The Hawkeyes are back in the NCAA Tournament for the sixth consecutive year (excluding 2020, when the postseason was cancelled) and are looking to return to the title game.
Following back-to-back title game appearances, Iowa was bounced in the second round last season and is looking to go deeper into March.
Iowa to FDU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament
The Hawkeyes earned a two-seed and welcome the 15-seed Fairleigh Dickinson Knights to Carver-Hawkeye for their first-round matchup in the Sacramento 4 Region.
Iowa hosts the first and second rounds in Iowa City and will face the Knights in its first game.
The Hawkeyes and Knights have played only once before, with the Hawkeyes winning 102-49 on November 6, 2023.
Early betting odds paint a bleak picture for FDU against Iowa in the first round
The odds are heavily in favor of the Hawkeyes, and we have all your necessary betting information above!
Getting to know the FDU Knights
Conference: Northeast
Overall record: 30-4
Conference record: 18-0
Home record: 18-1
Away record: 12-3
Neutral site record: 0-0
Head coach Stephanie Gaitley
Stephanie Gaitley is a long-time head coach with over 40 years of college head coaching experience.
After joining the Knights program in 2023, Gaitley led FDU to its best season in school history in 2024-2025 with 29 wins, surpassing that this season with 30 wins.
The Knights have now won back-to-back NEC Tournament championships and have made the NCAA Tournament for two consecutive seasons.
Gaitley holds a career record of 727-414, and her 727 wins are the fifth-most among all active Division I coaches.
Key players
- Sophomore Ava Renninger (guard): 12.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists
- Sophomore Kailee McDonald (guard): 12.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists
- Senior Madlena Gerke (guard): 11.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists
Projected starters
- No. 15: Leah Crosby (forward)
- No. 21: Rebecca Osei-Owusu (forward)
- No. 24: Kailee McDonald (guard)
- No. 4: Ava Renninger (guard)
- No. 0: Madlena Gerke (guard)
Potential problems for Iowa
Two areas where FDU really excel are shooting three-pointers on offense and clamping down on defense.
The Knights play a smaller, guard-heavy starting lineup and love to hoist three-point shots. They make an average of 9.3 three-point baskets per game, which is No. 9 overall in Division I.
They also get it done on the defensive end, and while the numbers are skewed by the conference they play in, the Knights have held opponents to 51.3 points per game, which ranks No. 3 overall in Division I.
Where Iowa can take advantage
With such a small lineup, FDU will have a hard time guarding the paint against the Hawkeyes with their big front court of Ava Heiden (six-foot-four) and Hannah Stuelke (six-foot-two).
This plays right into what Iowa wants to do, and we should expect to see a lot of paint touches in this game.
FDU also plays one of the slowest offensive brands in Division I, and if the Hawkeyes can force some turnovers and speed up the game, it will get out of hand early.
Keys to victory
- Do what you do best: force the ball inside to Heiden and Stuelke on offense
- Limit turnovers
- Run them off the three-point line