Prior to the Big Ten opener at Rutgers, Iowa Women’s Basketball is awaiting the status of three important players. The Hawkeyes may once more be short-staffed as Iowa women’s basketball prepares for its Big Ten debut this weekend. Iowa, who are off to a strong 8-0 start, will play Rutgers, a 7-2 team that has already shown it can be dangerous, on Saturday at Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, New Jersey. The main plot point at the moment, however, is who Iowa won’t have available and whether anything will change before tipoff.
Three important sophomores, guard Chit-Chat Wright and forwards Emely Rodriguez and Teagan Mallegni, have been absent from the Hawkeyes’ last few games. As the week draws to a close, all three have been sidelined due to different medical conditions, and their availability is still uncertain.
Wright’s absence has been especially noticeable. During the second half of Iowa’s game against Baylor on November 20, the sophomore guard sustained what the team has described as an upper-body injury. She left the game early and hasn’t played since, missing games against Fairfield, Miami, and Western Illinois. Particularly as Iowa has navigated tighter-than-expected moments—like the recent scare from Fairfield—her ability to attack off the dribble and apply defensive pressure has been missed.
In Iowa’s last two games, Rodriguez and Mallegni have also been unavailable. Mallegni is recuperating from a tonsillectomy, and Rodriguez has been coping with a persistent back problem. Even though the latter isn’t an injury in the conventional basketball sense, recovery times can differ greatly, and Iowa seems to be handling her return cautiously. Head coach Jan Jensen gave the most recent, albeit constrained, update on the trio’s development on Thursday. Jensen emphasized that all three players are being evaluated every day, even though she had not yet met with the team’s medical staff that day.
Jensen remarked, “To be honest, I haven’t spoken to our trainer yet, and it’s not coach speak.” “There are various testing and protocols, and they are genuinely day-to-day when they are going to be released. I still don’t have that.
Jensen did offer a bit more insight regarding Mallegni specifically, noting that her recovery appears to be moving more slowly.
“I think we’re still a little bit a ways away with Teagan’s recovery,” Jensen said. “But I’m crossing my fingers a little bit about Chat and Emely, but it really is day-to-day and I don’t have anything yet that has come through my desk or our trainer hasn’t stopped up yet.”
All three players are still unknowns for the time being. Since Iowa’s system primarily depends on pace, spacing, and chemistry, none have practiced this week, which is typically a clear sign that a return is not imminent. Wright was listed as “questionable” in the pregame availability report prior to the Fairfield game, while Rodriguez and Mallegni were marked as “out.” In the end, none of the three were suitable. As of Thursday’s update, the Hawkeyes don’t seem ready for a significant roster change, though it’s unclear if any of those labels will change before Saturday.
Nevertheless, Iowa has managed to get by without them. Although things haven’t always gone smoothly, the team has maintained its winning streak by focusing on depth and flexibility. The Hawkeyes are in a strong position going into conference play, where consistency frequently matters more than style, thanks to their ability to grind out victories, even the ugly ones. There’s also no denying that the Big Ten competition makes things more intense. With a 7-2 start, Rutgers has demonstrated that when it’s playing well, it can run with almost anyone. The Scarlet Knights have enough shots to annoy opponents who don’t give it their all, as well as strong defense and forceful rebounding. The fact that Iowa doesn’t have three rotation players going into the game makes it even more difficult.
Tipoff is set for Saturday at 5 p.m. CT, with FS1 providing national coverage. It’s unclear if Wright, Rodriguez, or Mallegni will win, but Jensen’s tone implied that Iowa might have to rely on its remaining depth once more. Hawkeye supporters are keeping an eye on injury reports and the team’s overall progress in the interim. Despite remaining undefeated, Iowa recently fell in the AP Top 25 rankings, serving as a reminder that style points—fair or not—still have an impact on public opinion. The team recently extended an offer to 5-star 2028 recruit Khloe Nicholson, a well-known program signee is in the running for National Player of the Year fan voting, and ESPN’s updated bracketology continues to project Iowa favorably, all of which have contributed to the buzz.
But for the time being, all eyes are on Saturday and whether the Hawkeyes can maintain their perfect record while dealing with the uncertainty surrounding three key young players.
