WBB: Iowa freshman diving right in

NORTH LIBERTY - The last month has been about five years in the making for Alexa Kastanek.

The Iowa basketball program surprised with her with a scholarship when she was in eighth grade at Lincoln, Neb.

“I was just looking at campuses and stuff, I wasn't expecting to get any (offers),” she said. “But they knew I had potential. I was really grateful for that.”

The offer made an impression on Kastanek. She committed to the Hawkeyes as a junior all-state guard, choosing Iowa over Nebraska. She's had her first taste of playing with the Hawkeyes this summer in the Game Time League, where she's teamed with star point guard Sam Logic. Kastanek led her team in scoring Wednesday night with 27 points in a 77-71 win.

Logic said getting a chance to connect on the court with one of the Hawkeyes' pair of ESPN Top 100 recruits - the other is Iowa City West product Ally Disterhoft - has been beneficial. She found Kastanek on a few drive-and-dish 3-pointers Wednesday night.

“It's good to play with one of our freshmen, get in a rhythm with them,” Logic said. “It's good to get used to her game. ... She works her butt off on defense, and I'm really impressed by that.”

“I'll be playing with Sam throughout the year, so it's great to know what her strengths are and how to fit in,” Kastanek said. “Third game of the summer, and we're really starting to mesh.”

The 5-10 wing player didn't play summer ball last year. She had knee surgery to repair cartilage and missed almost 50 games with her summer club team. That didn't weaken her standing with the Hawkeye coaching staff, who guided her through the injury.

“I never worried, because the coaches were like, ‘Let's just clean it up so we don't have to worry about it,'” she said. “They helped me through it. They told me, ‘You look great cheering on the bench!' It was nice to have their support through it.”

Kastanek is taking advantage of the chance to play this summer. She throws herself at loose balls, came up with multiple steals Wednesday night, and gets out on the fast break, impressing Logic with “so much hustle.”

That's what the freshman will rely on to carve out minutes in her first season.

“I'm just working hard, and hopefully the coaches will see that and it'll get me where I want to be,” she said. “I can bring a lot of energy, and defense.”