WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
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Big Ten CommunicationsPublished: 11/28/2023, Last updated: 3/15/2024
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Big Ten Weekly Women's Basketball Central - Nov. 28-Dec. 4

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BIG TEN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL  |  BIG TEN STANDINGS  |  BIG TEN SCHEDULE & RESULTS

2023-24 BIG TEN STATISTICS (XML)  |  2023-24 BIG TEN STATISTICS (PDF) |  2023-24 BIG TEN MEDIA GUIDE

NCAA STATISTICS  |  NATIONAL TOP 25 POLLS (NOV. 27-28)

BIG TEN WEEKLY RELEASE - NOV. 28

  • The last week of action saw the Big Ten Conference pick up a pair of non-conference Top 25 victories. Indiana took down No. 19/21 Tennessee, 71-57, and Iowa took its revenge as it outlasted No. 16/22 Kansas State, 77-70. The Hawkeyes also earned a top-10 win against No. 8/5 Virginia Tech, 80-76, during the opening week of play.

  • The third Sunday of the 2023-24 season on Nov. 26 was a fun one for the Big Ten Conference, which went a perfect 6-0 against its non-conference slate.

  • This week’s schedule is highlighted by a Top 25 showdown between No. 16/13 Ohio State and No. 20/22 Tennessee on Sunday at 5 p.m. ET live on ESPN. Additionally, nine of the 14 Big Ten schools will be playing in their home arenas on Wednesday.

  • The Big Ten continues to have a steadfast presence with three Top 25 teams in the Associated Press and Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA)/USA Today polls. Iowa paces the Big Ten in the AP poll at No. 4, followed by No. 16 Ohio State and No. 17 Indiana with Penn State and Maryland receiving votes. The coaches’ poll features the same trio – Iowa (4th), Ohio State (13th) and Indiana (17th) – with Michigan and Maryland garnering votes.

  • After being named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday, Iowa senior Caitlin Clark was selected as one of five Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) on Tuesday. She added 27.3 points, 6.6 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game during Iowa’s 3-0 performance to claim the Gulf Coast Showcase title. Clark was tabbed as the tournament’s most valuable player.

  • As a team, Michigan State ranks in the top five nationally in multiple categories – 46.1 three-point percentage (1st), 52.4 field goal percentage (2nd) and 23.3 assists per game (4th). Illinois (52.2) and Iowa (51.0) check in at third and eighth, respectively, in field goal percentage while Indiana stands ninth behind 20.5 assists per game.

  • Individually, Caitlin Clark (IOWA) leads the country in assists (60), points (237) and points per game (29.6). DeeDee Hagemann (MSU) is shooting 63.2 percent from beyond the arc to claim the top spot. Natalie Potts (NEB) is second in field goal percentage (.738), followed by Hannah Stuelke (IOWA) in fifth (.717). Caroline Lau (NU) stands fifth in both assists (48) and assists per game (8.0) while Julia Ayrault (MSU) is second in blocks per game (3.0) and Ronnie Porter (WIS) is seventh in steals per game (3.83).  

  • Head coach Lisa Bluder recorded her 500th win at the helm for Iowa when the Hawkeyes handled Florida Gulf Coast, 100-62, on Nov. 25. Bluder is 501-250 (.667) in 24 seasons at Iowa and has a 40-year coaching record of 857-392 (.686). She currently ranks third in career wins among active Division I women’s college basketball coaches.

  • Iowa’s game against FGCU was a record-setting outing. With 20 three-pointers, the Hawkeyes set the second-best mark in Big Ten history and broke the school record for most made three-pointers in one game. The matchup at Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla. drew 4,287 fans, an all-time attendance record for the Gulf Coast Showcase.

  • Offensive production continues to be the story for the Big Ten Conference as seven different schools (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State and Penn State) have scored 100 points in at least one game this season. Six Big Ten teams are averaging more than 80 points per game and four of the national top 20 scoring offenses reside in the Big Ten, led by Michigan State (8th – 93.3), Iowa (10th – 90.2), Penn State (18th – 84.7) and Ohio State (20th – 84.5).

  • No. 21/19 Indiana secured an impressive non-conference 71-57 victory over No. 19/21 Tennessee on Nov. 23. It was the second time in as many years that the Hoosiers have bested the Lady Vols and the largest margin of victory (14) in the four-game all-time series. Last year’s landmark Hoosier win was the first time a Big Ten Conference school defeated Tennessee in Knoxville. As a conference, the Big Ten has won four of its last five matchups with the Lady Vols, including Ohio State’s triumph to open the 2022-23 season and Michigan’s victory in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

Around the League

  • Ohio State held Cornell to just two points in the second quarter of its Nov. 26 matchup, the lowest total of a Buckeye opponent in the second quarter in program history.

  • Purdue’s 36-point margin of victory over Southern Indiana on Nov. 26 was the second largest of head coach Katie Geralds’ tenure.

  • Mackenzie Holmes became the second player in Indiana history to score 2,000 career points after dropping 20 points against Princeton on Nov. 25.

  • Gabbie Marshall became the first Iowa women’s basketball player to record 200 three-pointers and 200 steals in a career on Nov. 24 versus Purdue Fort Wayne.