Quick turnaround for sliding Hawkeyes

IOWA CITY -- It's highly possible that the Iowa Hawkeyes will be playing their final ranked opponent of the women's basketball season Saturday.

That's good. And bad.

It's good, because the schedule will be easing soon. And it's bad, because time is running out for a noteworthy win.

No. 13 Purdue invades Carver-Hawkeye Arena for a 2 p.m. tipoff with the sliding Hawkeyes.

Iowa suffered its fifth loss in seven games on Thursday, a 60-53 defeat at Nebraska. The Hawkeyes went more than 12 minutes without a basket to close the first half, and couldn't recover.

There's a short turnaround before the next opportunity. The Hawkeyes (11-10 overall, 3-5 Big Ten) returned to Iowa City around midnight Thursday.

"Friday will be a lot of film, and we have to have a recovery day," Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said.

Purdue (18-3, 8-0) is on an 11-game winning streak, which included a 57-55 victory over the Hawkeyes on Jan. 15 at West Lafayette.

"We need to start winning some of these anybody-can-win type of games. They need to start sliding our way," Bluder said. "You make your own breaks, and we've got to start making some of our own breaks."

After Saturday's game, the Hawkeyes go on the road for two games against second-division teams (Wisconsin and Indiana), then return home against Minnesota and Michigan State.

PURDUE (18-3, 8-0) at IOWA (11-10, 3-5)

Where: Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa  City

Tipoff: 2 p.m. Saturday

TV: Big Ten Network

Radio: WMT-AM (600), KXIC-AM (800)

Notable: Thirteen days after edging Iowa, 57-55, in West Lafayette, the 13th-ranked Boilermakers invade Carver holding a one-game lead over Ohio State in the Big Ten race. Purdue is on the wave of an 11-game winning streak. Iowa has dropped five of its last seven games, and time is running out for a statement win that will sway the NCAA tournament committee in the Hawkeyes' favor. Brittany Rayburn leads the Boilermakers at 14.3 points per game. Iowa shot 31 percent in a 60-53 loss at Nebraska on Thursday. Jaime Printy leads the Hawkeyes at 17.8 points per game.

Next up for Iowa: at Wisconsin, 7 p.m. Thursday.

BIG TEN STANDINGS

Conf.

All

Purdue

8-0

18-3

Ohio State

7-1

20-1

Nebraska

6-2

17-3

Penn State

6-2

16-4

Michigan

5-3

16-5

Michigan State

4-4

12-9

Iowa

3-5

11-10

Minnesota

3-5

11-11

Wisconsin

3-5

7-13

Northwestern

2-6

12-9

Illinois

1-7

7-14

Indiana

0-8

5-16

SATURDAY'S GAME

Purdue at Iowa, 2 p.m.

SUNDAY'S GAMES

Nebraska at Illinois, noon

Ohio State at Minnesota, noon

Penn State at Michigan State, 2 p.m.

Indiana at Northwestern, 2 p.m.

MONDAY'S GAME

Michigan at Wisconsin, 6 p.m.