Robert Morris makes yet another Carver visit

IOWA CITY - In the last five years, no women's basketball team has visited Carver-Hawkeye Arena more than Robert Morris.

Not an in-state rival. Not a Big Ten opponent.

Nobody.

For the fourth time since 2012, Robert Morris will tangle with the Hawkeyes in a non-conference matchup. Tipoff is 7 p.m. Friday.

Iowa (7-3) is coming off spectacular outside shooting displays in consecutive victories over Northern Iowa and Iowa State. The Hawkeyes were 24 of 37 from 3-point range in those games.

'It was a mystery as to why we hadn't been shooting better before (lately),” Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said Wednesday after the Hawkeyes downed ISU, 88-76. 'It was just a matter of time.”

Tania Davis (23 points) and Kathleen Doyle (17) notched career-highs Wednesday.

Robert Morris (4-5) had dropped four consecutive games - two of them by two points each - before ending the skid Sunday against Howard, 59-42.

Located in Pittsburgh and a member of the Northeast Conference, Robert Morris is winless in its previous three trips to Carver, with all three losses between 14 and 19 points. It was 69-50 last year.

Other teams to visit Iowa City four times between the beginning of the 2012-13 season and the end of this season? Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State and Penn State.

Six of the Colonials' players are from outside the United States, including A. Niki Stamolamprou (Greece), who leads the team at 14.0 points per game.

Ally Disterhoft paces the Hawkeyes at 17.6 points per game; Megan Gustafson adds 16.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per contest.

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