A long season tests every team. There are moments when you have to forget what just happened, whether it was a win or a loss, and move on quickly. For Iowa women’s basketball, the margin for error just vanished. As they process the season-ending loss of Taylor McCabe, they also know the upcoming LA stretch could define their season.

Iowa’s Los Angeles swing opens with a January 29 matchup at USC, where the Hawkeyes will look to extend their unbeaten start to Big Ten play. They enter the week with an 18–2 overall record.

This stretch may be one of the toughest Iowa has faced under head coach Jan Jensen. No conference team has completed a clean sweep of the California trip, and with UCLA looming next, the margin for error is almost nonexistent. That makes this game a must-win for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa vs USC: Where to watch

Date: Thursday, January 29, 2026
Time: 8 p.m. CT.
Venue: Galen Center, Los Angeles, California
Watch on: Peacock/NBCSN
Streaming: Fubo

Iowa vs USC: Injury Report

Iowa Hawkeyes

• Taylor McCabe- OUT

USC Trojans 

• JuJu Watkins – OUT

Probable Starting Lineups

Iowa Hawkeyes

• Hannah Stuelke
• Ava Heiden
• Chazadi Wright
• Addie Deal
• Kylie Feuerbach

USC Trojans

• Vivian Iwuchukwu
• Jazzy Davidson
• Kennedy Smith
• Malia Samuels
• Kara Dunn

Prediction: Can Iowa keep its unbeaten run alive

Jan Jensen and her team have raced out to a program-best 9–0 start in Big Ten play, something Iowa never achieved even during the Caitlin Clark era. Slowly but surely, the Hawkeyes are shaping up to be a team to beat. Still, the loss of starting guard Taylor McCabe looms large.

The day after Iowa’s 91–70 win over Ohio State, emotions ran high at practice as McCabe tearfully told her teammates that her playing career was over. Her calm presence helped keep a young roster grounded.

The Hawkeyes have won eight straight games, a stretch that included top-15 wins over Michigan State, Maryland, and Ohio State in the span of a single week. With that momentum, Iowa will enter its matchup against USC as the favorite. Without JuJu Watkins, scoring has become a major concern for the Trojans.

USC ranks 17th in the conference in effective field goal percentage (45.2%) and is averaging only 63.9 points per game over its last seven outings. Those offensive struggles have fueled a 3–6 conference record and pushed the Trojans out of the Top 25 rankings.

USC has struggled mightily in the new year, going 1–6 with its only win coming against Purdue. Five of those losses– against Oregon, Minnesota, Maryland, Michigan State, and Michigan–have come by seven points or fewer, while UCLA handed the Trojans a blowout defeat.

Despite solid contributions from Jazzy Davidson and Kara Dunn, USC has struggled offensively, averaging 68.5 points per game. Iowa, by comparison, is scoring 81 points per contest. Defensively, the gap is narrower, with the Hawkeyes allowing 63 points per game while the Trojans hold opponents to 59.9.

Despite the numbers favoring Iowa, ESPN has USC listed as the slight favorite, giving the Trojans a 53.1% chance of winning. That likely reflects the fact that Iowa will be without its starting guard and playing on the road. Even so, this feels like a game the Hawkeyes should win and extend their all-time series lead to 6–1.

What do you think? Who wins this matchup? Let us know in the comments below.