Love will be in the air and in a packed Carver-Hawkeye Arena for an Iowa-Purdue rematch

Even though there are three games in between, Iowa fans are excited for a rematch with the Purdue Boilermakers.

The first meeting between the two squads in West Lafayette was a great battle of two of the best guards in the Big Ten.

Iowa's defense clamped down on 2025 Big Ten Player of the Year Braden Smith in the first half, but got torched in the second half, as Smith finished with 16 points, and the Boilermakers came from behind to win 79-72.

Bennet Stirtz finished the game with a team-leading 19 points, but struggled shooting in the loss.

Just under a few weeks away from the Valentine's Day rematch, it was announced that there won't be an empty seat in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

CHA is sold out for the Iowa-Purdue rematch

Iowa has games against Washington, Northwestern, and Maryland before the February 14 game against Purdue, but fans were already excited for the rematch.

The Hawkeyes are playing good basketball right now, and they are currently riding a four-game winning streak ahead of an extremely late matchup with the Washington Huskies in Seattle.

Before the last matchup against the Boilermakers, I was on a two-game skid and had a massive uphill battle to upset Purdue on the road.

If Iowa can handle its business against three of the bottom teams in the Big Ten Conference before the rematch, the squad has a much better chance to knock off Purdue at home this time.

The Hawkeyes are also a much better team at home, boasting a 12-1 home record opposed to a 2-4 road record.

The table is set for another epic matchup between Iowa and Purdue on Valentine's Day, and they will battle in front of a sold-out crowd.