesty she evidently hasn't worked on her game in the off season over the years. She could've been a superstar with Caitlin Clark's mentality
 
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Kceasthawk@77

All-Conference
Feb 2, 2005
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Hate to dog on Hannah too much more but in all honesty she evidently hasn't worked on her game in the off season over the years. She could've been a superstar with Caitlin Clark's mentality
I don't know if its lack of work, (effort) or just not having that skill. Some folks have that Hand/eye coordination to be good shooters and really can focus the muscle memory it takes to be a really good shooter, and some people don't. Its kind of like people saying players need to work on being quicker. There are limits to what you can do improve and I think shooting is one of those skills. Its like trying to be the kind of passer that CC22 was. You could practice that all day, and while you might improve but you'd never be able to master how her mind and IQ lets her see the play before it even develops.
 

Bradjens

All-Conference
May 20, 2006
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Great game from Deal. You can see the potential. Her ceiling is super high.
Agree she is going to be as good. She was just playing to fast. Don’t see the spin move any more that was a problem. So she is learning her form is good sooner or later she will get hot b
 

Bradjens

All-Conference
May 20, 2006
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I'm going to keep saying this, but the less Kylie plays and the more Stremlow and Deal play the better we'll be come March. Go back and look at the games she's played less and Strem and Deal have more then 10 minutes.
Competition. Kyle is the best defender but I do think it’s a problem for Jan. Lots of talent and skill sets close. I think a group of Hannah , Kylie, Deal, Stremlow and Houston full court pressing would be interesting to watch. Could be a bad but Iowa is good when the pace is good. Then go back to the normal 5. We truly have 3 capabilities at 5. So they should never get tired. Press and trap. She has the depth to do it
 

Bradjens

All-Conference
May 20, 2006
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Well she’s not a post. She’s a Forward.
True but she plays best at the 5. It usually easy, last year it was sit addy sat and then subbed for each other. The offense was much better . The problem is Ava is really good a true 5. So what does Jan do with a person who want to be a power forward but refuses to shoot when wide open from 10’feet. The o goes dead against good teams. She has no confidence at all. We all want her to shoot it but she lacks the confidence. I feel bad for her. If she won’t let it fly I think Iowa has to go back to their bread and butter. 1 in 4 out of. Gives them better ball handlers that can actually also shoot it.
 
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KurtWarner

All-Conference
Nov 30, 2025
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I don't know if its lack of work, (effort) or just not having that skill. Some folks have that Hand/eye coordination to be good shooters and really can focus the muscle memory it takes to be a really good shooter, and some people don't. Its kind of like people saying players need to work on being quicker. There are limits to what you can do improve and I think shooting is one of those skills. Its like trying to be the kind of passer that CC22 was. You could practice that all day, and while you might improve but you'd never be able to master how her mind and IQ lets her see the play before it even develops.
Think you're spot on with this. More or less you either have it or you don't
 

Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
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If JJ has unwavering devotion to playing a couple seniors who aren't a threat more than 5' from the hoop, it's gonna cost this team some games.
We know what KF's and HS's ceiling is. Stremlow/Houston/Deal need more time in critical situations.
KF is a threat beyond 5'. She's not a consistent threat, but she's 7 for 17 in the last 5 games from beyond the arc. That's an EFG% of 61%. She's also an excellent defender and has a 2.5/1 assist to turnover ratiio. Stremlow is a better overall player right now, but the difference isn't that great. You're correct about Hannah, but she's a very good defender and rebounder and consistent scorer inside. Her shooting away from the hoop and at the line is a problem. Houston is probably a better overall player right now, but again the difference isn't that great.

Deal is getting better, but she's not there yet.
 
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Anon1750875978

Heisman
Dec 26, 2018
7,389
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My argument is that if you feel Steulke/Feuerbach are fairly equal to Stremlow/Houston...you play the sophs because their upside is greater.
The seniors have peaked.
 
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Hawk14

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Jul 4, 2025
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There’s a lot that goes into team chemistry and culture. Replacing players who have given their all for the program because someone is the same as them but because they are younger is not a great culture builder. Every team has their identity. I believe the identity of our Hawkeyes has been their culture for years. Many people believe that is not important. I am a believer in this—teams can be great and win without great team culture but teams can never reach the ceiling of their greatness without great culture. I also believe that’s a huge reason why our coaches have made decisions many don’t agree with. I’m with the coaches. That’s also why I am concerned about the Emely situation.
 

The Big Z

All-Conference
Jan 5, 2023
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KF is a threat beyond 5'. She's not a consistent threat, but she's 7 for 17 in the last 5 games from beyond the arc. That's an EFG% of 61%. She's also an excellent defender and has a 2.5/1 assist to turnover ratiio Stremlow is a better overall player right now, but the difference isn't that great. You're correct about Hannah, but she's a very good defender and rebounder and consistent scorer inside. Her shooting away from the hoop and at the line is a problem. Houston is probably a better overall player right now, but again the difference isn't that great.

Deal is getting better, but she's not there yet.
Houston is not a better overall player than Stuelke. Stuelke is our leading rebounder and a 2 time all conference player. This is getting ridiculous.
 

Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
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Houston is not a better overall player than Stuelke. Stuelke is our leading rebounder and a 2 time all conference player. This is getting ridiculous.
IMO it's not as clear as you're making it out to be. Hannah is a very good player, and a good scorer inside, but she is also very limited in terms of range offensively and her free throw shooting is a liability. She is the leading rebounder as you said, but Houston actually rebounds at a higher rate. Houston has an EFG% of 60% to Hannah's 56%. Houston shoots free throws at 71% and Hannah at 50%.
 

Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
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My argument is that if you feel Steulke/Feuerbach are fairly equal to Stremlow/Houston...you play the sophs because their upside is greater.
The seniors have peaked.
I don't necessarily agree with this. More experienced players like Hannah and Kylie provide leadership and a steadiness on the court that others can't. Those are intangibles that don't get reflected in the box scores. I'm also not sure if Houston is ready mentally to take on a larger role offensively. Hannah is averaging 13.5 per game vs 4.8 for Houston. Even if you normalize the minutes Houston still scores at a much lower pace than Hannah. Add in the fact that Hannah is usually a better matchup defensively against taller players inside and the decision to take minutes away from Hannah and give them to Houston is far from clear.
 

The Big Z

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I don't necessarily agree with this. More experienced players like Hannah and Kylie provide leadership and a steadiness on the court that others can't. Those are intangibles that don't get reflected in the box scores. I'm also not sure if Houston is ready mentally to take on a larger role offensively. Hannah is averaging 13.5 per game vs 4.8 for Houston. Even if you normalize the minutes Houston still scores at a much lower pace than Hannah. Add in the fact that Hannah is usually a better matchup defensively against taller players inside and the decision to take minutes away from Hannah and give them to Houston is far from clear.
Thank you.
 

Kceasthawk@77

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Feb 2, 2005
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IMO it's not as clear as you're making it out to be. Hannah is a very good player, and a good scorer inside, but she is also very limited in terms of range offensively and her free throw shooting is a liability. She is the leading rebounder as you said, but Houston actually rebounds at a higher rate. Houston has an EFG% of 60% to Hannah's 56%. Houston shoots free throws at 71% and Hannah at 50%.
IMO it's not as clear as you're making it out to be. Hannah is a very good player, and a good scorer inside, but she is also very limited in terms of range offensively and her free throw shooting is a liability. She is the leading rebounder as you said, but Houston actually rebounds at a higher rate. Houston has an EFG% of 60% to Hannah's 56%. Houston shoots free throws at 71% and Hannah at 50%.
Exactly. When your comparing overall stats when one player plays twice as many minutes, your numbers can get skewed
 

Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
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Exactly. When your comparing overall stats when one player plays twice as many minutes, your numbers can get skewed
I don't necessarily agree with the people who are adamant that Hannah is a much better player today (statistically she's not) or those who insist that Hannah's minutes be reduced in favor of Houston. The discussion is more nuanced than that. The reason that this discussion is even being had is because of Hannah's shooting struggles, but also because Houston has just played really really well when she's been out there. With that said, it's different when you're a focus of the offense (Hannah) vs a role player who let's the game come to them and does the dirty work (Houston). Houston is also a forward who is undersized defensively underneath. Next year I think she'll be playing more of the 3 with Woliczko, Heiden, and Hayes underneath. I think Jan is doing a great job at managing all of this today.
 
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