The 2005 Hawkeys were decimated by injury. Despite that, Lisa Bluder’s squad finished fifth in the league and earned an NCAA berth. While they have suffered another major knee injury this year, Bluder returns one of the most veteran teams in the league. They also happen to be one of the most talented. If that’s not enough to make Hawk fans smile, they are about the youngest teams in the Big 10.
Point Guard: The point guard position is in more than adequate hands. Sophomore Kristi Smith and junior Abby Emmert shared the duties last year and did well enough to allow Iowa to average over 72 points a game. Both are basketball savvy players who appear to understand well what Bluder wants from them. More importantly, both have the ability to carry out the job. Smith started the last 21 games of the year and has more potential than Emmert. She’s a better athlete and a better scorer than Emmert. She is also much better defensively. Smith is clearly the player with more potential and will continue as the starter. Emmert, while not as good, is a legitimate Big 10 point guard. While she won’t start, she will play significant minutes and will be the best back-up point guard in the league.
Bluder’s teams are always high-scoring. She appears to have the pieces in place to make a run at a championship in the next couple of seasons. She does have the point guards to do that.
Wing Positions: Overall, Iowa is a very strong team. Their one questionable area are the swing positions. Joanna Solverson was set to take over the starting shooting guard spot vacated by Crystal Smith. Her second acl injury in two years casts a major shadow over that spot. The small forward will be sophomore Wendy Ausdemore. She had a solid, largely unspectacular freshman but has the potential to be a major contributor.
The shooting guard spot is very much a question mark. Solverson was slated to move to that spot and start. As of this writing, it is not known if she will miss the entire season, or be available later. Even if she does play later in the year, she is unlikely to be 100% healthy and her effectiveness will suffer as a result.
Jenee Graham is the most intriguing prospect. She was significantly hampered by injuries in her sophomore year, but had a good freshman year and brought a solid high school resume. Freshman Zoraa Quoie and soph Lindsey Nyenhuis will both also be given chances to earn minutes.
Iowa’s offense is always high scoring. Bluder has never had problems finding players who fit into the scoring slots well. Given that history, it’s likely that one or more of the unproven players will step in and perform adequately.
Posts: OSU’s Jessica Davenport is the Big 10’s best post player, but the best post rotation will be wearing Iowa uniforms. Megan Skouby, Krista VandeVenter and Stacy Schlapkohl have all established that they are above average Big 10 players. Skouby looks like she will be one of the very best players in he league for the next three seasons.
Skouby, last season’s Big 10 Freshman of the Year, is an agile, smart 6’6 center. She has an excellent all-around offensive game and her shot-blocking ability makes her a defensive presence around the basket. She has league Player of the Year potential, but her rebounding has to improve significantly if she is to reach that status. She only averaged 5 boards a game last year. With a year under her belt, she should be physically stronger and better on the boards. That will be her main challenge.
VandeVenter is a true power forward. She’s a good defender who plays the passing lanes exceptionally well. She’s a big, strong kid who is one of the best rebounders in the league. Her weakness if offense. She has a nice touch around the basket and can hit a jump shot. But she is not aggressive enough in looking for her shot.
If Skouby can rebound better and VandeVenter scores more, this will be the best duo in the league and one of the top ones in the nation.
Their primary back-up will be 6’3 Stacy Schlapkohl. She started ahead of Skouby until she injured her knee last season. She proved that she is good enough to start for some teams in the league and she will be one of the top post players off the bench in the Big 10 this season.
There isn’t much depth beyond those three so an injury could hurt the Hawkeyes here. If the three stay healthy, they will lead the team.
Summary: In her time at Iowa, Lisa Bluder has shown that she can get the most out of her players and that her teams will score. They have not been good defensively and have not had as much talent as other programs. She has addressed the second of those issues. There is more pure talent on this team than on any of Bluder’s squad. The 2005 Hawks were also her best defensive team, although they still have much room for improvement in that area.
If the defensive improvement continues, the Hawks will be one of the league’s top teams. With Solverson as the only senior on the roster, Iowa should be able to position themselves to make a run at a championship in 2007-08.
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