Iowa women’s basketball preps for No. 1 Uconn

If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. Iowa is taking on reigning national champion Uconn at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Saturday.

“It’s a great opportunity to get to play the number one team in the country,” said Layla Hays, an Iowa freshman center.

“Go out there and try to enjoy the moment, and you don’t have to worry that this is your last game. So I think that is the approach we’ve been taking,” said Jan Jensen, Iowa women’s basketball’s head coach.

“I’d say it’s a good test to see where we are at in the season, and just the hype around the game,” said Chit-Chat Wright, an Iowa sophomore guard. “It’s really fun to go to New York. Not a lot of people get to go to New York and play at the Barclays Center, so it will be fun.”

Uconn on average outscores its opponents by nearly 40 points per game.

“I think this (Uconn) team has the potential to go down as one of his — Geno and Chris’ – best teams,” Jensen said. “I mean every single one of them, even the ones that come off the bench, deep down the bench are really, really good.”

Task number one for Iowa: trying to contain Sarah Strong, one of the best players in the country.

“She plays the four, then she can play the five, but she acts like a point, and that’s just something that’s very rare,” Jensen said.

Jan Jensen called Uconn a mini WNBA team.

“I think the key is really you have to stay in the moments. I know it sounds cliche, but they can turn you over so fast, Uconn, that if you don’t stay in that next play, it’s going to happen, and happen, and happen,” Jensen said. “They’re going to turn you over, turn you over, turn you over.”

The Hawkeyes are 1-1 against top 10 teams this year, and know they have a tough battle on their hands.

“I feel like UConn is a pretty good team, and we’ve been doing a good job preparing for them, so just, like, getting those reps in in practice on defense and offense,” Wright said.

Tip-off is set for 12:30 p.m.

Hawkeye Headquarters is presented by Veterans Choice Contracting LLC, your premier roofing and exterior improvement contractor.

For more Hawkeyes coverage, follow @HawkeyeHQ on Twitter and Facebook. You can find Hawkeye Headquarters at HawkeyeHQ.com all season.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com.